‘Larger than life’: Former KU basketball forward Scot Pollard has serious heart issue

Ryan Robertson was shocked to learn two weeks ago that Scot Pollard, his friend and former University of Kansas men’s basketball teammate, is in serious need of a new and healthy heart.

“It’s very ironic to me that Scot is struggling with a heart issue because he was truly the heart of all the teams he played on with me and at KU,” Robertson said of the 6-foot-11, 275-pound, 48-year-old gentle giant from Murray, Utah.

Pollard’s wife, Dawn — a cancer survivor — on Jan. 10 revealed in a social media post that her husband is on waiting lists for a heart transplant.

Robertson and Pollard were together at KU during the 1995-96 and 1996-97 seasons, and were teammates again in 2000-01 with the NBA’s Sacramento Kings.

“Scot is a larger-than-life figure, and tough,” Robertson added Wednesday in a conversation with The Star. “I consider him a great friend and teammate and I can’t wait to have a famous Scot Pollard dinner together.”

Quality time with Pollard is the desire of hundreds of family members and friends of Pollard, who told The Star on Wednesday that since learning of his need for a new heart he has spoken with “Roy (Williams, former KU coach), some former teammates from college and the pros. I don’t talk a lot, so I actually haven’t spoken with but texted (them).”

Sadly, as he waits patiently for an available heart, Pollard suffers from shortness of breath, sometimes needing to pause during conversations when speaking on his cellphone.

“Is it urgent?” he said. “Yes. I need a new heart, but I’m not sick enough to be hospitalized, so it’s best to get listed at all these hospitals and hope a big, healthy heart that is my blood type (O-positive) gets past all of the people ahead of me on the list that may not be good recipients for that heart due to their factors.”

Pollard has been through several operations and tests, as he suffers from a genetic heart issue that he said was released after he contracted a virus in 2021. He told The Star he is on the heart transplant list at Ascension St. Vincent Hospital in Indiana, where he lives.

“I’m going to Chicago next week to get testing done and get listed at University of Chicago Hospital,” he said. “The next week I’m going to Nashville to get the same testing done for them and get listed at Vanderbilt Hospital.

“According to my surgeon here, University of Chicago Hospital does about double the volume as here (St. Vincent), and Vanderbilt does about double Chicago. I need a big, healthy heart (likely someone over 6-foot-1), so being listed in three hospitals gives me better odds.”

According to the Indy Star, Pollard’s dad Pearl, who was 6-foot-8, died at the age of 54. His heart stopped in a cardiomyopathy episode while he was at work driving a truck for the City of Solana Beach in California. Scot Pollard has two older siblings who have pacemakers and a defibrillator, and his mother’s father died from heart issues.

“I know for a fact my size and blood type are working against me. I do need somebody big,” Pollard said.

Pollard’s wife Dawn explained on social media what Scot has gone through since 2021.

“Three failed heart ablations, pacemaker/defibrillator, all the drugs and side effects, heart biopsies, heart catheter tests, CT/MRI scans, countless viles of blood taken, ER trips, myocarditis, pericarditis-all over the past three years…and now heart transplant list,” she explained in response to some misguided person who on social media accused Pollard of “faking it.”

Pollard was one of KU’s most popular players ever. He painted his fingernails, at times wore a Mohawk hairstyle and was a productive inside player for Jayhawks teams from 1993-94 to 1996-97. He played in the NBA for 11 years — for five teams, including Boston, where he won an NBA title in 2008. In 2016, he gained a new following as a contestant on the TV show, “Survivor.”

Once he gets word that a heart is available, Pollard’s plan is to drive to undergo an emergency surgical operation wherever the organ is located. His wife and four children, of course, are available for support. Pollard’s son, Ozzy, is an outstanding football player and college prospect at Carmel (Indiana) High School.

“A lot of people have reached out on social media from Jayhawk nation,” Pollard said, “and it’s very kind and humbling to hear from so many.”

He previously told the Indianapolis Star: “It’s an odd situation to sit here and ponder for an undetermined amount of time. The surgeon here said it’s like winning the lottery. We might get lucky next week, next month, next year. It might be longer. It’s like Tom Petty says: ‘The waiting is the hardest part.’

“We started using that (Petty lyric) when Dawn got cancer in 2019 and had a double mastectomy,” Pollard said. “I was the caretaker then, though for a much shorter time. She’s been under a lot of pressure because I’m doing nothing. She healed quickly and is cancer free and supporting our family on top of everything else.

“One last thing,” Pollard continued in concluding Wednesday’s interview with The Star. “Dawn used her battle with cancer to spread awareness and told other women to get checked. Can’t tell you how many women reached out and said they did, and a few even found some issues. But (they) got them under control, so Dawn helped others and potentially saved lives.

“I’m using this situation to spread awareness to become a donor. When you’re done, you can be a hero to multiple people by donating your organs. It’s really easy to do.”

Information on becoming an organ donor in Kansas can be found via Donate Life Kansas. In Missouri, information is available via Donate Life Missouri.

One also can become a donor when obtaining a driver’s license or renewing a driver’s license at the DMV.