A motorcycle accident in Risan, Montenegro landed NBA Hall of Famer Vlade Divac in surgery on Thursday. Doctors gave him an artificial hip during the emergency operation. Hospital spokesperson Ljubica Mitrovic told Yahoo Sports that the 57-year-old is now doing fine.
The accident happened near his hometown of Prijepolje, Serbia, while Divac was visiting Montenegro. Before his 16-year NBA career, the basketball legend got his start playing in Yugoslavia.
In 1989, the Lakers picked up the massive 7-foot-1 center in the first round of the NBA Draft. During his time with the Lakers, Hornets, and Kings, he put up impressive numbers: 11.8 points and 8.2 rebounds per game.
His NBA achievements put him in rare company. Just six other players have reached his combination of 13,000 points, 9,000 rebounds, 3,000 assists, and 1,500 blocks.
Internationally, Divac shined bright. He won two Olympic silver medals with Yugoslavia in '88 and '96. He grabbed gold at the 1990 World Championships and won the European Championships in '89 and '91.
He got recognized twice for his basketball greatness - first with a 2010 FIBA Hall induction, then with Naismith honors in 2019. These awards show how much he meant to basketball on both sides of the Atlantic.
After retiring as a player, he moved to the front office. The Kings hired him as GM in March 2015. He stayed until August 2020, with a disappointing 40.2% win rate and no playoff appearances.
His biggest misstep came during the 2018 draft. He chose Marvin Bagley III instead of Luka Dončić - a decision that didn't work out when Dončić became an NBA superstar.
