Caleb Swanigan, former Portland Trail Blazers and Sacramento Kings player, died at age 25 on Monday. The American media had often told of his trajectory from homeless shelters to the highest level in the NBA.
American basketball mourns one of its former players. Caleb Swanigan died aged just 25 on Monday. According to several media, the causes of his death are of natural origin. Swanigan had shone on Purdue’s varsity team for two seasons (averaging 14.4 points per game) between 2015 and 2017. He made it to the NBA draft in 2017 and was picked 26th overall. by the Portland Trail Blazers franchise. He played there two seasons before an adventure with the Sacramento Kings, then a return to the Oregon franchise in 2020, averaging 2.3 points and 2.9 rebounds per game.
He played his last game with the Blazers on March 10, 2020. According to CBS Sport, the end of his career was precipitated by health issues. Photos published in the press showed a significant weight gain after stopping his basketball career to devote himself to rap.
From the streets to the glitz of the NBA
The player had confessed to fighting this unhealthy relationship with the food that accompanied him from a young age during an interview with ESPN in 2017. “You think it’s something insignificant, but it only s ‘Build up,’ he said. ‘One meal won’t kill you, but if it becomes three or four meals that are bad in a row, that’s when it starts hurting your body.’
Swanigan had enjoyed an extraordinary trajectory from a life started in extreme poverty to the glitter of the NBA. He said he lived on the streets moving from homeless shelters to unstable housing situations while his mother raised six children while his father suffered from a crack addiction. Portland star Damian Lillard was offended by the teasing Swanigan suffered on social media after his weight gain. He again paid tribute to her after the announcement of her death. The Purdue varsity team and the Portland and Sacramento franchises also released emotional messages for their former player.
