Mookie Blaylock critical after crash
Former NBA All-Star guard Mookie Blaylock was in critical but stable condition in an Atlanta hospital on Friday night after an auto accident earlier in the day.
According to Clayton County (Ga.) police, the collision involved a van and an SUV driven by Blaylock, 46, that burst into flames at impact. Blaylock was airlifted to Atlanta Medical Center, where he was placed on life support initially but was taken off it Friday night, police told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
A man and woman in the van also were hospitalized. The woman was in critical condition with internal bleeding, the Journal-Constitution reported.
Blaylock's Cadillac Escalade crossed over a median and struck the van around noon Friday. A family member told the newspaper that Blaylock had been treated for seizures.
Blaylock's 13-year NBA career included one All-Star Game appearance in 1994. A first-round pick out of Oklahoma in the 1989 NBA Draft, Blaylock played seven seasons with the Atlanta Hawks and also with the Nets and Golden State Warriors.
"Our thoughts are with Mookie Blaylock, who is in the hospital tonight after a car crash," the Hawks wrote on Twitter.
Known as a defensive specialist, Blaylock averaged 13.5 points, 6.7 assists and 2.3 steals in 889 games. He remains the Hawks' career leader in steals after leading the NBA in two seasons in that category.
