HAMPTON, Va. — A Charlotte high school basketball player collapsed and died Saturday night in Virginia during a game at a Nike Elite Youth Basketball League event.
James Hampton, a prospect for the Class of 2019, was playing for Team United when he suddenly fell to the court at the Boo Williams Sports Complex in Hampton, Va., team director Jacoby Davis confirmed to The Charlotte Observer.
Hampton, 17, was a senior at Liberty Heights, a private school.
According to Davis, Hampton said “Hey ref” as he was running down the floor and then collapsed. Medical personnel rushed on the floor and began chest compressions before taking Hampton away in an ambulance.
Team United will play in Sunday’s scheduled games at 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. in tribute to Hampton.
“They want to play Sunday,” Davis said, per the Observer. “They really want to finish it up. The coaches are just torn up right now. So it’s going to be tough, but it’s what the kids want to do.”
Davis said that Hampton had suffered seizures in the past and thought it might be a recurrence.
“He just fell down on the floor,” Davis said. “He had seizures a year ago, and I remember (one of the Team United coaches) telling me that, ‘I saw his eyes rolling back in his head.’ I ran on the court thinking he was having a seizure. A trainer came over and said he didn’t know what was wrong. Another trainer checked his pulse. He said he didn’t have a pulse. It got crazy after that.”