Former NBA standout Sebastian Telfair has lost his mother and brother after battling the coronavirus, according to Joseph Staszewski of The New York Post.
Telfair is the cousin of former NBA star Stephon Marbury. He was drafted by the Portland Trail Blazers with the 13th overall pick out of Abraham Lincoln High School in Brooklyn.
His mother, Erica, 64, died on Monday — roughly a month after Telfair's brother, Dan Tuner, died on March 28 after a battle with the deadly virus.
Former Lincoln head coach Dwayne “Tiny” Morton confirmed both deaths. While Erica's official cause of death is unknown, she was battling the virus in prior weeks.
Marbury himself noted in a recent interview that his aunt was “fighting for her life” at the time because of “this virus.”
Sebastian Telfair and his younger brother Ethan took to social media to express their sorrow.
“Let me see them X-rays. I ain’t no expert. We just hurt!”the former NBA talent's Instagram story read along with his mother's name, her birthday and the date in which she died.
Turner coached at Lincoln and for the Juice All-Stars travel program, while also running a popular basketball tournament on Coney Island bearing Sebastian Telfair’s name.
“Today I lost my big brother and it’s ripping my heart and spirit apart,” Ethan wrote on Twitter back in late March. “I love you so much and i don’t know how I’m going to get over this.”
Sebastian Telfair was the first guard to make it to the NBA right out of high school, playing for eight different teams throughout his 10 years in the league before continuing his career in China.
The NBA's extended family is likely to issue a statement at some point.
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