Jason leaves behind a wife, Katy, and a 1-year-old daughter, Emma, who will never have known her daddy. "Jason was in our training camp [before the 2003-04 season] and we rode together to practice every day. What I remember most is how excited he was about becoming a father." -- Fred Hoiberg God be with the Collier family now and forever.
Collier autopsy to remain private until after funeralAssociated Press ATLANTA -- Jason Collier's family asked that results of his autopsy be kept private until after Wednesday's funeral. Collier Collier, the Atlanta Hawks' 28-year-old center, died early Saturday after he had trouble breathing in his north Georgia home. "We need to make sure we're very thorough with this," Forsyth County Coroner Lauren McDonald III said Monday. "It's a situation that may take time. I really don't want to say too much until after the service, out of respect for the family, as far as talking about the results. They would appreciate if we could not discuss that aspect until after the service." On Monday in Charlotte, N.C., Collier's uniform hung in an empty locker as the Hawks lost a preseason game to the Charlotte Bobcats. The team said it will leave the uniform in the locker and set out a chair for Collier before each game. Players will wear permanent black shoulder patches on their uniforms to honor Collier, who was a part-time starter the last two seasons for Atlanta after three years in Houston. He began his college career at Indiana before transferring to Georgia Tech. McDonald said his office is pulling Collier's medical records from the Rockets and Hawks and forwarding that information to the pathologist. Foul play is not a suspected cause of death, he said. "There is not anything that would cause anyone to think there was any foul play," McDonald said. "I look at this guy as being as healthy as can be. It shocked me and shocked the family and of course the sports community. We want to make sure we do this very thoroughly, just as on any 28-year-old you would want to know, even if he wasn't in the good health Mr. Collier was." McDonald originally indicated results of the autopsy could be available Saturday night or Sunday. On Sunday he said it would be at least Monday before the results would be released. "We want to make sure we give you the correct answers," McDonald said. "We're just asking for everyone to be patient." http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=2194136
RIP. It makes you think even more when he is born in the same year... At least heart attack is not painful and horrible way. Cannot imagine sadness in his family though... My condolences.
wish him well i mean, and for his wife and little girl... i would contribute $20 to the website if you get banned...
Guys, he's a troll... he's got 2 posts in years... it'd be nice if you'd just ignore the post and move on.
Exactly, ignore him...I got to watch Collier play in college...I was a freshman when he was a senior and he was one of the nicest guys on the basketball team. Acted down to earth, didn't have a big ego like most college and even high school bball players have now...was a true class act. Not only a great college basketball player but a great student and person. Truely will be missed.
I read somewhere some Rockets are also dealing with losing Jason Collier. I remembered Yao said he remembered Jason took him out to a Rock n Roll bar on the road on his rookie year. Yao was very shocked when heard of Collier's death.
Here Is A Touching Jason Collier Tribute Video From Hawks.Com That Some People May Enjoy Viewing http://boss.streamos.com/wmedia/nba/teams/hawks/collier_tribute.asx Jason Collier Tribute Video Tribute To Jason Collier: A husband, a father, a teammate, a friend. Remembering #40.
http://sports.myway.com/news/11012005/v6587.html Autopsy Shows Collier Had Enlarged Heart Nov 1, 4:40 PM (ET) By CHARLES ODUM DECATUR, Ga. (AP) - Atlanta Hawks center Jason Collier died from a sudden heart rhythm disturbance caused by an abnormally enlarged heart, an autopsy showed. The state's chief medical examiner, Dr. Kris Sperry, said his testing showed that electrocardiograms administered to Collier in 2003 and this year showed "some indication of electrical abnormalities." "Looking at them now, and in retrospect in knowing what's going on with his heart, the abnormalities may have been associated with what we found in examining his heart," Sperry said. He said that he had no evidence that the 28-year-old Collier was informed there was anything wrong with his heart. Collier's wife said he had never been told of a reason for concern, Sperry said. Collier's father, Jeff, did not immediately return a phone message left at his Springfield, Ohio, home seeking comment Tuesday. He told The Associated Press after his son's death that his son did not have any diagnosed health problems besides past injuries to his knees. The 7-foot Collier, who played at Georgia Tech, was with the Hawks for two years after spending three years with the Houston Rockets. He died after having trouble breathing in his suburban Atlanta home. Sperry indicated that the family has concerns about the medical tests in 2003 and 2005 and "when we get all the findings back I think the family will have some of those examined in closer detail, based upon the results." Sperry did not say that the Hawks or Rockets were negligent in clearing Collier to play in the NBA. He said an enlarged heart can be very difficult to detect, especially due to Collier's size. But he said the player's heart "was above the accepted limits, even for a man of his size." He said the organ was about one and a half times the size it should have been. "We have the unfortunate advantage of taking the heart out and weighing it," Sperry said. Sperry also said that the electrical abnormalities could have been a reason for further testing. "If it were me, I would have wanted more studies done to clarify what those abnormalities meant in light of the fact Jason was an athlete," he said. The autopsy was conducted by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, which performs all Forsyth County autopsies, GBI spokesman John Bankhead said. The Hawks left Atlanta on Tuesday for Oakland, where they open their season Wednesday night against the Golden State Warriors. The players are wearing black shoulder patches on their uniforms to honor Collier, who was a part-time starter. He began his college career at Indiana before transferring to Georgia Tech. The Hawks will leave Collier's uniform in his locker through the season.
