Iowa coach Fran McCaffery said Friday that the tumor doctors removed from his son’s thyroid earlier this week was malignant.
McCaffery’s son Patrick, 14, had surgery in Iowa City on Wednesday, just hours before the Hawkeyes lost to Tennessee in the First Four of the NCAA tournament in Dayton, Ohio.
via UPDATE: Iowa.
The McCaffery family attended the Clippers’ shootaround before Monday’s game, with Patrick playing basketball with Paul and joining the team huddle after practice. After the game, Clippers coach Doc Rivers invited the family into the locker room, and Paul presented Patrick with his game-worn shoes.
“[Paul’s] interaction with Patrick has been so genuine,” Fran McCaffery told the Clippers’ official website. “When he found out today that he was going to shootaround, he hasn’t smiled like that in a month. I just can’t thank Doc and Chris and the Clippers enough.”
Paul passed the ball to Patrick for corner 3-pointers during the shootaround, and he chatted with the point guard, Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan afterward. Following the Clippers’ 114-104 victory, Patrick was greeted by high fives and hugs in the Clippers’ locker room.
“It’s real cool to get a chance to see him,” Paul said. “I got his phone number and called him the day before he had surgery, and I actually called him after he had surgery, too, to make sure everything went all right. He’s a great kid.”