NBA champion and “Survivor” contestant Scot Pollard is “awake and feeling good” a day after he underwent a heart transplant, the wife said Saturday on social media.
“Scot has a new heart!” posted Dawn Pollard on the social networking site X, formerly known as Twitter, on Friday. “Surgery went well and I’m told the heart is big, powerful and perfect for him! Now on to the crucial part of recovery.”
On Saturday he gave an update and wrote: “See who is awake and feeling good! He had his breathing tube removed this morning and started cracking jokes and singing, ‘I left my heart in San Fran-Nashville.’ We are amazed at Scot’s recovery so far!”
Pollard, who turned 49 on Monday, needed a transplant because of a virus he had in 2021 that possibly triggered a genetic condition he was aware of because it led to his father’s death at age 54, when Scott was 16. Pollard’s height complicated finding a donor because he needed a heart large enough for his 6-foot-2, 230-pound frame.
On Friday, Dawn Pollard posted that they had found a heart.
“It’s time!” she posted on X. “Please continue to pray for Scot, the surgeons, the donor and the family who lost their loved one. The donor gave us the most incredible gift of life and we will be forever grateful.”
Pollard was a first-round pick in 1997 after helping Kansas reach the NCAA Tournament Round of 16 four years in a row. He was a utility reserve most of his NBA career that spanned 11 years with five teams. He played 55 seconds in the NBA Finals with the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2007 and won it all the following year with the Boston Celtics despite suffering an ankle injury in February that sidelined him.
Pollard retired after that season and went on to a career as an analyst and in acting. He participated in the 32nd season of “Survivor.”
Last month Pollard made his condition known and began the process of getting on the list at transplant centers. He entered intensive care at Vanderbilt University Medical Center on Feb. 7.
“I’m staying until I get my heart,” he said in a text message to The Associated Press from his hospital room in Tennessee. “My heart got weak. Doctors agree it’s the best way to get a heart.”