Earlier: Atlanta Hawks fans witnessed a terrifying sight during the team’s pregame show on Monday night.
Longtime announcer Bob Rathbun suffered what looked like a potentially serious medical emergency while breaking down Atlanta’s matchup with the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Rathbun was sitting next to franchise legend and current analyst Dominique Wilkins when he began to appear to be in distress. There’s video of the episode out there, but we’ll leave it out of the article.
Immediately, prayers for the 68-year-old Rathbun began pouring in on Twitter.
“Prayers for Bob Rathbun. Really hope he is ok,” one fan said, with another noting that the Bally Sports voice is “not only a great sportscaster but a wonderful human being.”
pray for bob rathbun right now
i really hope he is ok.
— HawksMuse (@HawksMuse) December 6, 2022
Absolutely love Bob Rathbun. One of the nicest people I have ever met in media and gives every single person he meets the same amount of energy and respect. Glad to hear he’s okay.
— Tyler Duke (@Tyler__Duke) December 6, 2022
Pray pray pray hard for Bob Rathbun.
Not sure but it looks like he had a serious medical emergency live in air just now.— Orin James Romain (@orinromain) December 6, 2022
Man, huge prayers for my man Bob Rathbun. He’s not only a great sportscaster but a wonderful human being! I hope he heals up and is ok.
— MikeDrop (@MikeDrop_) December 6, 2022
Praying Bob Rathbun is okay. Pls God.
— The Hood Therapist (@OhhMar24) December 6, 2022
Bob! Speaking for my fellow posters on PeachtreeHoops, we are praying for you! We love Bob Rathbun!
— Dave Offer (@dave_offer) December 6, 2022
We will update you with official news on Rathbun once it becomes available.
Hopefully, the entire incident looked scarier than it really was and he’ll be fine and back on the mic in no time.
Update: It looks like we have good news on Rathbun, who was treated for dehydration and taken to the hospital for evaluation.
“I am told that Bob Rathbun was treated by emergency medical professionals for dehydration. He is stable, responsive and is heading to Emory Midtown for further evaluation,” said Hawks beat writer Lauren Williams.
I am told that Bob Rathbun was treated by emergency medical professionals for dehydration. He is stable, responsive and is heading to Emory Midtown for further evaluation. https://t.co/lCKgjJhWaZ
— Lauren L. Williams (@WilliamsLaurenL) December 6, 2022
Wonderful news.