Officials: Duckworth died of heart disease

Published 5:00 am Thursday, August 28, 2008

PORTLAND — Oregon officials say an autopsy shows former Portland Trail Blazers center Kevin Duckworth died when his enlarged heart failed.

Duckworth died Monday at 44 on the Oregon coast, where he was on a goodwill tour for the team.

The Oregon State Police said Wednesday the autopsy was done by Dr. Larry Lewman, a state medical examiner who concluded that Duckworth died of “hypertrophic cardiomyopathy with congestive heart failure.”

The police statement says the heart disease had combined with high blood pressure to result in “marked enlargement of his heart which had been failing for some time.”