Legendary Rock Band Pearl Jam Sends a Get Well Wish to Mookie Blaylock

After finding out that Mookie Blaylock was involved in a serious automobile accident, Pearl Jam sent out a get-well wish to the former New Jersey Nets, Atlanta Hawks and Golden State Warriors' point guard.

Blaylock is in stable condition after the Friday evening crash that left a passenger in the other vehicle dead and the former guard on life support.

Pearl Jam, who originally called themselves "Mookie Blaylock," sent out a picture of an old shirt that they used to sell while touring with a picture of Mookie on the Nets across the front.

Not only is it one of the coolest t-shirts in existence, it's also a nice message from the members of the band, all of whom remain basketball fans.

The New York Times talked to Jeff Ament, the band's bassist, about Mookie to get the story behind the connection between the undersized guard and one of the most influential bands of the 1990s.

The band used to open packs of basketball cards during breaks at recording sessions, and Blaylock's card popped up at one such session back when the band was still without a name.

Blaylock's card was put into a cassette case and eventually used as the band's name when they were offered the chance to tour with Alice in Chains.

A name change came in 1990, but the band obviously still has a link to the little dude.

Pearl Jam's bassist also recalled meeting and playing a bit of basketball with Blaylock back in either party's heyday.

"

I went and played basketball with him, and he said: "You do have game! You have a good shot; you have a nice rotation." I was like, "Awesome." That was all I was looking for.

You always worry when you meet people who have been on your radar for that long, rock stars included. He was one of the one out of 10 guys who exceeds your expectations, in terms of how nice he was.

"

While the two guys come from different walks of life, are completely different entertainers and even existed in different corners of the country when the band was first coming on, it's cool to see some connection across varying styles of entertainment.