Stan Van Gundy reveals wife died by suicide: ‘Devastating’

Stan Van Gundy, whose wife died on Aug. 16 at age 61, opened up about the cause of her passing which was said to be “unexpected.”

The former NBA coach and TV basketball analyst revealed on Friday that his wife, Kim Van Gundy, died by suicide.

“She took her own life, Dan,” Van Gundy told longtime friend and sport talk show host Dan Le Batard on the latter’s “South Beach Sessions” podcast on Friday. “I can’t imagine that I’ll ever get over that. … It was devastating.”

Van Gundy, who began his relationship with Kim when he was 24, discussed the life he had with her and their more than 30 years of marriage.

“My entire adult life, I trace everything — job changes, kids, everything — I was with her, and she was by my side. I never, ever envisioned that I was going to live any day in my life without Kim,” said Van Gundy, who added his wife had been diagnosed with a mental illness.

“I knew she was going through a tough time, but I still never envisioned that happening. Even now, it’s been eight months, and I struggle to come to grips with the fact that I’m never going to see her again. I’m trying hard to stay connected. … My house is full of pictures of Kim. There’s a montage of pictures above my bed that my kids did for me of Kim. I’m trying hard to remember her voice, to remember her smile, all of those things. But more than anything, live her values, because her values were better than mine.”

Despite Kim’s tragic death, Van Gundy said he still aims to make his late wife proud.

“She taught me a lot,” said Van Gundy, who is currently a TNT analyst and is working the Western Conference finals. “And I want to live her values and a life that she would be proud of. And my kids at times over the last eight months, at times, not often, but I think genuinely from their point, I’ll do something and they’ll say, ‘Mom would have really been proud of you for that one.’ And that above anything else really makes me feel good, because my wife was an incredible person, and the loss is huge.”

Van Gundy, 64, met Kim in 1984, soon after he was hired as the head basketball coach at Castleton State College in her native Vermont. She was a student at the time.

Kim was the prototypical basketball wife, following Stan from one basketball city to another, initially in college towns, until he landed his first NBA job as an assistant coach with the Miami Heat in 1995.

Van Gundy was promoted to head coach in 2003 and served two-plus seasons before landing as head coach in Orlando, Detroit and New Orleans.

Van Gundy said on the podcast that he is in therapy, but that life is different without Kim.

Van Gundy credits his four children for helping him hold it together, but acknowledged the sadness will never go away.

“I just don’t think I’ll ever get over it,” Van Gundy said.

If you are struggling with suicidal thoughts or are experiencing a mental health crisis and live in New York City, you can call 1-888-NYC-WELL for free and confidential crisis counseling. If you live outside the five boroughs, you can dial the 24/7 National Suicide Prevention hotline at 988 or go to SuicidePreventionLifeline.org.