Former Sagemont standout Fab Melo, 26, found dead in Brazil
Fab Melo, the former Sagemont basketball standout who was a first-round pick by the Boston Celtics in the 2012 NBA draft, died in his native Brazil, military police said Sunday. He was 26.
An emergency call Saturday night brought police and paramedics to Melo’s house in Juiz de Fora, in the southeastern state of Minas Gerais, according to a police sergeant who gave his name only as Couto. Couto said that when the police arrived, paramedics said Melo was dead, with no signs of violence.
The cause of death was not immediately known.
The 7-foot Melo was a star at Syracuse, though academic issues caused him to be declared ineligible for the 2012 NCAA Tournament.
“We don’t know the cause yet. It’s so hard right now, so hard to believe,” Syracuse coach Jim Boehim told ESPN. “He was a really good kid, and it’s not fair that he will be defined by one thing:…