The two-year-old grandson of Milwaukee Bucks' head coach Adrian Griffin passed away over the weekend, the team confirmed Monday.
The two-year-old, identified as Jayce D. Griffin, was discovered unresponsive by his father on Saturday, July 22 in Champaign, Illinois, according to Champaign County Coroner Duane Northrup.
According to Champaign police, officers responded to a medical-related call in the 1600 block of Congressional Way at 9:38 a.m. On scene, the Champaign Fire Department was helping a toddler with a "medical emergency."
Jayce was pronounced dead at 10:40 a.m. in the Carle Foundation Hospital Emergency Department in Urbana, Illinois. The child was from Urbana.
Preliminary results from the autopsy revealed no evidence of trauma or foul play, the coroner's office says.
"At this time, the death of Jayce Griffin appears to be from natural causes pending additional testing and final autopsy results," the coroner's office said in a statement Monday.
The Milwaukee Bucks provided the following statement from Bucks head coach Adrian Griffin on Monday: "My grandson Jayce was very special to me and my family and his passing is an agonizing tragedy that will be felt forever. I appreciate your respecting our family’s grief and privacy at this time."
Jayce's mother, Jasmine Riggs, spoke to TMJ4 News on the phone Monday. She said she dropped Jayce off at daycare on Thursday and he was spending the next three days with his father, Alan. She tells TMJ4 Adrian Griffin was the one who called her Saturday morning to say her son, Jayce, was unresponsive.
According to Riggs, doctors say Jayce was reportedly found with fluids in his lungs. However, Jasmine says her son was "perfectly healthy" when she last saw him. She claims she has not heard from the father, Alan, since.
The death remains under investigation by the Champaign Police Department and the Champaign County Coroner's Office.
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