Ex-Lakers, Kings Star Undergoes Surgery After Scary Accident

Former Los Angeles Lakers and Sacramento Kings center Vlade Divac was injured in a motorcycle accident.

Mar 6, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; Sacramento Kings owner Vivek Ranadive and former NBA player Vlade Divac attend the game between the Los Angeles Lakers and Sacramento Kings at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images | Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

Former Los Angeles Lakers and Sacramento Kings center and general manager Vlade Divac was seriously injured in a motorcycle accident in Risan, Montenegro, on Thursday.

Divac underwent an emergency surgical procedure on his hip after falling off his motorcycle in the accident. The 57-year-old fractured his hip and had an artificial one implanted by doctors.

"During the day, a surgical procedure was performed," said Ljubica Mitrovic, a spokeswoman of the hospital in the town of Risan (per the Associated Press). "He is in a stable general and physical condition and is under a careful supervision of the medical staff."

Divac, a Serbian star, suffered the injury while enjoying retirement in his Balkan homeland. Divac was one of the first international stars in the NBA, playing over 1,000 games.

Sacramento Kings Legend Vlade Divac broke his hip in a motorcycle accident, has emergency surgery. Wishing the Vlad Father a speedy recovery 👑 pic.twitter.com/fJLK27KBeV

— SactownPete (@PMasih007) June 20, 2025

The Lakers selected Divac in the first round of the 1989 NBA draft, where he played the first seven seasons of his 16-year career. He later played two years for the Charlotte Hornets before moving the Sacramento, where he earned All-Star status in 2001.

After finishing his playing career, Divac became involved in front offices across the world. He started as a scout for the Lakers before being named the head of basketball operations for Real Madrid in Spain, where he found controversy for solely being there for the public image.

Divac later worked with the Serbian national team before being hired as the vice president of basketball operations and general manager of the Kings. He worked in Sacramento for five years and oversaw a plethora of big moves, including the DeMarcus Cousins trade.

Divac was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2019.