*Longtime Turner Sports broadcaster Craig Sager, known for his collection of loud, colorful suits while working the NBA sidelines, has died at the age of 65, the network confirmed in a statement.
Sager had been battling acute myeloid leukemia since he was first diagnosed in 2014. He was admitted back into the hospital in late November 2016.
“Craig Sager was a beloved member of the Turner family for more than three decades and he has been a true inspiration to all of us,” Turner president David Levy stated. “There will never be another Craig Sager. His incredible talent, tireless work ethic and commitment to his craft took him all over the world covering sports.
“While he will be remembered fondly for his colorful attire and the TNT sideline interviews he conducted with NBA coaches and players, it’s the determination, grace and will to live he displayed during his battle with cancer that will be his lasting impact. Our thoughts and prayers are with Craig’s wife, Stacy, and the entire Sager family during this difficult time. We will forever be Sager Strong.”
After his initial leukemia diagnosis, Sager, who worked for Turner for more than 30 years, missed the 2014 and 2015 NBA playoffs and part of the 2014-15 regular season, as well as the 2015 NCAA men’s basketball tournament.
Sager underwent three bone marrow transplants — the most recent via an anonymous donor in August 2016 — and more than 20 chemotherapy cycles, including one that lasted for two weeks, around the clock. He’s also been hospitalized numerous times for pneumonia, among other things. In March 2016, Sager said on HBO’s “Real Sports” that he’d been given three to six months to live, without treatment.
Through a partnership between Turner Sports and ESPN, Sager worked his first ever NBA Finals game in June, joining ESPN’s Doris Burke on the sidelines for Game 6 between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Golden State Warriors, which the Cavaliers won.
“First of all, let me ask you a question,” LeBron James said after the game. “How in the hell do you go 30-plus years without getting a Finals game? That don’t make no sense. But I’m happy to see you, man. Much love and respect. I’m happy I was able to witness it in front of these fans. We really appreciate you.”
Shortly after that exchange, ESPN presented Sager with the Jimmy V Perseverance Award at the 2016 ESPYS.
“Whatever I might’ve imagined a terminal diagnosis would do to my spirit,” Sager said when receiving the award, “it’s summoned quite the opposite — the greatest appreciation for life itself.
“So I will never give up. And I will never give in. I will continue to keep fighting, sucking the marrow out of life, as life sucks the marrow out of me. I will live my life full of love and full of fun. It’s the only way I know how.”
Sager and his wife, Stacy, a former Chicago Bulls dancer, have two children together, Riley and Ryan. Sager also has three children from a previous marriage, including Craig Sager Jr.
Below, Sager’s most memorable moments:
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