In the wake of the recent deaths of Daryl Dawkins and Moses Malone, Mark Cuban is trying to do something to help out former NBA players:
Every former Maverick can receive a free heart exam, on his dime, the Mavericks’ announced.“We have had several tragedies in the NBA family recently with the passing of several legends at a young age,” Cuban said.
“The Mavs want to be proactive to inform and educate our alumni about potential health concerns they may face as they age. To this end, we will be paying for advanced screening for heart disease for our former Mavs over the age of 50.”
The Mavericks’ organization is contacting all 33 former players to arrange a doctor’s appointment near the player’s home and cover the costs of the screening if interested. The screening consists of an EKG, stress echo, blood profile and office visit.
The Mavericks are not paying for any follow-up care if these tests find something wrong, just to be clear. The hope is that the players have their own insurance, or the Mavs can help them find some.
It’s a good step. One the NBA and players union should have combined to make available to all NBA players years ago, but we’ll take the progress as it comes.