Former NBA star Scot Pollard. He was admitted to the intensive care unit of a Tennessee hospital on Tuesday, where he will likely remain until he receives the necessary heart transplant.
first Kings of Sacramento The center revealed in a recent interview with The Associated Press that he was admitted to Vanderbilt University Medical Center's ICU this week, where he will remain until he can be matched with a donor amid a recent decline in his health.
Former King Scot Pollard addresses fans before the San Antonio Spurs game at Sleep Train Arena on February 27, 2015 in Sacramento. (Rocky Widner/NBAE via Getty Images)
“I'm staying here until I have a heart,” he told the outlet via text message Wednesday night. “My heart became weak. (Doctors) agree that this is my best chance to get my heart racing.”
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At 48 years old, the 11-year NBA veteran said his health has been a concern of his for a long time, and the same thing that helped propel him into his professional career – his height – is precisely what has made him find a suitable donor a challenge.
“You don't see a lot of old (7-) players walking around. So I've known that my whole life, just because I had that burned into my brain when I was 16, that… yeah, being tall is cool, but “I'm not going to make it to 80.”
According to the AP, Pollard's poor health is due to a genetic condition that was likely caused by a virus he contracted in 2021. The condition causes his heart to beat 10,000 times faster a day. It is the same condition that his father had, who died when Pollard was 16 years old.
Scot Pollard of the Indiana Pacers drives to the basket around Rasheed Wallace of the Detroit Pistons at the Palace of Auburn Hills on February 23, 2006, in Auburn Hills, Michigan. (Allen Einstein/NBAE via Getty Images)
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Pollard's size, nearly 7 feet tall and around 260 pounds, makes it more difficult to find a heart that can support him. The reality of what a transplant means makes it even more challenging.
“The fact is that person will end up saving someone else's life. They will be a hero,” he told the AP. “That's how I see it. I understand what has to happen to get what I need. So it's a really tough mix of emotions.”
Pollard said doctors have told him that the medications and three ablations that you have had will not solve the situation.
“We need a transplant.”
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Pollard told the outlet that while doctors can't say for sure, they expect him to receive a transplant “in weeks, not months.”
Scot Pollard of the Kings smiles before a game against the Portland Trail Blazers circa 1999 at Arco Arena in Sacramento. (Rocky Widner/NBAE via Getty Images)
A first-round draft pick out of Kansas in 1997, Pollard played for five NBA teams over 11 seasons, most notably with the Kings and the Indiana Pacers. He retired in 2008 after one year with the Boston Celtics.
Celts He would win the NBA Championship that year, but Pollard suffered an ankle injury in February that would sideline him for the remainder of that season.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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