NBA champion Scot Pollard, 49, filmed WALKING just a day after receiving crucial heart transplant as wife pays tribute to his ‘strength’: ‘He is continuing to shock us all’

Former NBA star Scot Pollard is back on his feet only a day after undergoing a heart transplant.

Pollard, who won an NBA championship with the Celtics in 2007-08, required a new heart due to damage from a virus he caught in 2021. 

The 49-year-old had successful surgery on Friday. His wife Dawn revealed that Pollard woke up on Saturday morning and by the evening the former basketball player was walking once more.

In incredible footage, shared on social media, the 6ft 11ins Pollard could be seen moving in the hospital with the aid of a walking frame while dozens of wires and IV drips trailed behind him.

‘We have a walker! He’s continuing to shock us all with his strength,’ Dawn Pollard wrote alongside the video.

Former NBA star Scot Pollard is back on his feet only a day after undergoing a heart transplant

‘Look who’s awake and is feeling great!’ Pollard’s wife Dawn wrote after he woke up

Earlier on Saturday, she had released footage of him standing up post-surgery. She also posted a picture of Pollard once he awoke from the operation.

‘Look who’s awake and is feeling great!’ she wrote. ‘Breathing tube came out early this morning and he started cracking jokes and singing “I left my heart in San Fran-Nashville”.’

Pollard’s virus likely triggered a genetic condition he has known about since it killed his father at 54, when Scot was 16. He underwent surgery after making his search for a donor public last month. 

Pollard and his wife, Dawn, shared an intimate moment before his heart transplant

Pollard played one season with the Celtics in 2007-08 and won the NBA Championship

‘Surgery went well and I´ve been told the heart is big, powerful and is a perfect fit!’ Dawn said on Friday. ‘Now on to the crucial part of recovery. 

‘Thank you to everyone for the continued prayers and support, but most of all, deepest thanks to the donor, our hero.’ 

Prior to the procedure, Dawn shared intimate photos of her shaving her husband’s head and beard before the transplant. She asked her followers to pray for her 6ft 11ins, 260lb spouse.

Pollard’s size complicated efforts to find a donor with a heart big enough to fit his body.