Jeff Green knows a thing or two about sacrifice. During a routine physical in the midst of the 2011-2012 NBA preseason, it was discovered that Green had an aortic root aneurysm. By the start of the new year, Green was under anesthesia, his heart stopped completely, while a surgeon attempt to repair the damage done to his heart.
“To me basketball is secondary,” said Green to ESPN’s Baxter Holmes back in 2018. “I had to really fight for my life. I almost died over this game.”
LaMarcus Aldridge shared on Thursday that he noticed an irregular heartbeat following Saturday’s game against the Los Angeles Lakers, calling it “one of the scariest things I’ve ever felt,” and it’s no surprise that Jeff Green was in full support of Aldridge’s decision to retire — he, too, understands the fragility of life and that some things take precedence over the game of basketball.