Michael Kidd-Gilchrist files $40M lawsuit over COVID-19 related heart problem

Former NBA guard Michael Kidd-Gilchrist has filed a lawsuit over a COVID-19 related heart problem. Kidd-Gilchrist was told to stop playing basketball after feeling chest pain while practicing with the Dallas Mavericks.

According to the lawsuit, Kidd-Gilchrist felt acute chest pain during practice and, as a result, had to quit playing basketball. He was officially diagnosed with myocarditis related to COVID-19, and is filing a $40 million lawsuit against Lloyd’s of London, an insurance company.

Kidd-Gilchrist said he made a claim because of “permanent total disablement arising from a sickness,” according to attorney Jason Morrin. Per the policy, the company provided coverage if Kidd-Gilchrist couldn’t continue “his occupation as a professional basketball player.” However, he said the company wouldn’t “fully insure the damage caused by the loss for which plaintiff sought coverage.”

Myocarditis is defined as “inflammation of the heart muscle, and pericarditis is inflammation of the lining outside the heart,” according to the CDC. Per the lawsuit, Kidd-Gilchrist has shown signs of myocarditis as recently as June 2023.

More on Michael Kidd-Gilchrist’s NBA career

Kidd-Gilchrist played one year at Kentucky in 2011-12 and helped the Wildcats to a national title as a consensus second team All-American. He averaged 11.9 points and 7.4 rebounds per game for UK before the Charlotte Bobcats selected him with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2013 NBA Draft.

Kidd-Gilchrist remained with the team — later re-named the Hornets — until 2019 and was named to the NBA’s All-Rookie Team in 2013 before injuries got in the way of his career. Leg injuries became an issue in 2013-14, but he still signed a four-year, $52 million contract with Charlotte in 2015. That’s when injuries again hindered his play.

The Mavericks then signed Kidd-Gilchrist in February 2020, and he played 13 games before the franchise waived him. The New York Knicks then picked him up, but waived him in December 2020 before he could play a game with the organization. He hasn’t played basketball since after he was ordered to stop due to his heart condition.

All told, during his nine years in the association, Kidd-Gilchrist averaged 8.4 points, 5.4 rebounds and 1.2 rebounds per game. His last full season came in 2018-19 when he played in 64 games for the Hornets and averaged 6.7 points, 3.8 rebounds and 1.0 assist per game. He played in 12 games during the 2019-20 season before the Hornets bought him out, which is when he landed with the Mavericks.