Maurice Stokes - Injury and Illness

Injury and Illness

On March 12, 1958 in the last game of the 1957–58 NBA season, in Minneapolis, Stokes drove to the basket, drew contact and fell to the floor, hit his head, and was knocked unconscious. He was revived with smelling salts and returned to the game. Three days later, after a 12-point, 15-rebound performance in an opening-round playoff game at Detroit against the Pistons, Stokes became ill on the team's flight back to Cincinnati; "I feel like I'm going to die," he told a teammate. Stokes reported feeling ill during the flight back to Cincinnati; he later suffered a seizure, fell into a coma and was left permanently paralyzed. In the end, he was diagnosed with "post-traumatic encephalopathy, a brain injury that damaged his motor control center."

The tragedy greatly shook the team: Stokes, a tremendous talent who could play center, forward and guard, was second in the NBA in rebounds and third in assists in 1957-58, a feat only Wilt Chamberlain has matched for a full season. Without their best player, the Royals nearly folded; they only recovered with the selection of Oscar Robertson two years later.

During the years that followed, Stokes was supported by his lifelong friend and teammate Jack Twyman, who became his legal guardian in order to help with medical bills.