It is a story that continues to inspire.
On February 15, 2006, with the game’s outcome no longer in doubt, Jim Johnson inserted his high school basketball manager, Jason (J-Mac) McElwain in to play the final four minutes of the team’s senior night game. What followed was a feat that still has people talking, far from where it took place at Greece-Athena High School in Rochester, New York. McElwain, who has autism and was coming in to play his first-ever minutes of competitive high school basketball, scored six three-pointers and one two-pointer to end up with 20 points. The video of his performance went viral on Youtube and caught the attention of people everywhere (watch the recap that ESPN did below).
“I was hot as a pistol,” McElwain says six years later as he prepares to speak to a room of parents, students and more at Saint Joseph’s University’s 8th Annual Autism Awareness Day to share the message that dreams really do come true.
McElwain’s performance in that one single game made him a household name and won him an ESPY Award in 2006 as the Best Moment of the Year in sports (beating out Kobe Bryant’s 81 point-performance). Since that time, it has afforded him the opportunity to travel, meet celebrities and speak to others about reaching their dreams.
“What has happened to me since the game is hard to believe,” McElwain says. “Growing up, I always wanted to be like the other boys, and when you’re playing sports you can do that.”
He co-wrote a book on growing up autistic in 2007 (which he signed copies of Thursday), and the family is still working on the possibility of a movie to depict the story .
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"Suddenly there was a face associated with autism and it wasn't Rainman," says Dr. Michelle Rowe, Executive Director of the Kinney Center for Autism at Saint Joseph's University. "It was a kid who had this great success doing something that everyone loves, which is basketball."
When he’s not traveling and speaking these days, McElwain is busy holding down two jobs back in his hometown of Greece, NY (a suburb of Rochester) at Wegman’s and as an assistant coach for his old high school team.
J-Mac adds that his goal was always to be a winner, and says he still find it a bit odd he has gone from ordinary to inspiring others. But if he can use this platform to help others, he’s all for it.
“Sports is a lot like life sometimes,” says McElwain. "You often have to overcome obstacles to succeed…My message here really is that dreams do sometimes come true, so never give up on your dreams.”
McElwain still wants to be a college basketball coach someday, and his current career path has him on the way there.
