Craig Sager passed away on Thursday after a prolonged struggle with leukemia. Rachel Nichols broke the news live on the air, and she could not have handled it any better.
Rachel Nichols turned her show into a beautiful tribute to her friend Craig Sager
Nichols did an incredible job despite the circumstances.
The rest of the segment turned into a live tribute to Sager’s life, which was incredibly well done given the circumstances. Nichols and Sager worked together for three years at Turner Sports.
Nichols opened the segment saying this, before she and her two co-hosts on The Jump, Tracy McGrady and Brian Windhorst, talked about Sager’s legacy.
“Welcome to The Jump. Literally two or three minutes ago we were informed that our friend Craig Sager has passed away. I’m very sorry to inform you all. Craig, as so many of you know, had such a valiant fight against leukemia. He was diagnosed in 2014. He went through three bone marrow transplants, each one tougher than the last. And, I have to tell you, having had so many conversations with him and his family along the way.
The way Craig fought this spoke so much to the kind of life that he lived, the kind of values that he had and the family that he had around him. His son was one of his bone marrow donors. His wife Stacy, who has been incredible by his side, they just celebrated their anniversary yesterday and I know it was important for Craig to be able to do that.
I know it was important for him to be at one of his children Riley’s basketball games earlier this week, when his doctors told him that there was no more that they could do for him. He fought it. I was talking to his son just a couple of days ago. He did not want to start hospice or go into the last stage of treatment but he knew that he was leaving his family in good hands and that they had been able to absorb so much of his strength.”
Rest in peace, Craig.
