Austin has always been very small for his age. No one guesses him at 14. He just doesn't look it. Usually people will guess maybe 12. His size and build is part of the reason we waited an extra year to send him to school. He will turn 19 a couple of weeks before he graduates high school and I was worried it would bother him to be the oldest in his class, but he loves it. He was the first to get his learners permit and the only 8th grader eligible for a school driving permit. He will also be the first to get his drivers license and many other things.
A year ago, we actually started to get a little worried about his small size. He was still wearing size 10 clothes...at 13 yrs old! Here he was almost a year older than pretty much everyone in his class (almost a year and a half older than his best friend) and he was still one of the smallest in the grade. But we decided to wait and have faith that everthing was normal and progressing along the way God intended it to. In the past year or so, Austin has now grown at least 7". He is not the tallest, but is close to the top 1/3 heightwise for boys in his class. Granted, he has a SHORT class LOL, but at least now he wasn't so tiny.
Austin has always LOVED basketball. He amazes me with his knowledge of the game. He understands the game so well and is incredible when it comes to reading what will happen next and anticipating it to use it to his advantage. He did great last year, but his height was definitely a hinderence. He is a great shooter and very quick and has amazing ball handling skills, but he usually didn't shoot because he was so small that unless he shot way outside, he knew it'd get blocked. His coach was so frustrated because he hated seeing the talent and ability go to waste.
Jay worked with him and told him "Austin, I hate to tell you this, but you may always be the shortest on the team, so if you're not going to figure out how to make that work for you, then you might as well give up now. If you really love the game as much as you say you do, then work hard at it and develop your outside shot. Keep working on your handling skills and speed and show everyone that it doesn't matter how big or small you are." Did I mention that Jay is an awesome coach! :)
At their last game (1st of the season) Austin was learning what he could and couldn't accomplish with his "new" height. He still seemed tentative, but by the end of the game we could see a new-found confidence emerging. Their 2nd game was cancelled due to weather and they had their 3rd game tonight. Austin is one of the 5 starters. Don't ask me what position he plays, because I have no clue. LOL But I couldn't take my eyes off of him tonight. He was on fire! He swished his first shot and became a leader for the rest of the team. He was pumping everyone up and encouraging the rest of his team mates and when he'd be on the bench getting a short breather, he'd be cheering louder than everyone. When he had the ball he was so quick with his feet that most of the time he'd get right by his guy. He blocked out when rebounding and squatted while doing it, which meant the guy behind him would lean over him to get the ball and he got several over-the-back calls that way (I thought that was pretty smart LOL). He made several shots and was the high scorer for his team, but more importantly than that, was his leadership skills that emerged. He was never once boasting or bragging about how good of a game he was having and anyone who congratulated him after the game was given a humble thank you by him. He even had a couple of kids from the other team tell him he played a great game.
Who knows what the future will hold for him regarding playing in high school. I'm sure he'll try it and I hope he continues to enjoy it. I love watching him play and would miss it if he didn't do it anymore. He makes me so proud. :)
Here's a couple of pictures:
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