HPCA hoops star takes court for his father one final time
BY MICHAEL LINDSAY ENTERPRISE SPORTS WRITER
HIGH POINT — KJ Garrett and his family knew they didn’t have much time left together. So, KJ wanted to share one final basketball experience before his dad passed away.
“I just really wanted to play one last game for him,” he says.KJ is a junior standout on the boys basketball team at High Point Christian. His dad, Kevin, had been battling urachal can-cer, a rare form of bladder cancer, for five years before passing away Sunday, Nov. 17.Kevin’s the kind of parent who’d be at all of his son’s games — “Every single game,” KJ recalls. Kevin fostered KJ’s love for basketball and built a strong, loving relationship with his son as he grew up
“It’s very strong,” KJ says in the days just before his dad passed away. “There are a lot of people out there who don’t have father figures. He’s always on me.“Every day is a lesson — teaching me how to become a better man, whether it’s changing the oil or cleaning the car, cutting the grass and all that stuff outside of basketball. And he’s telling me all the time how much he loves me.”
A couple months ago, the family received heartbreaking news that Kevin’s prognosis — which had been steady, albeit still challenging — had taken a turn. Doctors told them he had only a few days to live.KJ and his mother, Paula, had a lot to process. And KJ soon real-ized that his dad, who has been such an instrumental part of his life and as a basketball player, wouldn’t get to see him play anymore.
“We met with the doctors, the three of us in the hospital room together,” Paula says. “We told KJ the news that he probably wouldn’t make it. And I remember KJ saying, ‘Mom, does this mean my dad won’t ever see me play again?’ At the time, I didn’t tell him, but, oh my goodness, that was so hard as a mom to hear.“I left the room and had my emotional cry. And Ingrid, our good friend, said, ‘What if we put something together?’ It snapped me out of it and I was like, ‘You think we can do it?’ She said, ‘Give me Coach Cooper’s number and we’ll start the ball rolling.’ ”
It was an uphill climb to get everything together so quickly and took some finagling to find a team that would play. But fortunately Caldwell, where KJ played his eighth-grade and freshman years, reached out and whole-heartedly agreed.On Monday, Nov. 4, the teams scrimmaged, and the atmosphere was unreal.
“Oh, my goodness,” Paula says. “By game-time it was standing room only. You know the big games we pack the court, and I kept saying, ‘This is a scrimmage,’ and it was standing room only. It was amazing to see that many people come out for a scrimmage. But I think they realized it was more than a scrimmage.”
Kevin wasn’t able to attend the game, but he was able to watch it as friends and family livestreamed it. And KJ, who has been receiving offers to play basketball collegiately, played well that night.That he played well wasn’t particularly unusual — KJ is almost always one of the centerpieces of what the Cougars do on the basketball court. But his performance that night took on a different meaning for him.
“The cause felt bigger,” he says. “I was playing for something bigger. Instead of just being out there killing it, I was out there pla-ing for my dad.”People from throughout the school community and the community far and wide, coming from as far away as several states away, were there that night for him and his family.
“It means a lot,” KJ says. “For people to show they actually do have my back — lots of people have sent me texts and said, ‘I’m praying for you.’ But people actually came out. People coming from Virginia, one of my friends came from Georgia — that hit me that he was there for me.”
The outpouring of support has been tremendous, both KJ and Paula say. And it wasn’t just that one night — the community’s help has been steady as they’ve tried to cope.“They rallied around my little family for one night to make it happen, but it has been before and it continues to this day,” Paula says. “The support, the prayers, the phone calls, the meals — everything. It has been lightening the load somewhat and making it more manage-able during a very difficult situation.“I think if we live to be a hundred years old, we’ll never be able to tell them thank you enough for everything they’ve done for us.”
The basketball team has been especially supportive, Paula says. While some family members wanted to visit Kevin, they just couldn’t handle seeing him during his final days. But KJ’s teammates and coaches stepped up.“That night when I saw young men walk in when you have grown people say, ‘It’s too hard’ — they were there,” Paula says. “That love and support you can’t take away. And one by one, they each started praying. They gave Kevin appreciation notes of what he’s meant to them and how he’s spoken words of encouragement to them. It’s been awesome — they’re family.”
“My teammates are my brothers,” KJ says. “Even though they’re not my blood brothers, they’re still here and they’re still with me. My teammates are my brothers.”The players felt like it was very important for them to be there for their teammate, schoolmate and friend, coach Joseph Cooper says.“I think the thing that’s really hit home with our guys is how they can put themselves in KJ’s shoes,” he says.
“They can understand the situation and they can sympathize. Our guys have been great as an encouragement, visiting the hospital. We love KJ and it’s just all about reminding him of that. And of course we’re praying for them too.“I was just thankful to play a small part in that,” he said of helping set up the scrimmage. “Basketball has been a big part of their family’s life, a great way they’ve been able to bond over the years. They’ve been to tournaments all over the place, been in lots of gyms. I know his dad was his very first coach.
“So, to be able to bring that joy, even in the days leading up to the game. I was able to visit his dad in the hospital and just to see the smile on his face. He was talking about the game and he was so upbeat and excited. And then to see the picture of him in the hospital watching the game, it was just a really special moment for their family.”
As the Cougars’ season has gotten under-way, KJ has continued to play well as one of the team’s top players — including eclipsing 1,000 points for his career in a win Tuesday against Calvary Day. He carries his dad with him ever y step of the way — tagging his recent social media posts with #FMF (For My Father).KJ has many more big games ahead, but he’s thankful he could play one last one in front of his dad.
