Source: Nick Laham / Getty
Former NBA player Nate Robinson‘s health has taken a turn.
He announced years ago that he was in renal failure as his kidney function continued to decline, and now he’s revealed that his health situation has worsened.
In an interview with Daily Mail’s sports vertical, he kept it brutally honest about what’s next for him if he doesn’t get a new kidney.
“I know that I don’t have long if I can’t get a kidney,” Robinson admitted. “I know I’m not going to have long to live. So I just want to make the best of it as much as I can.”
For many with kidney disease, the strongest form of survival is routine dialysis. Since your kidney is unable to filter blood properly, toxins flow into your bloodstream, and dialysis does the job of cleaning your blood.
Robinson undergoes dialysis, and while he’s glad it’s been a successful route for him, he delves into just how time-consuming the process is.
“Some people’s body reject dialysis. And thank God that mine accepts it and I can live… if I didn’t go to dialysis, I wouldn’t live probably longer than a week or two,” the former NY Knick said. “So it’s serious, can’t miss a day. I go in for four hours, three days a week, four hours a day. And they clean my blood to get my toxins out. And they help me out a lot because that’s how I’m living.”
Without the prospect of a new kidney and enduring the grueling dialysis scheduling, Robinson’s doing his best to seize the day and spend as much time with his family instead.
“The [dialysis] machine has been helping my longevity and my life right now,” he said. “So I’m just enjoying the times where I do feel healthy. I try to get out there with my kids, see my family and play basketball, do the things that I love.”
According to Kidney.org the life expectancy for those on dialysis is around 5-10 years, but some have been known to live for up to 30 years.
11-year NBA veteran Nate Robinson – a three-time Slam Dunk Contest champion – announces he is battling renal kidney failure and is undergoing treatment. pic.twitter.com/VICvjXOW7k
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) October 16, 2022
Back in a 2022 interview with Playmaker, Robinson revealed that he learned in 2006 that his high blood pressure would leave him with kidney problems later in his life. He remembers being told if his blood pressure was too high he shouldn’t play, but he disregarded the advice so he could hit the court no matter what.
“Don’t check my blood pressure because I am playing regardless of what you say,’” said Robinson. “I thought I was young and invincible. I didn’t know it was going to catch up to me.”
Robinson got his start in the league after skipping his senior year in college in favor of declaring for the 2005 NBA draft. He was selected by the Phoenix but was later traded the the Knicks alongside Quentin Richardson on draft night.
But the true fanfare came from his short, 5-foot-9 stature and even more so when he won the 2006, 2009 and 2010 Slam Dunk Contest, which was highlighted by him jumping over Dwight Howard to win his second trophy.
Social media is praying that Robinson gets a kidney transplant soon and returns to full health.
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