Austin gets medical OK to resume playing
WACO — Former Baylor standout Isaiah Austin has been cleared to play basketball again, 2½ years after he was diagnosed with Marfan syndrome during a physical before the NBA draft.
Austin revealed on his Instagram account this week that his doctor has given him the go-ahead to again pursue his dream of playing professional basketball. The 7-1 Austin said he has been getting checkups, including heart monitoring, since the diagnosis before the 2014 draft when he was a potential first-round draft pick.
Marfan syndrome is a genetic disorder that affects the body’s connective tissue. It can affect many different parts of the body, including the aorta, the blood vessel that carries blood from the heart to the rest of the body.
Austin, 23, who has relied on his strong Christian faith, said he is moving forward “with pure joy” to chase his dream and share his testimony.
Austin had succeeded at Baylor in the Big 12 Conference with a prosthetic right eye only to find out days before the draft that he had the rare disorder that could affect his heart. NBA scouts already had been aware that he was blind in his right eye from a previous injury aggravated doing a dunk in middle school. Multiple operations could not fix the detached retina and save his vision.
After his Marfan syndrome diagnosis, Austin still got to hear his name called at the NBA draft. He was made a ceremonial pick midway through the first round and presented an NBA cap by commissioner Adam Silver.
Since then, Austin has worked to raise awareness of Marfan syndrome through his foundation. He also wrote a memoir that was published last year and is enrolled parttime at Baylor and on track to graduate next summer, depending on what happens with his basketball career.
PRO BASKETBALL Sun’s Ogwumike has more surgery
Connecticut Sun forward Chiney Ogwumike underwent Achilles tendon surgery after hurting her left leg playing in China last month.
The operation was Wednesday, and the recovery period from such a procedure is typically six to nine months.
Ogwumike, who is from Houston, missed all of the 2015 season while recovering from surgery on her right knee. She bounced back last season to win Associated Press Comeback Player of the Year honors. She averaged 12.6 points and 6.7 rebounds for the Sun.
In China, she averaged 33.6 points and 12.4 rebounds for Henan Yichuan.
FOOTBALL Ex-Jets player McKnight killed
Joe McKnight, who played three seasons for the New York Jets and was a standout at the University of Southern California, was fatally shot in Louisiana.
McKnight, 28, was shot “multiple times,” Col. John N. Fortunato, a spokesman for the Jefferson Parish Sheriff ’s Office, said.
The shooting occurred around 2:45 p.m. in Terrytown, La., about five miles southeast of New Orleans, the sheriff ’s office said in a statement. McKnight was pronounced dead at the scene.
It was not clear what led up to the shooting, Fortunato said. Local news reports described the shooting as related to an episode of road rage, but Fortunato said that had not been confirmed.
Ronald Gasser, 54, was taken into custody at the scene and was being questioned by detectives, the sheriff ’s office said.
The Jets, for whom McKnight played from 2010 to 2012, wrote on Twitter: “Rest in peace, Joe McKnight. Our thoughts and condolences are with his loved ones.”
McKnight is the second former NFL player this year to die in the New Orleans area as a result of a possible road-rage incident. Former New Orleans Saints player Will Smith was killed in April in a shooting that was sparked over a traffic altercation.
MISCELLANEOUS SI selects James ’16 Sportsperson
LeBron James was chosen Sports Illustrated’s Sportsperson of the Year after leading the Cavaliers to an NBA title and ending Cleveland’s 52-year championship drought.
James rallied the Cavs in the NBA Finals to defeat Golden State, which won 73 games during the regular season. James was selected finals MVP for the third time in his career after Cleveland became the first team to overcome a 3-1 deficit.
James, 31, has won three league MVPs. He returned to Cleveland in 2014 after four seasons in Miami, where he led the Heat to four straight finals and two titles..
James joins Tigers Woods as the only twotime winners of the award.
MOTOR SPORTS Monster Energy, NASCAR unite
NASCAR announced an agreement with Monster Energy that makes the energy drink maker the title sponsor of its top series in 2017, ending a lengthy process of finding a replacement for Sprint.
NASCAR chairman Brian France declined to provide financial details or the length of the deal, saying it was a “complicated agreement” that includes option years. It was believed to be for less money than Sprint’s multimilliondollar sponsorship.
“It’s a different kind of agreement, for sure, in that is has activation in different ways and media in different ways,” France said at a news conference with the NASCAR and Monster logos serving as a backdrop. “But we’re quite pleased with the agreement and there will be no changes at all (to operations budgets). In fact, I think you’ll see some additional activation and additional things that will occur.”
France indicated NASCAR still is in discussions with the Corona, Calif.based Monster Beverage Corp. on the exact name of the 2017 Cup series.
Cellular company Sprint’s 13-year run as title sponsor ended last month.