Four Minutes
By Jan Larson (03/06/06)
Most athletes have had the experience at one time or another of being in “the zone.” It is during these times that everything about the game slows down and even the most difficult actions become easy. The baseball player sees every rotation of the pitch in slow motion and hitting becomes simple. The tennis player similarly sees the ball, appearing as big as a grapefruit coming over the net, and placing shots just inside the line is easy. The golfer hits every shot down the middle and the hole is the size of a hula-hoop for every putt.
No athlete can choose when to be in the zone and as quickly as an athlete may find him or herself in it, he or she may be asked to leave.
One young basketball player recently found himself in the zone under the most unlikely of circumstances.
The story of Jason McElwain, a senior at Greece Athena High School in Rochester, New York, and his recent four minutes in the zone is one of the most compelling sports stories in many years – not simply because “J-Mac” as he is affectionately known by schoolmates, scored 20 points in those four minutes, not because those were the only four minutes of Jason’s varsity basketball career, but because Jason is autistic.
Jason was diagnosed with autism at a young age and has been in special education classes throughout his school years. Unable to make the team as a player, he has spent the past three seasons as a student manager. Classified as a “high-functioning autistic student,” Jason was given the opportunity to suit up for Athena’s final home game of the season. Coach Jim Johnson told Jason that he would try to get him into the game, but couldn’t make any promises.
With Athena holding a comfortable lead over rival Spencerport, Johnson motioned Jason into the game with just over four minutes remaining. With the Athena student section cheering wildly, Jason missed his first three-point attempt and then missed another short shot. It was on Athena’s next possession that Jason entered “the zone.” (See videos [1] [2]).
With teammates getting the ball to him at every opportunity, J-Mac sank a total of seven shots, six of which were outside the three-point arc. With each successive basket, the pandemonium in the gym intensified until students, players and fans stormed the court after the final buzzer to hoist J-Mac onto their shoulders.
J-Mac’s performance was the equivalent of “Rudy,” “The Rookie” and “Jimmy Chitwood” all rolled into one.
To put J-Mac’s totals into perspective, Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers recently scored 81 points in an NBA game. Projecting J-Mac’s totals over the entire 32 minutes of a high school game and he would have scored 160 points. Scoring at that rate in an NBA game would net 240.
I found the story of Jason McElwain to be particularly touching for several reasons. First, I officiated high school basketball for 18 seasons. On numerous occasions I got to see the emotion and excitement of players who normally spent most of their time watching from the bench when they finally got a chance to play.
Second, I remember the pride I felt when I watched my younger brother – short and stocky, not your typical basketball player – come into his first junior high school game and sink shot after shot as the fans roared. The feeling of pride was indescribable. The students and fans watching J-Mac must have certainly shared that same feeling.
Third, in some ways, J-Mac’s four-minute basketball career was much like my own. While I did not have J-Mac’s disability and played more than four minutes during my senior season, I was effectively the thirteenth player on a twelve-man squad. I suited up for some games, but not for others. I only scored 11 points that season, but more than 30 years later, I can clearly remember the feeling of sinking a shot and hearing the cheers from the crowd.
I can only imagine what it would be like to have a night like Jason McElwain. Given the circumstances and context, his four minutes on the court that night may have been one of the greatest athletic performances of all time.
Unknown outside his school and community until the last couple of weeks, Jason McElwain is now a celebrity and an inspiration not only to those with disabilities but also to many that may have never gotten a chance to play, even for four minutes.
[1] http://tinyurl.com/f547h (ESPN video, click “Launch Motion Player Now”).
[2] http://tinyurl.com/ny37u (Rochester Democrat and Chronicle video).
Copyright ©2006 Jan A. Larson All rights reserved.
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