Once an NBA cult hero, Scot Pollard dominated the NBA’s heights for over a decade, and even got a championship ring as a reward as he was part of Boston‘s last championship in 2008. Standing at six-foot-eleven, his size and power were his main assets, but now they seem to challenge his own survival.
The 48-year-old is in need of a heart transplant, which seems to be quite the challenge considering that he needs a few donors to be able to supply enough blood to support his big body. While he waits, he’s been admitted to intensive care at a hospital in Nashville, Tennessee this Tuesday.
“I’m staying here until I get a heart,” the former athlete told the press on Wednesday night. “My heart got weaker. [Doctors] agree this is my best shot at getting a heart quicker.”
Former Boston Celtics champion Scot Pollard waits in hospital for heart transplant https://t.co/HLEP7iOtKY
— Boston 25 News (@boston25) February 8, 2024
As Pollard weighs 260 pounds, his size rules out most potential donors for a heart. The patient’s entire family suffers this same genetic condition, as half his siblings have endured this, including his father who died at 54.
“That was an immediate wake-up call,” Scot said via telephone. “You don’t see a lot of old [7-footers] walking around. So I’ve known that my whole life, just because I had that seared into my brain as a 16-year-old, that — yeah, being tall is great, but I’m not going to see 80.”
Once a 1997 first-round pick, the former athlete was a very useful center who would normally come off the bench and contributed to five different franchises during his 11-year career. Pollard retired after winning the title with the Celtics and then dedicated himself to broadcasting and acting.
Even though his father died when he was only 16 and he was aware of his family’s condition, he didn’t become truly aware of it until it began to affect his quality of life three years ago. “It feels like I’m walking uphill all the time,” he said while telling the interviewer he might need to hang up the phone if he felt too tired.
Pollard’s survival is depending on the donor networks, as no doctor or surgical procedure can help him at this point
When a patient needs an organ transplant, he must go through a complex donor system that tries its best to match the person with what the recipient needs. Scot is at a point where his life depends on finding this match, as there is no medical procedure that can help with without the transplant.
“It’s out of my hands. It’s not even in the doctor’s hands,” the big man explained. “It’s up to the donor networks. It’s increasing my odds at the casino by going to as many casinos at the same time as possible.”
Pollard first stayed at the Ascension St. Vincent Hospital in his hometown in Indiana, but then last week had to do some tests at the University of Chicago. He then traveled this week to Vanderbilt in Indiana, which is one of the facilities in the United States that performs most heart transplants.
“They can’t predict, but they are confident I’ll get a heart in weeks not months,” he answered via text.”The fact is, that person’s going to end up saving someone else’s life. They’re going to be a hero. That’s how I look at it. I understand what has to happen for me to get what I need. So it’s a real hard mix of emotions.”
