Nets shocked by Teletovic's potentially career-threatening condition

Shock is a good word for it. Terrifying would be another.

Friday's news that Mirza Teletovic will miss the remainder of the season due to bilateral pulmonary embolus - multiple blood clots in his lungs - came seemingly out of nowhere and sounds incredibly scary. Head coach Lionel Hollins even admitted Teletovic could have died had he gotten on the team's flight on Thursday.

Teletovic's condition will end his season, and it's possible it could be career-threatening. The New York Post explains:

According to medical experts that include vascular surgeons, hematologists and cardialogists, Teletovic likely is undergoing a gamut of bloodwork to ensure he doesn’t have blood conditions that make him prone to clots that could end his career at age 29.

If the bloodwork shows Teletovic has an autoimmune disease called antiphospholipid antibody syndrome, he may need to take blood thinners the rest of his life. The medical community is in debate on whether someone on blood thinners can play contact sports such as basketball. Most opinions are it is unsafe because of fear of internal bleeding.

Teletovic is likely to undergo stress testing to ensure there's been no long-term damage to his heart, and teams interested in his services as a restricted free agent this summer are sure to run him through the gamut of medical evaluations.

While Teletovic is putting forth a brave and appreciative face, the situation has put some of his teammates at unease.

"It was very shocking," Joe Johnson said. "Because I've honestly never heard of athletes, especially when you are working out and training hard every day, catching blood clots ... It's kind of scary."

Part of the shock came from the fact that Teletovic had admitted he was having some issues but had downplayed their severity.

"I knew he had some problems, but he told me that he wasn't in good shape and he told me that's the problem," Bojan Bogdanovic said. "But at the end (of the day), it's a big problem for him and for us."

It's unclear if Teletovic realized something more serious was at play, with his performance beginning to decline, with a 32.9 percent mark from the floor in 12 January games.

"I think it kind of explains why he was struggling in games," Mason Plumlee said. "Looking back, it was tough and admirable of him, but it's more important that he's taking care of his health."

The Brooklyn Nets are now faced with making a playoff push without one of their better floor-spacing options, and while it may seem insensitive to think of such things given Teletovic's scary situation, general manager Billy King was clear Friday that the team will explore all roster options available.