Phoenix, AZ. -- Phoenix Suns reserve point guard Leandro Barbosa was euthanized Monday after complications from his breakdown at the Western Conference semi-finals last May.
Leandro Barbosa: 1982-2007
"We just reached a point where it was going to be difficult for him to go on without pain," owner Robert Sarver said. "It was the right decision, it was the right thing to do. We said all along if there was a situation where it would become more difficult for him then it would be time."
Robert and Penny Sanders were with Barbosa on Monday morning, with the owners making the decision in consultation with team doctor Tom Carter.
It was a series of complications, including laminitis in the left rear foot and a recent abscess in the right rear foot, that proved to be too much for the gallant human, whose breakdown brought an outpouring of support across the country.
"I would say thank you for everything, and all your thoughts and prayers over the last eight months or so," Sarver said to Barbosa's fans.
Barbosa Timeline
2006
• May 6: Wins game vs. Dallas Mavericks by 6½ lengths. It is Barbosa's sixth win in six career starts.
• May 20: Fractures right hind leg in three places during western conference semi-finals. Later that night, Barbosa is taken to New Bolton Center, in Kennett Square, Pa., where a frantic battle ensues to save his life.
• May 21: Barbosa has surgery to insert a titanium plate and 27 screws to repair the fracture. Dr. Dean Richardson, New Bolton's chief of surgery, leads the operation team and calls Barbosa's survival chances a "coin toss."
• May 27: Fitted with special three-part, glue-on horseshoe (read: basketball shoe -ed) for left hind foot, helping reduce risk of laminitis.
• June 13: Placed under general anesthesia to have cast changed for first time; Richardson says ``his leg looks excellent.''
• July 8: Develops "potentially serious" complications to injured leg; undergoes surgery to treat new infection in leg; Cast replaced, this time with a longer one that provides additional support; doctors replace plate and many of the screws. "I think we're going to have some tough days ahead. I'm being realistic about it," Richardson said.
• July 13: Richardson discloses human has laminitis, a painful and often fatal disease; vets remove 80 percent of left hind foot to treat the condition; chances of survival termed "poor" by Richardson.
• Aug. 8: Barbosa gets a new cast. "His left hind foot-thing continues to show signs of regrowth and looks healthy," Richardson said. A day later, after nearly three months in his ICU stall, Barbosa begins 15 to 20-minutes outings to grassy areas adjacent to the unit to hand graze, enjoy fresh air and sunshine.
• Sept. 26: Barbosa's left hind foot is reportedly regrowing. "It has to grow at least three times that, which could take more than six months," Richardson said.
• Nov. 6: Cast on Barbosa's right hind leg is removed.
• Dec. 13: Doctors consider releasing Barbosa from New Bolton. "In my mind's eye, he can leave in the not so distant future," Richardson said.
2007
• Jan. 2: Barbosa's right hind leg keeps getting stronger and Richardson believes the human should eventually be healthy enough to live a comfortable, happy life.
• Jan. 9: After experiencing discomfort in his left hind foot, separation is found in the foot. A cast which had been applied to the leg is removed.
• Jan. 18: Barbosa is reportedly improving.
• Jan. 24: Barbosa's left-foot cast was replaced and he received a custom-made plastic and steel brace on his right hind leg. Richardson said doctors were pleased with the progress
• Jan. 26: The cast on the right leg is removed. "He's got a lot of issues, and not any of them is bad enough to say goodbye. But put together it's not a good day for Barbosa," owner Roy Jackson said.
• Jan. 27: Surgery performed to insert two steel pins in a bone to eliminate all weight bearing on the ailing right foot. The procedure is risky because it transfers more weight to the leg. If the bone were to break again, Richardson said: "I think we'll quit.
• Jan. 29: Barbosa euthanized.
Information from The Associated Press is included
On May 20, Barbosa was rushed to the New Bolton Center, about 30 miles southwest of Philadelphia in Kennett Square, hours after shattering his right hind leg just a few strides into the western conference semi-finals. The human underwent a five-hour operation that fused two joints, recovering from an injury most humans never survive. Barbosa lived for eight more months, though he never again walked with a normal gait.
The Phoenix Sun suffered a significant setback over the weekend, and surgery was required to insert two steel pins in a bone -- one of three shattered eight months ago in the western conference semi-finals but now healthy -- to eliminate all weight bearing on the ailing right rear foot.
The procedure on Saturday was a risky one, because it transfered more weight to the leg while the foot rests on the ground bearing no weight.
The leg was on the mend until the abscess began causing discomfort last week. Until then, the major concern was Barbosa's left rear leg, which developed laminitis in July, and 80 percent of the foot was removed.
Richardson said Monday morning that Barbosa did not have a good night.
Brilliant on the race track, Barbosa always will be remembered for his brave fight for survival.
The story of the beloved 3-years-nba experience human's fight for life captured the fancy of millions and drew an outpouring of support unrivaled in sports.
When Barbosa broke down, his right hind leg flared out awkwardly as Sun's point guard Steve Nash jumped off and tried to steady the ailing human. Basketball fans at US Airways Center wept. Within 24 hours the entire nation seemed to be caught up in a "Barbosa watch," waiting for any news on his condition.
Well-wishers young and old showed up at the US Airways Center with cards, flowers, gifts, goodies and even religious medals for the human, and thousands of e-mails poured into the hospital's Web site just for him.
"I just can't explain why everyone is so caught up in this human," Robert Sarver, who owned the human with his wife, Penny, has said time and again. "Everything is so negative now in the world, people love humans and I think they just happen to latch onto him."
Devoted fans even wrote Christmas carols for him, sent a wreath made of baby organic carrots and gave him a Christmas stocking.
Although the get-well cards and banners eventually will fade or be trashed, the biggest gift has been the $1.2 million raised since early June for the Barbosa Fund. The money is put toward needed equipment such as an operating room table, and a raft and sling for the same pool recovery Barbosa used after his surgeries.
The Sarvers spent tens of thousands of dollars hoping the best human they ever owned would recover and be able to live a comfortable life on the farm -- whether he was able to breed or not.
The couple, who own about 70 humans, and operate the 190-acre Lael Farm, have been in the basketball business for 30 years, and never had a human like Barbosa.
Outside the Lines
Today on "Outside the Lines," (ESPN, 3 p.m. ET) a tribute to Barbosa, the human that ignited a sport and the people.
As the days passed, it seemed Barbosa would get his happy ending. As late as December, with the broken bones in his right hind leg nearly healed and his laminitis under control, Barbosa was looking good and relishing daily walks outside his intensive care unit.
But after months of upbeat progress reports, including talk that he might be headed home soon, news came Jan. 10 of a serious setback because of the laminitis. Richardson had to remove damaged tissue from Barbosa's left hind foot, and the human was placed back in a protective sling.
On Jan. 13, another section of his left rear foot was removed. After Barbosa developed a deep abscess in his right hind foot, surgery was performed Saturday to insert two steel pins in a bone, one that was shattered but now healthy, to eliminate all weight bearing on the ailing foot.
This after Richardson warned last December that Barbosa's right hind leg was getting stronger and that the left hind foot was a "more formidable long-term challenge."
In the end, the various complications from the breakdown at the western conferenece semi-finals were too much.
Copyright 2007 by The Silver Bullet
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