Category - Health & fitness
Adrian Wojnarowski Reveals Health Concern Behind ESPN Exit
Adrian Wojnarowski, the veteran ESPN NBA insider who shockingly announced his retirement six months ago, revealed in a Sports Illustrated profile published Thursday that he has been diagnosed with prostate cancer.
Wojnarowski unexpectedly announced his retirement from ESPN in September, saying he planned to serve as basketball coach for St. Bonaventure, his alma mater. At the time, Wojnarowski said that his “commitment” to the network was “an investment that I’m no longer driven to make.” He added: “Time isn’t in endless supply and I want to spend mine in ways that are more personally meaningful.”
In his SI profile, Wojnarowski confirmed that the “endless supply” remark was in reference to his cancer. “I didn’t want to spend one more day of my life waiting on someone’s MRI or hitting an agent at one a.m. about an ankle sprain,” he told SI. “In the end it’s just going to be your family and close friends. And it’s also, like, nobody gives a s--t. Nobody remembers [breaking stories] in the end. It’s just vapor.”
After two blood tests which indicated that Wojnarowski had the presence of an elevated prostate-specific antigen, he underwent a biopsy which revealed the diagnosis. Wojnarowski was told he had prostate cancer just moments before he appeared on a live broadcast of NBA Countdown. However, the veteran sports broadcaster noted that at the moment his prognosis is looking good.
“When you hear cancer, you think about it going through your body like Pac-Man,” he explained. “Prostate cancer, it generally stays confined to your prostate and is typically slow growing.”
For the moment, Wojnarowski is enjoying his time back at St. Bonaventure. Though he’s sworn off any further work in the media, he’s not sure this coaching gig will be his last. However, nothing will beat his passion for his alma mater. “There’s nowhere else on the planet I would work this hard for,” he told SI. “I can’t say I won’t do something else someday. But nothing like this.”
You can check out Wojnarowski’s full Sports Illustrated profile here.