NBA great Vlade Divac injured in Montenegro motorcycle crash

BELGRADE: Former basketball star and LA Lakers centre Vlade Divac was recovering on Friday after breaking his hip in motorcycle accident in Montenegro, hospital staff told AFP.

The 57-year-old was injured late Thursday after falling from his motorcycle near the coast, said hospital spokeswoman Ljubica Mitrovic.

“Divac was immediately brought to the hospital in Risan, where doctors conducted thorough examinations,” she said, referring to a town about 47 kilometres (29 miles) west of the capital Podgorica.

“Unfortunately, it was confirmed that he had suffered a hip fracture. Surgery was performed.”

Divac is in a stable condition at the hospital.

Drafted into the NBA in 1989 by the Los Angeles Lakers, the towering centre became one of the first European players to make an impact in the league.

He played seven seasons for the Lakers before moving on to the Charlotte Hornets then the Sacramento Kings, and eventually finishing his NBA career back with the Lakers.

Mentored by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Magic Johnson, he quickly adapted to the NBA and became the first player born and trained outside the United States to play more than 1,000 games in the league.

A silver medallist in Olympic basketball with both Yugoslavia and later Serbia, he was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2019 and the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2010.

He played 117 games for the national team of Yugoslavia and later Serbia and Montenegro, winning World Championship titles in 1990 and 2002, and was also crowned European champion in 1989, 1991, and 1995. The hospital has asked the public and media to respect Divac’s privacy during his recovery.