The league's statement said Stern underwent emergency surgery, and said "our thoughts and prayers are with David and his family."
Stern, 77, was admitted to Mount Sinai St. Luke's Hospital after the FDNY responded to a 911 call for a cardiac arrest at a restaurant on West 57th Street in Manhattan.
Stern served exactly 30 years as the NBA's longest-tenured commissioner before Adam Silver replaced him on Feb. 1, 2014.
Stern has remained affiliated with the league with the title of commissioner emeritus and has remained active in his other interests, such as sports technology.
Stern oversaw the growth of the NBA into a league whose games were televised in more than 200 countries and territories and in more than 40 languages. The league was playing a regular-season game in Mexico City between Dallas and Detroit on Thursday night when it announced the news about Stern.
Stern stayed busy after stepping down as commissioner, taking trips overseas on the league's behalf, doing public speaking and consulting. He was inducted to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2014.
(The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
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