Craig Sager, flashy NBA sideline reporter on TNT, dies of cancer at age 65

Craig Sager, flashy NBA sideline reporter on TNT, dies of cancer at age 65

WEEI

By John Tomase

TNT's Craig Sager was known as a loud dresser and spot-on interviewer. (Kirby Lee/USA Today Sports)

TNT’s Craig Sager was known as a loud dresser and spot-on interviewer. (Kirby Lee/USA Today Sports)

Craig Sager, famous to a generation of NBA fans for his flashy suits, died of cancer on Thursday, Turner Sports announced.

Sager, 65, had battled leukemia since 2014. He announced this past March that the disease had returned after entering remission. Given no more than six months to live, he vowed to fight.

“‘Craig Sager was a beloved member of the Turner family for more than three decades and he has been a true inspiration to all of us,” Turner President David Levy said in a statement. “There will never be another Craig Sager. His incredible talent, tireless work ethic and commitment to his craft took him all over the world covering sports.”

Sager covered the NBA on TNT for 25 years, earning notoriety not just for his loud wardrobe, but his persistent interviewing style that made unlikely fans of difficult personalities like Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, who enjoyed sparring with him and once referred to him as “an iconic figure in the NBA.”

Sager graduated from Northwestern and covered a variety of sports over his career, making a name for himself by covering Hank Aaron’s record-breaking 715th home run in 1974. He went on to cover the Olympics, baseball, the NFL, and college basketball, but he rose to fame as a sideline interviewer for TNT.

He leaves his wife, Stacy, and five children.

On July 13, 2016, Sager was awarded the Jimmy V Perseverance Award at the 2016 ESPY Awards show for battling cancer.[9] In a moving acceptance speech the terminally-ll Sager told those gathered and a national television audience:

  "Time is something that cannot be bought; it cannot be wagered with God, and it is not in endless supply. Time is simply how you live your life.

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GOD SPEED CRAIG....YOU WERE GREAT!

FUNNY INTERVIEW WITH KG AT THE ALL-STAR GAME. BURN THOSE CLOTHS!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5a6K6pi04A4

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Craig Sager was an American original.

His display of bravery and dignity in the face of death will remain as an example of the value and wonder of life.

Countless years from now, fans and NBA alumni will still get a smile remembering his unique spirit.

Thanks Craig, for showing us how it's done.

NICELY SAID NY. I ADDED HIS QUOTE HE GAVE AT THE JIMMY V EVENT THIS SUMMER THAT REFLECTS YOUR TRIBUTE TO HIM.


"Time is something that cannot be bought; it cannot be wagered with God, and it is not in endless supply. Time is simply how you live your life.

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