PANEL 06 · MY STORY
My Story
Junior year I dropped 38 points in the first game of the season. College coaches were emailing. Then COVID took the season, and a rebound in an Arizona tournament took my knee. Partial ACL tear.
I didn't listen. I trained around it, felt strong, and went up for a dunk at an open gym. My leg gave out before I left the ground. Full tear. Surgeons rebuilt my knee with a dead man's ACL. My recruiters wished me luck and moved on.
Everyone around me said the same thing. Hang it up. The sport wasn't meant for someone like me. Too short, too hurt, too late. I heard it enough that I almost believed it.
I dunked again 3 months after surgery. At 6 months I tried out for my college team and didn't make it. That part stays in the story because it's true.
So I kept lifting. By year three my leg felt normal and I was jumping higher than before the tear. Today my running vertical is 43 inches. Everything I coach comes from earning it back.
If someone has already decided what your body can't do, I built this for you.