Former NBA star Rodney Rogers has died at age 54.
A information launch from his school alma mater, Wake Forest, confirmed that Rogers died on Friday, November 21, of pure causes linked to a 2008 spinal damage. He’s survived by his spouse, Faye Rogers, and three youngsters: daughters Roddreka and Rydeiah in addition to son Rodney Rogers II. (Roddreka is at present an assistant coach for Georgia State girls’s basketball, whereas Rydeiah performed basketball at North Carolina State from 2015 to 2019.)
Rogers grew to become paralyzed from the shoulders down following a November 2008 ATV crash close to Raleigh, North Carolina, when he unintentionally drove right into a ditch and flipped over the handlebars.
“Rodney Rogers, an NBA legend who performed 12 years within the league, handed away on November 21, 2025, from pure causes associated to the spinal wire damage he sustained on November 28, 2008,” his household mentioned in a press release launched by Wake Forest. “He made his transition peacefully, surrounded by the countless love of his devoted spouse, Faye.”
Their tribute continued, “A local of Durham, N.C., Rogers leaves behind a towering legacy as one of the vital transformative gamers in program historical past and an everlasting instance of braveness, generosity, and Professional Humanitate spirit.”
He joined the Wake Forest College basketball group in 1990 and finally was named the Atlantic Coast Convention Participant of the 12 months and a First-Workforce All-American in his closing season.
“Rodney Rogers remodeled and accelerated the upward trajectory of Wake Forest College in addition to Demon Deacons basketball from the second he signed his letter of intent within the fall of 1989,” Wake Forest’s former athletic director, John Currie, mentioned. “His generational mixture of energy and charm as a participant was exceeded solely by the scale of his coronary heart. His perseverance and spirit following his accident impressed 1000’s and embodied the true which means of Professional Humanitate. Rodney confirmed us what energy appears like in each chapter of life. Our hearts are with Faye, Roddreka, Rodney II, Rydiah and your complete Rogers household.”
He was drafted because the ninth total decide by the Denver Nuggets when he turned professional in 1993 and would go on to play for a number of NBA groups, together with a four-year stint for the Los Angeles Clippers. Rogers gained the distinguished Sixth Man of the 12 months Award in 2000 whereas he was enjoying for the Phoenix Suns.
Rodney Rogers in January 2004. Al Bello/Getty Pictures
In later years, Rogers performed for the New Jersey Nets, the New Orleans Hornets and, lastly, for the Philadelphia 76ers earlier than leaving the league in 2005.
The NBA launched a press release on Saturday, November 22, to acknowledge Rogers’s unforgettable contributions to the game of basketball.
“The NBA household is deeply saddened by the passing of Rodney Rogers. Rodney earned the Sixth Man of the 12 months Award whereas enjoying for the Phoenix Suns and was a beloved teammate throughout his 12-year NBA profession,” an NBA assertion learn. “He can be remembered not just for his achievements on the court docket but additionally for the extraordinary resilience, braveness and generosity that he demonstrated all through his life — qualities that impressed so many. We ship our heartfelt condolences to Rodney’s spouse, Faye, and their household.”
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver has made his first public feedback on the continuing playing scandal that has hit the league this week. “There’s nothing extra essential to the league and its followers than the integrity of the competitors,” Silver mentioned throughout the Friday, October 24, pregame NBA on Prime broadcast. “So I had a pit […]
Former Wake Forest coach Dave Odom remembered Rogers as an “extraordinary expertise” who was “each bit as exceptional as a human being.”
“He cherished his teammates, he cherished his household, he cherished Wake Forest and he cherished the sport of basketball,” Odom recalled. “Each time we visited him, I walked away reminding myself by no means to complain — as a result of he by no means did,.”
Odom went on, “He confronted life precisely because it got here and made the easiest of each second. He was a pleasure to observe as a basketball participant, however he was a good higher man. He shared his energy, his spirit and his life with everybody round him.”
