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During this week’s NBA games, viewers and spectators will notice head coaches wearing custom-designed Nike shoes.
These shoes come with important messages. With help from Utah Jazz assistant coach Scott Morrison and his wife Suzanne, whose son Max was diagnosed with autism in 2022, the coaches are supporting World Autism Month in April.
“Before the season started, we wanted to do something to help and contribute,” Prime Minister Scott Morrison told USA TODAY Sports. “And we came up with the idea that we might use a few coaches that I know to see who might be interested in wearing this shoe as a way to highlight autism. .”
Some of the shoes will be auctioned off, with proceeds going to Morrisons to the Max Foundation, which supports children with autism and their families.
“What we want to do is really support individuals and families directly,” Suzanne said. “This journey is very rewarding and very beautiful, but it can also be very difficult, and challenges and needs change frequently.”
Scott Morrison thought he might be able to bring in a few assistant coaches. “It was just a small incident,” he said.
But the idea grew. Charles Terrell, Basketball Intelligence’s jazz director and former Nike employee, helped source the shoes. And another Jazz staffer asked what the shoes were for, and told Mr. Morrison that John Miller, a well-known custom shoe artist based in Salt Lake City, might be able to help with the design. I told him.
Morrison reached out to David Vogel of the National Basketball Coaches Association, who encouraged all head coaches to reach out. Morrison and Vogel sent an email to coaches explaining the idea. They all agreed.
The initiative will have significant exposure during games from April 2-7, including several nationally televised games.
“Hopefully it will become an annual event, or some version of it may become an annual event,” Prime Minister Scott Morrison said. “And we hope to add different projects in the future. But this is the first project that came to mind and that motivated us to start the foundation. The project was well-received and the foundation will be featured in an upcoming article. “We changed our shoes a bit, but that wasn’t necessarily the point. To draw attention to autism acceptance. is the goal.”
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, autism spectrum disorder is a “developmental disorder caused by differences in the brain,” and autism affects 1 in 36 children and 1 in 45 adults. It is said that there is
“ASD begins before age 3 and symptoms may improve over time, but can last a lifetime,” the CDC says. “Some children may show symptoms of ASD within the first 12 months of life, while others may not show symptoms until 24 months of age or later. Some people acquire new skills and reach developmental milestones by about 30 years, and then either stop learning new skills or lose the skills they once had.”
The Morrison family began learning about Max’s diagnosis about two years ago while in Australia, where Scott was head coach of the Perth Wildcats.
According to autismspeaks.org, autism is diagnosed in the United States around the age of 5 and symptoms appear around the age of 2 or 3. That’s when Suzanne and Scott began to notice changes that were subtle at first but became more apparent over time. Around the time of diagnosis, they noticed developmental regression.
“I’m comfortable saying, for example, that he used a lot of gestures,” Suzanne said. “He waves, blows kisses, points, so if you say, ‘Max, show me the cow in the book,’ he does all those things. And I still have doctors who don’t believe me. He used to do that until I showed him the video.”
The Morrison family now wants to focus on what four-year-old Max can do. “He is the most special little soul,” Suzanne said. “When people meet him, they’re so drawn to him and his energy. … He can’t speak, he’s got some new conversation skills, but he lets you know that and other He communicates in so many ways and he’s so sweet and he’s so cute and loving and has the cutest sense of humor.”
The Morrison family knows first-hand the challenges families face. They experienced them in Australia, where waiting lists to see specialists were long and health insurance was a barrier. The 2021-22 season was Morrison’s first season there. He was an assistant with the Boston Celtics on Brad Stevens’ staff, but when Stevens left and hired I’M Udoka, the new coach hired Will Hardy, who specialized in the same offense as Morrison. Ta. Morrison, the 2014-15 G League Coach of the Year, realized he couldn’t stay. He took the job in Perth.
It was also during the pandemic, and conditions weren’t ideal, especially as Morrison’s team relocated across the country to play games. After seeing a doctor, Suzanne began to come to terms with his autism and ensure that Max received the best possible care.
It may have been confusing at first, but the sign kept pointing to Utah. Suzanne knew former NBA player Aaron Baynes’ wife Rachel from their time with the Celtics, and she put Suzanne in touch with Renee Ingles, wife of NBA player Joe Ingles. The Ingles’ son, Jacob, has autism, and Renae provided the Morrisons with a roadmap.
“Renae is a very strong human being,” Suzanne said. “She was the first autistic mom I ever talked to, and I was like, ‘Okay, she gets it.’ She showed me the courses I could take and I will always be grateful to her because she was the perfect person for me at the time.”
It took time and discussion to figure out our next move, and we decided it was best to return to North America to get Max the care he needed. That meant quitting his job in Australia, with no job security in the United States or Canada, where Scott was born.
“I just looked at Scott and said, ‘This is going to sound insane, but I’m so tired and exhausted and I just talked to this Renia Ingles. “I just want to go to Utah. I feel like she knows what to do,” Suzanne said. “She said those exact words.”
But Scott didn’t have a job in Utah, at least not yet. They decided to return to North America and live on Prince Edward Island, where Scott was born. Before the start of the 2022-23 season, Morrison received a call from Hardy, who had been hired as the Jazz’s head coach, asking if he was interested in coaching the Jazz’s G League team.
Salt Lake City and Utah have a wealth of autism resources, including schools. Jazz’s Delta Center has a sensory room where people on the spectrum can find comfort from the sights, sounds, and crowds of the arena, and the room is designed to “focus on stimulating or calming specific senses.” “We have put a lot of things in place.” Salt Lake’s Clark Planetarium offers “Sensory Friendly Saturdays,” where the planetarium “adjusts light and sound throughout the free exhibit area to provide a safe, welcoming and fun environment for those with sensory sensitivities.” doing. Utah’s Discovery Gateway Children’s Museum offers a similar program.
“Scott and I are very emotional just because we came here and our lives changed forever, but that’s what brought us here,” Suzanne said. “People seem to be interested and want to know more, and I think that’s great. We just want to make this world a better place for Max and other autistic people.” I just want to.”
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