Jennifer Ilgauskas, the wife of Cleveland Cavaliers legend Zydrunas Ilgauskas, died on Sept. 11 at the age of 50.
A cause of death was not listed in her obituary, which was published by McGreevey Funeral Homes.
Jennifer worked in medical care in Northeast Ohio, where she was the owner of Rebound Physical Therapy, North Olmsted Urgent Care, Lakewood Urgent Care, and medical billing company Darbo, according to her obituary, which highlighted her charitable efforts.
Jennifer Ilgauskas, the wife of Cleveland Cavaliers legend Zydrunas Ilgauskas. Facebook/Jennifer Ilgauskas
Cleveland Cavaliers legend Zydrunas Ilgauskas and his wife Jennifer Ilgauskas. Facebook/Jennifer Ilgauskas
(L-R) Dwyane Wade, Gabrielle Union, Juwan Howard, Janine Howard, Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Jennifer Ilgauskas, Chris Bosh and Adrienne Bosh attend “Unlock” Art of Basketball Event during Graffiti Gone Global on December 3, 2011, 2011 in Miami, Florida. Alexander Tamargo“Many individuals were touched by her acts of kindness, but few knew the far reaching extent of her charitable work. She was a wonderful, giving and intimate friend to so many,” Jennifer’s obituary states.
Ilgauskas — whose No. 11 jersey was retired by the Cavaliers in 2014 and hangs in the rafters of Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse — and his wife married in 2004.
The couple share two sons, Deividas and Povilas, whom they adopted from Ilgauskas’ hometown in Lithuania in 2009, according to Cleveland Scene.
Cavaliers legend Zydrunas Ilgauskas with his wife Jennifer and their sons at his jersey retirement ceremony during halftime of Cleveland’s game against the New York Knicks at The Quicken Loans Arena on March 8, 2014, in Cleveland, Ohio. NBAE via Getty Images
Zydrunas Ilgauskas of the Cleveland Cavaliers puts up a shot over Channing Frye of the Phoenix Suns during an NBA game at US Airways Center on December 21, 2009, in Phoenix, Arizona. Getty Imagesllgauskas was selected by the Cavaliers with the 20th overall pick in the 1996 NBA Draft. He went on to play 12 seasons with Cleveland.
The former All-Star center signed with the Heat for the 2010-11 season, joining Chris Bosh, Dwyane Wade and LeBron James, before he announced his retirement in September 2011.
A funeral mass for Jennifer will be open to the public at St. James Church in Lakewood on Saturday.
