Former WNBA physician, Dr. Preston Phillips was the primary target in Tulsa’s mass shooting
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Dr. Preston Phillips, a former WNBA physician is believed to be the main target of the mass gun shooting that occurred at an Oklahoma medical building this week.
On Wednesday, a male gunman opened fire at the Natalie Medical Building on the campus of St. Francis Hospital in Tulsa. Four innocent bystanders lost their lives before the shooter turned the gun on himself.
Here is everything you need to know.
Dr. Preston Phillips was the prime target in Tulsa’s deadly shooting attack
Dr. Preston Phillips was an orthopedic surgeon working at the Saint Francis Hospital in Tulsa.
He was killed in Wednesday’s Oklahoma shooting that left five people dead, including the shooter.
According to law enforcement, Phillips performed back surgery on the shooter just last month.
Furthermore, it is believed that the killer opened fire at the hospital because he was furious at the doctor for operating a terrible surgery on him. The shooter had claimed to suffer immense back pain after the procedure.
Wendell Franklin, police chief of Tulsa Police, mentioned that a note was left behind by the shooter at the scene.
Franklin said that the killer ‘made it clear that he came in with the intent to kill Dr. Phillips and anyone who got in his way.’
Dr. Preston Phillips was a former WNBA lead physician
Dr. Preston Phillips served as the former head team physician for the WNBA’s Tulsa Shock.
He started working with the Shock back in 2010 as the franchise was partnered with Warren Clinic Orthopedic Surgery and Sports Medicine. Phillips was the lead physician at Warren’s during that time.
After the team left Oklahoma to rebrand themselves as Dallas Wings in 2015, Phillips continued to work at the Warren Clinic. He soon became an orthopedic surgeon and section chief.
Gary Kloppenburg, former head coach of Shock, mourned the death of the 59-year-old doctor. Kloppenburg remembers Phillips as ‘kind and compassionate.’
The 69-year-old coach took to Twitter to express his feelings.
He said, ‘Lord help us, our wonderful @wnba @TulsaShock team doctor Preston Phillips was one of the innocent people murdered in the latest mass shooting. Such a kind and compassionate man who loved basketball and looked out for our players.’
In a second tweet, he continued, ‘The dereliction of duty by the OK legislature and @GovStitt who have failed to protect their citizenry by implementing insanely loose gun laws hits close to home. RIP Doc.’
