Janis Timma, Former Pro Basketball Player, Dead at 32

Janis Timma, Former Pro Basketball Player, Dead at 32

Former pro basketball player Janis Timma died this week at age 32.

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Russian media reports that Timma’s body was found outside an apartment building in Moscow on Monday.

Local officials noted the preliminary cause of death as suicide. No criminal leads are being pursued.

Timma was born in Latvia in 1992 and began playing basketball at age 15. He won a bronze medal at the 2010 FIBA Europe Under-18 Championship with Latvia’s junior national team.

The 6-foot, 7-inch small forward declared for the NBA draft in 2013 and was selected with the last pick (60th overall) by the Memphis Grizzlies.

The Grizzles’ traded Timma’s draft rights to the Orlando Magic in 2015, and he later played in the Magic’s Summer League in 2021.

Janis Timma was drafted 60th overall by the Memphis Grizzlies in 2013. (Photo by Joe Murphy/NBAE via Getty Images)

However, most of his basketball career took place overseas, with stints in Russia, Spain, Puerto Rico and Turkey.

His final team, Spain’s Obradoiro, released a statement about Timma’s death this week. They offered their “heartfelt support to Janis Timma’s family and friends during this difficult time.”

Timma married Russian-Ukrainian pop star Anna Sedokova in 2010, however, Sedokova filed for divorce earlier this month.

The Moscow Times cited an unnamed source who claims that the phrase “call Anya” was found on Timma’s phone, near his body, at the time of his death.

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