MINNEAPOLIS — Mary Kay told him to do it.
At least, that's what Minnesota Timberwolves coach Rick Adelman said Tuesday when he confirmed that his wife has been suffering from unexplained seizures. Until then, Adelman had been evasive about her health problems, and rightfully so; when he rejoined the team Monday after three weeks away, the coach was wary of giving any details beyond that she was back at home and progressing.
That was plenty, and more, really, than anyone needed or deserved to know. Reports circulated that seizures were the unspecified illness, but there was nothing confirmed by the team or coach. At that point, Mary Kay Adelman made her decision.
"My wife got a little upset," Adelman said, coming as close to laughing as he had since returning to the team Monday. "She said, ‘Why don't you just tell them what's going on?' I said, ‘Well, what do you want me to tell them?'
"She had some seizures, and it's just a process now. We don't know why. We have no clue why it happened. No one can figure it out. Now's a matter of finding out how do you manage them and what do you do with them? How do you go forward?"
And so there it is. No more mystery illness, mystery hospitalization. Mary Kay Adelman is suffering from seizures, and she's back at home. Her husband is back with his team, and it's back to basketball, basketball, basketball.
Except not really. Adelman admitted Tuesday that he'd missed part of the day's practice to be with his wife at a medical appointment, where a new doctor had run a test. It had been on the books for two weeks, he said, and he wanted to be there, although he doesn't anticipate that kind of conflict happening again.
He shouldn't have to explain himself, not for missing time, not even to clarify what's wrong. Yet he's chosen to, and so now everyone can attempt to understand.
"There is no rhyme or reason as to why she had them," Adelman said. "Usually it's you bump your head sometime, or something happened, or you're sick. They have no reason. That's been the hardest part, not knowing why."
Follow Joan Niesen on Twitter.
