Three-time NBA Slam Dunk champion Nate Robinson continues to search for a new kidney, but the clock is ticking. Robinson suffers from kidney failure, and he told the Daily Mail Sports he’s “not going to have long to live” if he doesn’t soon undergo an organ transplant.
“I know that I don’t have long if I can’t get a kidney,” the 39-year-old retired NBA star told the outlet. “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.”
Robinson said he decided to share his personal health battle so he could “be the voice for all those who are having trouble speaking about this illness and come together for a greater cause: our health.”
Robinson initially publicized his private health battle in 2021. He said he decided to open up about his situation to serve as “the voice for all those who are having trouble speaking about this illness and come together for a greater cause: our health.”
Nate Robinson #2 of Tri State speaks to the media after beating 3’s Company 50-45 during BIG3 – Week Four at the American Airlines Center on July 31, 2021, in Dallas, Texas. (Photo: Cooper Neill/Getty Images for BIG3)
Robinson has used a dialysis machine for multiple hours on a daily basis due to his renal kidney failure. But he said he is grateful his body does not reject the dialysis treatment.
“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. 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. 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.”
Robinson also said his health situation has helped him develop a new perspective.
Robinson also appeared on the April 9 edition of “The OGs” podcast with former Miami Heat star Udonis Haslem and Mike Miller and reflected on how his health condition has helped him “appreciate life itself.”
“I just thank God for every opportunity that’s happened in my life. Even with these kidney situations, because it’s gotten me to slow down a lot, where I can take time to appreciate life itself,” Robinson told Haslem and Miller.
“You know, dealing with this situation with my kidneys, man, it’s opened my eyes to where you know I can talk about it and help others,” Robinson added. “If I was a high school kid going through something like this, it would be scary, and I wouldn’t know how to cope or deal with something like this … you know I can be somebody’s reason to keep fighting and keep going.”
Periods of painful vomiting is another serious side effect the 39-year-old has experienced. As a result, has spent multiple stints in the hospital. Sticking to a strict diet is critical part of Robinson’s overall health and significantly impacts how his body functions day to day.
Robison sat down with Playmaker in 2022 and opened up about his health journey. He said when he was with the New York Knicks in 2006, he realized that high blood pressure had negatively impacted his kidneys.
“For me, it was shocking to know that at some point, some time that my kidneys were going to go,” Robinson told the outlet.”They used to tell me that we’re going to have to check your blood pressure and if your blood pressure is too high, you can’t play in the game. I used to tell them, ‘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.”
Robison made his NBA debut in 2005 and went on to play for eight teams over 11 seasons. He last played in the league during the 2015-16 season, when he appeared in two games with the New Orleans Pelicans.
Robinson was relatively small by typical NBA standards, standing 5 feet 9 inches, but his unique athleticism allowed him to routinely make highlight-reel-worthy dunks. He won his first slam dunk contest title in 2006 and then won the once-popular event in back-to-back years in 2009 and 2010.
After the NBA, Robinson spent time in the Israeli Basketball Premier League, the G League’s Delaware 87ers, and a professional basketball league in Venezuela.
