NBA great Thomas to hospital after overdose - media

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Hall of Fame basketball player and sacked NBA coach Isiah Thomas was taken to a hospital early on Friday from his suburban New York home after overdosing on sleeping pills, New York media reported.

Thomas, 47, a former coach of the New York Knicks, overdosed at his home in Purchase, a suburb north of New York City, media said.

Local police confirmed they were called to Thomas' home in Purchase about midnight and rushed someone who had overdosed on sleeping pills to a local hospital. But the police declined to identify the person.

"We responded via a 911 call at roughly 12 midnight to the home of Isiah Thomas," Harrison Police Chief David Hall said.

"I am not going to confirm or deny that it was he who was transported, but someone at the residence was in need of medical assistance from an overdose of sleeping pills," he said, adding that the man was taken to White Plains Hospital.

Chief Hall had no information on the condition of the man or whether he had been admitted or released from the hospital.

Thomas was a Hall of Fame player with the Detroit Pistons and had coached the Indiana Pacers.

He was placed in charge of basketball operations of the New York Knicks in December 2003 and became head coach of the team in 2006. He was fired in April, 2008, after months of intense criticism of how he ran the club, which has posted seven consecutive losing seasons.

A jury found Thomas guilty in October, 2007, of sexually harassing a female executive of the basketball team. She was awarded $11.6 million in punitive damages from team owner Madison Square Garden and its chairman James Dolan. Thomas insists he is innocent.