Armen Gilliam

ABOUT ARMEN GILLIAM

Played 13 years in the NBA, where he was nicknamed "The Hammer." He died while playing a pickup basketball game.

He played on the 1986 USA Basketball team, which won gold medals despite being an underdog.

He changed the spelling of his name from Armon to Armen because people pronounced it incorrectly.

He had three children: Cheryl, Jeremiah and Joshua.

He was one of the few athletes to die while playing the game they loved. Pistol Pete Maravich also died during a pickup game.