Henry County high school basketball player inspires others

HENRY COUNTY, Ga. — One high school basketball player is making history this year.

Christian Spencer, 17, told Channel 2′s Berndt Petersen there’s a secret to his success.

[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]

“I just don’t give up. I can’t give up on the thing I love,” Christian said.

Christian is on the autism spectrum and is the first person on the spectrum to make the Eagle’s Landing High School basketball team. Two years in a row.

TRENDING STORIES:

• Stephen ‘tWitch’ Boss, dancer, DJ for ‘Ellen DeGeneres Show’ dead; cause revealed
• Person shot in parking lot of theatre, shopping center off Ponce De Leon Ave
• Arctic blast expected to bring coldest weather in nearly 5 years to metro Atlanta

Some doctors told the family he’d never overcome the challenges. But he has. His hard work on the court has paid off in a big way.

“To know my baby—who couldn’t talk or be socially interactive—is now the opposite. He talks, he has friends, he’s on the basketball team. He’s really living his high school life,” Miranda, Christian’s mother, said.

[SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]

Christian loves to practice, but there’s nothing quite like playing in front of a crowd.

“Awesome. It feels awesome out there. When people cheer for me, I feel like I can do it,” Christian said.

Christian is currently on the junior varsity squad, but his next goal is to make the varsity team.

IN OTHER NEWS:

The Atlanta Community Food Bank (WSB-TV)

©2022 Cox Media Group