“It was a blessing from God,” he says. “I was blessed to be able to play for my dad. I thank Him for it ever y day.“I’m ver y grateful. Words can’t describe how thankful I am.”
mlindsay@hpenews.com@HPEmichae
BY MICHAEL LINDSAY ENTERPRISE SPORTS WRITER
HIGH POINT — KJ Garrett and his family knew they didn’t have much time left together. So, KJ wanted to share one final basketball experience before his dad passed away.
“I just really wanted to play one last game for him,” he says.KJ is a junior standout on the boys basketball team at High Point Christian. His dad, Kevin, had been battling urachal can-cer, a rare form of bladder cancer, for five years before passing away Sunday, Nov. 17.Kevin’s the kind of parent who’d be at all of his son’s games — “Every single game,” KJ recalls. Kevin fostered KJ’s love for basketball and built a strong, loving relationship with his son as he grew up
“It’s very strong,” KJ says in the days just before his dad passed away. “There are a lot of people out there who don’t have father figures. He’s always on me.“Every day is a lesson — teaching me how to become a better man, whether it’s changing the oil or cleaning the car, cutting the grass and all that stuff outside of basketball. And he’s telling me all the time how much he loves me.”
A couple months ago, the family received heartbreaking news that Kevin’s prognosis — which had been steady, albeit still challenging — had taken a turn. Doctors told them he had only a few days to live.KJ and his mother, Paula, had a lot to process. And KJ soon real-ized that his dad, who has been such an instrumental part of his life and as a basketball player, wouldn’t get to see him play anymore.
“We met with the doctors, the three of us in the hospital room together,” Paula says. “We told KJ the news that he probably wouldn’t make it. And I remember KJ saying, ‘Mom, does this mean my dad won’t ever see me play again?’ At the time, I didn’t tell him, but, oh my goodness, that was so hard as a mom to hear.“I left the room and had my emotional cry. And Ingrid, our good friend, said, ‘What if we put something together?’ It snapped me out of it and I was like, ‘You think we can do it?’ She said, ‘Give me Coach Cooper’s number and we’ll start the ball rolling.’ ”
It was an uphill climb to get everything together so quickly and took some finagling to find a team that would play. But fortunately Caldwell, where KJ played his eighth-grade and freshman years, reached out and whole-heartedly agreed.On Monday, Nov. 4, the teams scrimmaged, and the atmosphere was unreal.
“Oh, my goodness,” Paula says. “By game-time it was standing room only. You know the big games we pack the court, and I kept saying, ‘This is a scrimmage,’ and it was standing room only. It was amazing to see that many people come out for a scrimmage. But I think they realized it was more than a scrimmage.”
Kevin wasn’t able to attend the game, but he was able to watch it as friends and family livestreamed it. And KJ, who has been receiving offers to play basketball collegiately, played well that night.That he played well wasn’t particularly unusual — KJ is almost always one of the centerpieces of what the Cougars do on the basketball court. But his performance that night took on a different meaning for him.
“The cause felt bigger,” he says. “I was playing for something bigger. Instead of just being out there killing it, I was out there pla-ing for my dad.”People from throughout the school community and the community far and wide, coming from as far away as several states away, were there that night for him and his family.
“It means a lot,” KJ says. “For people to show they actually do have my back — lots of people have sent me texts and said, ‘I’m praying for you.’ But people actually came out. People coming from Virginia, one of my friends came from Georgia — that hit me that he was there for me.”
The outpouring of support has been tremendous, both KJ and Paula say. And it wasn’t just that one night — the community’s help has been steady as they’ve tried to cope.“They rallied around my little family for one night to make it happen, but it has been before and it continues to this day,” Paula says. “The support, the prayers, the phone calls, the meals — everything. It has been lightening the load somewhat and making it more manage-able during a very difficult situation.“I think if we live to be a hundred years old, we’ll never be able to tell them thank you enough for everything they’ve done for us.”
The basketball team has been especially supportive, Paula says. While some family members wanted to visit Kevin, they just couldn’t handle seeing him during his final days. But KJ’s teammates and coaches stepped up.“That night when I saw young men walk in when you have grown people say, ‘It’s too hard’ — they were there,” Paula says. “That love and support you can’t take away. And one by one, they each started praying. They gave Kevin appreciation notes of what he’s meant to them and how he’s spoken words of encouragement to them. It’s been awesome — they’re family.”
“My teammates are my brothers,” KJ says. “Even though they’re not my blood brothers, they’re still here and they’re still with me. My teammates are my brothers.”The players felt like it was very important for them to be there for their teammate, schoolmate and friend, coach Joseph Cooper says.“I think the thing that’s really hit home with our guys is how they can put themselves in KJ’s shoes,” he says.
“They can understand the situation and they can sympathize. Our guys have been great as an encouragement, visiting the hospital. We love KJ and it’s just all about reminding him of that. And of course we’re praying for them too.“I was just thankful to play a small part in that,” he said of helping set up the scrimmage. “Basketball has been a big part of their family’s life, a great way they’ve been able to bond over the years. They’ve been to tournaments all over the place, been in lots of gyms. I know his dad was his very first coach.
“So, to be able to bring that joy, even in the days leading up to the game. I was able to visit his dad in the hospital and just to see the smile on his face. He was talking about the game and he was so upbeat and excited. And then to see the picture of him in the hospital watching the game, it was just a really special moment for their family.”
As the Cougars’ season has gotten under-way, KJ has continued to play well as one of the team’s top players — including eclipsing 1,000 points for his career in a win Tuesday against Calvary Day. He carries his dad with him ever y step of the way — tagging his recent social media posts with #FMF (For My Father).KJ has many more big games ahead, but he’s thankful he could play one last one in front of his dad.
“It was a blessing from God,” he says. “I was blessed to be able to play for my dad. I thank Him for it ever y day.“I’m ver y grateful. Words can’t describe how thankful I am.”
mlindsay@hpenews.com@HPEmichae
