Aaron Gray will miss training camp recovering from cardiac episode

The Detroit Pistons just issued the following press release:

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. – The Detroit Pistons announced today that Aaron Gray will miss training camp while rehabbing from a cardiac episode suffered following a voluntary workout in late August.

The 7-0, 270-pound center has undergone a full evaluation and is currently seeking additional medical assessments from cardiac specialists to determine a timetable for a return to action.

Further updates will be passed along at an appropriate time.

I'm reluctant to connect his current condition with the team's decision to sign Hasheem Thabeet to their training camp roster, but it's not out of the question. (It's worth noting that Thabeet was not yet released when the Pistons signed Gray.) For now, though, I just hope that this was an isolated incident that won't affect Gray's career. (Update -- it's not isolated, see below.)

Detroit's media day begins at 4:30 p.m. ET this afternoon -- I imagine we'll learn more of this situation by the end of the day. In the meantime, here's DBB's player preview of Gray from earlier this month.

Gray, 29, has averaged 3.4 points and 3.7 rebounds over 12.1 minutes per game in seven NBA seasons.

Update: As DBB reader bonerici points out in the comments, Gray has a history of heart problems. In the 2011-12 season, Gray underwent a surgical procedure known as an ablation to help alleviate a rapid heart rate.

I was curious what an ablation entailed -- here's a description from MayoClinic.org:

Cardiac ablation is a procedure that can correct heart rhythm problems (arrhythmias). Ablation usually uses long, flexible tubes (catheters) inserted through a vein in your groin and threaded to your heart to correct structural problems in your heart that cause an arrhythmia.

Cardiac ablation works by scarring or destroying tissue in your heart that triggers an abnormal heart rhythm. In some cases, ablation prevents abnormal electrical signals from traveling through your heart and, thus, stops the arrhythmia.