RIP Kevin Duckworth

That's horrible.

 

Any news on the COD?

 

Wow. Never expected this.

I'd guess the heart would be COD, but who knows for sure.

 

As a Warrior fan, I disliked the Blazers but appreciated how good they were. Buck Williams, Porter, Clyde the Glide, Kersey and Duckworth.

Duckworth had soft hands with a big body. Seemed like a nice guy too.

Heard he was doing an NBA event too. Much too soon.

 

news just now didn't say, tom ... but video of the guy from his last basketball clinic the other day showed he was huge. just seeing the guy walking down the street, most folks would never guess he was once a basketball player.

 

I saw him play at the local university when I was 12. Here's their story and dedication.

http://www.eiupanthers.com/News/mbball/2008/8/26/08_duckworth_story.asp

 

Duck will be missed.

 

Was at EIU when they retired his jersey and when he went into the school's HOF. Never heard anyone say a bad word about him. Gave EIU alums plenty of reasons to be proud ... and another reason to root against the Pistons when they met in the finals.

RIP, Duck.

 

Damn, RIP...

I'm the same age.

 

Here's a somewhat recent pic posted through google of Duckworth. Being a huge Trailblazers fan as a kid, I got bored one day and googled some of that 1989-1990 Blazers team to see what they were up to lately. It amazed me how much Duck had ballooned up.

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_kVM5m1zqBvo/R26jRfVuzcI/AAAAAAAAAkM/nNSxmfb9m8c/S1050082.JPG

 

duck got big before he left the league.

 

In general, obesity is a leading cause of heart problems, but there's much more to consider.

Let's not forget Marfan Syndrone. It's a distinct possibility for someone who was a 7-footer. In doing a Google search, I found out Michael Phelps has this. I didn't realize that. I don't know whether Duckworth had it, but it should at least be considered.

Also, athletes are prone to enlarged, thickened hearts.

Here's a press release from John Hopkins on the subject:

http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/Press_releases/2008/05_15a_08.html

Of special note is this line:

"African-Americans are more vulnerable, with two to three times the rate of sudden cardiac death than in whites."

Of course, Doc would have much better knowledge of this stuff. I just want folks to realize that it's not necessarily cheeseburgers that kill every person who is overweight.