OT - Sad Turn of Events for NBA Prospect Isaiah Austin
With just four days before the 2014 NBA Draft, former Baylor C Isaiah Austin was diagnosed with Marfan Syndrome, ending his potential NBA career before it could even start. The genetic condition was discovered during pre-draft medical evaluations. Austin came out of HS as the #4 player in the country (to Rivals) and played two solid, if unspectacular, seasons at Baylor. Prior to his sophomore season, Austin acknowledged that he's blind in his right eye, making his ascension towards the NBA even more impressive. Now it's all over before he got his chance. Terrible, sad turn of events; that being considered, he seems to be handling it with maturity, per his tweets quoted in the article linked below.
anything official on it, so I didn't want to put it in the OP, but it sounds like Baylor has offered him a spot on the coaching staff. Smart move on their part as he obviously knows basketball and should have excellent life advice to offer.
Copying and pasting a Wikipedia article seems tacky to me.
Typical blog etiquette is difficult to manage on a phone, so no big deal and thanks for the information. We can let it stand as is this time, I would think (also, I am watching the Tigers game and not inclined to make edits that would be required).
As for Austin, that has to be crushing - never like to see stories of people who dream was ended before it even had a chance to begin. However, he did have something very hopeful to say all the same, from the Baylor official feed:
"I'm sorry (my supporters) couldn't see me play in the NBA. But it's not the end, it's only the beginning." - @IsaiahAustin
— Baylor Basketball (@BaylorMBB) June 22, 2014
Good luck to him in everything that he pursues.
I appreciated the fact that it was posted in the thread.
This comment seems tacky to me.
I mean, it's Wikipedia. I see your point, but it's not really an issue.
This is really sad news. I hope Baylor did offer him a coaching spot.
don't, he needs to be allowed to finish his degree for free. He meant a lot to their team and their program over the last two or three years. Baylor would lose zero dollars off of letting him finish school.
It's very difficult to understand how this wasn't even on the differential diagnosis until now. Marfan's is elementary Med School 101. More yet, Austin's past medical history and physical exam extend well beyond the characteristic and into the pathognomonic.
A baseless suspicion I have is that Baylor knew, that Isaiah knew, but that they conspired to hide it**, weighing the costs of continued play against the benefits of getting into the NBA, gambled, and came "this close" to winning everything. No matter the verity of that, I wish him the best. It's a powerful story.
**(and why should that be so bad, anyway? A case like that might not invoke "informed consent" but it sure would call up "informed refusal" at which point a healthy-minded patient has every right to [a] make his own decision and to [b] have his records held strictly privately)
I'm all for letting him finish school at the school's expense (and I suspect the school is, too--do you have any reason to think they aren't going to extend a scholarship?) but Marfan is serious business Playing college basketball could quite possibly kill him.
It's extremely dangerous for someone with this condition to be playing sports. As mentioned, the aorta is one of the most prevalent problem areas with MF. He's much more likely than the average person to have an aneurysm. Also, the vision problems associated with MF are a b****. The reason I know this is because I have it as well. Wooo