One of the sport’s scariest stories last year may also have been one of the most miraculous.
Florida’s highlight, Keyontae Johnson, collapsed in court last December and ended up needing to be placed in an induced coma, allegedly due to acute myocarditis. The condition, a form of heart inflammation that can interfere with blood pumping, has been linked to COVID-19, but Johnson’s family said the virus was unrelated to the case.
Johnson’s collapse was unsettling, but he revealed some new information in an interview with Florida’s Chris Harry, who throws the incident in a new light. Apparently, Johnson’s situation could have been much worse, even deadly, had a cardiologist not been sitting on the court during the game:
“I would say I am blessed to be here, yes. There just isn’t much else to say,” said Johnson, recalling that day when a cardiologist – like a top guardian angel – was sitting on Tallahassee court and ran to the floor to help. “I was passed out. I could have died. She came on the court and saved me. If it weren’t for her, I may not have had a second chance in life. You just can’t take life for granted.”
Even with the help of the cardiologist, Johnson remained in critical condition for several days and only returned to the team more than two weeks later. He has not played since and will not play for the rest of the season.
Johnson told Florida that he feels “normal, as if nothing really happened” now, and hopes to resume basketball activities in the summer. Doing so will require a lot of tests – MRIs, electrocardiograms, stress tests – and the possibility that your basketball career will end if doctors feel that playing is too risky.
Johnson had been named the pre-season SEC Player of the Year before this season, and had an average of 19.7 points and 6.0 rebounds in the three games before the collapse.
Keyontae Johnson: ‘I thought I was dreaming’
Johnson also provided his perspective on playing and then waking up in the hospital, and the whole thing seems surreal:
“I watched the highlights of that game. I filmed that one, so on the next play we stopped and I went down and got a buried alley-oop – and then I passed out at a break. … When I woke up, I thought I was dreaming when I saw my mother in front of me. I remember the [doctor] calling my name. She was asking me questions to see if I would answer. I was still very sleepy, but I managed to open my eyes. My mom was right next to her. THE [doctor] said, ‘Who’s talking?’ I had a tube in my mouth, but I could say: ‘My mom’. Then I saw my mother smiling and crying at the same time. Tears of joy. Smiling and crying. So I think I went back to sleep.
“The next time I woke up, Coach White and Coach Nice were there. They were smiling. Then, later that day, I did FaceTimed with my teammates to let them know I was okay. I couldn’t speak, but I gave the thumbs up – I could see them. They were all smiling and very happy to see me. I was still sleepy and they were blurry, but I could see them. “
Johnson said he watched the video of the collapse at the hospital (his first response: “Damn it!”) And woke up to more than 2,000 text messages, voice messages, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. He says his voicemail is still full.
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