Just before this month's NBA Draft, French center Jonathan Jeanne likely has seen his dream of playing professionally dashed.
NBA Mock Draft 2017: Round 1 taking shape, but plenty of questions remain
The potential first-round pick Jeanne has been diagnosed with Marfan syndrome, a potentially career-ending disorder, his agent told The Vertical.
The 7-2 big man, who was projected has high as the No. 20 overall pick, was told of a serious heart issue accompanying the syndrome after undergoing a series of tests at the Cleveland Clinic.
Marfan syndrome is a genetic disorder that affects the body’s connective tissues. It's the same disease that Baylor's Isaiah Austin was diagnosed with before the 2014 draft. Austin was cleared to resume basketball activities in November 2016 and signed a contract with KK Crvena zvezda, a European basketball club based in Belgrade, shortly after.
Jeanne, who worked out with the Raptors on Wednesday, hopes to follow in Austin's footsteps and resume his basketball career with medical supervision, his agent told The Vertical. It's a sad revelation for a player who was called “arguably the biggest winner of any Combine participant" nearly a month prior.