Former NBA standout and Wake Forest star Rodney Rogers died on Friday at the age of 54, his family announced. Rogers played 12 NBA seasons, averaging 10.9 points and 4.5 rebounds per game over his career, and earned the league’s Sixth Man of the Year honor in 2000 as a member of the Phoenix Suns.
Rogers died from “natural causes related to the spinal cord injury” he sustained in a 2008 ATV accident, his wife, Faye, said in a statement.
Rogers was a two-time All-ACC player at Wake Forest, was the league’s player of the year in 1993 and has his No. 54 retired by the Demon Deacons. The ninth overall pick of the Denver Nuggets in the 1993 NBA Draft, the former McDonald’s All-American played two seasons with Denver bringing his best years came over stretch with the Los Angeles Clippers from 1995-99. He later spent parts of three seasons with the Suns and had stints with the New Jersey Nets, New Orleans Hornets and Philadelphia 76ers,
On Nov. 28, 2008, a few years after he retired from the NBA, Rogers was injured in an ATV accident in his native North Carolina and was paralyzed from the shoulders down.
“The last 18 years have been both challenging and profoundly blessed. Through every moment, Rodney remained a light — positive, motivated and full of the quiet strength that inspired everyone around him,” Faye Rogers said.
The NBA’s official statement on Rogers’ death touched on his perseverance off the court.
“The NBA family is deeply saddened by the passing of Rodney Rogers,” the statement read. “Rodney earned the Sixth Man of the Year Award while playing for the Phoenix Suns and was a beloved teammate during his 12-year NBA career. He will be remembered not only for his achievements on the court but also for the extraordinary resilience, courage and generosity that he demonstrated throughout his life — qualities that inspired so many. We send our heartfelt condolences to Rodney’s wife, Faye,…
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