The basketball community was shocked to learn that the Former Syracuse and Boston Celtics center Fab Melo was found dead in his home Saturday night. He was 26.
ESPN reported that the 7-foot Brazilian went to bed to sleep and his mother found him lifeless the following morning. The cause of death is still undetermined but sports personalities from Brazil think that it might have been caused by a heart attack, according to reports from Business Insider.
Born as Fabricio Paulino de Melo, he is playing professionally in his home country after spending most of his time playing at the NBA D-League. He had a very minimal exposure in the NBA as he only played 6 games with the Celtics before playing in the D-League, averaging just 1.2 points a game.
Drafted 22nd overall in 2012 NBA Draft, Melo failed to show his potential that made him his a first-round pick. He struggled to find a crack in the rotation of coach Doc Rivers, who mostly relied on Kevin Garnett, Brandon Bass, and Jared Sullinger, who was drafted before Melo.
He was named Big East Defensive Player of the Year after earning his reputation as a rim protector. The Juiz de Forz, Brazil native once had 10 blocks against Seton Hall during his sophomore year In Syracuse University.
Condolences have been sent by former teammates and others who worked with the former Syracuse big man. Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim was deeply saddened by the passing of his former player. "He was a really good kid, and it's not fair that he will be defined by one thing, a 10-page paper," he said. "He worked his tail off to become a really good player, and was a nice kid."
There was a controversy during his sophomore year that he was suspended during the 2011-2012 NCAA season because of his academic issues that put his school in trouble, as mentioned in an NBC Sports article.
In 2013, Boston shipped Melo to the Memphis Grizzlies but was waived soon after. He was picked up by the Dallas Mavericks but was again released before the season started. Basketball Insiders reported that he is looking to make an NBA comeback in 2015 after his stints in D-League and in Brazil and said that he is more mature and has a better understanding of the game.
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