(AP) - Former Wake Forest star and 12-year NBA player Rodney Rogers has died. He was 54.

The school announced Saturday that Rogers had died on Friday. Rogers — the No. 9 overall NBA draft pick in 1993 — had been paralyzed from the shoulders down since a dirt bike accident in November 2008 . Rogers died of natural causes linked to his spinal cord injury, according to a statement from the National Basketball Players Association on behalf of Rogers’ family.

“The last 17 years have been both challenging and profoundly blessed,” the NBPA statement said. “Through every moment, Rodney remained a light — positive, motivated, and full of the quiet strength that inspired everyone around him.”

New Orleans Hornets Rodney Rogers (54) breaks up court in the first half against Golden State in New

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