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  William
Graves hasn't played a single second for North Carolina this season.
But he picked up an assist on one of the biggest baskets of the year on
Sunday.
The Tar Heels hosted their fourth annual Special Olympics North Carolina
clinic at the Smith Center on Sunday, bringing together 100 athletes from
21 local programs across the state. The group making the longest trip
was the Watauga County organization, which left Boone at 9 a.m. to make
sure they'd be standing at the doors when they opened at 1 p.m. That's
exactly the response Roy Williams hoped for when he began the clinic at
Kansas and then imported it to Carolina.
"My son Mieszko came in my bedroom at 6 a.m. this morning,"
said Jon Kwiatkowski, one of the Watauga volunteers and the parent of
a Special Olympian. "It was like Christmas morning. He couldn't understand
why we would still be in bed when it was such a big day."
The first hour of the two-hour clinic was devoted to skill stations. At
least three Tar Heels were at every station. There was some skill instruction,
of course. Marcus Ginyard and Dewey Burke and Marc Campbell instructed
the athletes at the free throw station to bend their knees and follow
through.
More importantly, though, there was fun. Made free throws were required
to be accompanied by a loud, "Whoooossshhh!" from everyone at
the station. Across the court, Wayne Ellington, Wes Miller, Alex Stepheson,
and Surry Wood were hunkering down on defense and trying to prevent blow-bys
as the Special Olympians worked on their dribbling. When one particularly
adventurous participant chose to toss in a spin move, he was greeted with
a multitude of high Steve Robinson concluded his shooting station by asking
his charges, "Who here is a Tar Heel fan?" His repetition of
the question drove one particular camper into a frenzy, who started bounding
around like she was in the middle of a Tar Heel post-victory mosh pit.
With that, the group moved to the next station; as Tyler Hansbrough escorted
them to the passing area, he couldn't stop smiling.
Watching the stations, it was impossible not to be captivated by one particular
Special Olympian. Durham's Tyler Coburn will turn 8 in May, making him
by far the youngest participant. He's been to so many doctors in his young
life that he usually bursts into tears whenever the Coburns come into
sight of Duke University Hospital, even if they're just passing by.
The only medical conclusion so far is that he's developmentally delayed,
which means his communication skills are extremely limited. His father,
R.C., accompanied him from station to station. The dad stood right behind
his son while Tyler worked on chest passes and followed closely behind
at the dribbling station.
Graves, who is redshirting, was supposedly running layup lines. But he
couldn't resist taking his students over to the lower goals beyond one
Smith Center baseline. The rims there were about seven feet high.
That was still about four and a half feet too high for Tyler. He took
the ball, ran up to the rim...and stopped. This was perplexing.
That's when Graves swooped in. He grabbed Tyler around the waist, hoisted
him into the air, and suddenly Tyler was at eye level with the rim. The
next step was obvious: the laughing 7-year-old slammed the ball through
the rim.
Upon returning to earth, Tyler pumped his fist. He ran straight to his
mother, striking a pose so she could capture the moment with her camera.
Then he got back in line--on his next turn, he and Graves threw down a
vicious two-handed 360 dunk.
"This just makes your heart melt," said Tyler's father. "You
want so badly for him to have as good an adult life as possible. He may
not have the typical joys in life. He may not get his high school diploma.
He may not go to college. He may not get married or go to the prom or
drive. And as a parent, it's so terrific to see him get to enjoy things
like this. You want to capture it and hold on to it."
He certainly captured the Tar Heels. At the shooting station, Bobby Frasor
tried lifting him three straight times to make a shot on the 10-foot goal.
All three shots bounded off the rim.
With the clock running down on the 8-minute segment of the clinic, Frasor
picked him up one more time. This time, Tyler's aim was perfect. The ball
swished through the net and the parents assembled in the nearby Smith
Center stands burst into cheers that rivaled anything you heard at the
Ohio State game.
After the stations, the campers and the Tar Heels split into teams for
5-minute half-court scrimmages. Play was fierce--after one participant
swatted a blocked shot and accompanied it with a hearty yell, Ginyard
said, "If I blocked a shot like that, I would never stop talking
about it. Never."
Carolina players were reduced primarily to screeners and passers, clearing
the way for the Special Olympians to rack up the baskets.
The scrimmages were followed by a 15-minute autograph session. Every participant
received a team poster, and most secured the autographs of virtually every
player and coach. R.C. Coburn held his son's poster--with freshly inked
Roy Williams and Reyshawn Terry signatures--for him as the duo walked
off the Smith Center court.
"For me?" Tyler asked.
"This is all for you," his dad said.
His son's response was immediate and energetic.
"Yessssssss!"
The tips and encouragement the Tar Heel players provided will serve the
Special Olympics athletes well as many of them prepares to compete in
the 2007 Special Olympics
North Carolina Basketball & Cheerleading Tournament in Cabarrus
County, Feb. 23-25.
Nominate an athlete to be featured in an Athlete Spotlight.
Contact Leah Sundheim, at 1-800-843-6276, ext. 110. Click here
for past Spotlights.
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