If you have ever wondered why Maine Celtics wing Tony Snell is still plugging away in Portland as he tries to get back into the NBA, it has everything to do with who he is as a person — and not in the way we tend to mean for most NBA players.
Snell, who was diagnosed with Autism spectrum disorder not long ago after trying to learn what might be behind developmental delays in his own children, according to a recent article by Yahoo Sports’ Jake Fischer. “Of course, I want to come back and play, but I have a bigger purpose now,” said Snell. “It’s not about me anymore. It’s about my boys.”
What the veteran wing is referring to is his push to get back into the NBA in order to get coverage for his children’s diagnosis of being on the spectrum as well.
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To qualify for the league’s best level of post-playing career healthcare, one must play for 10 seasons in the league — and not just on a 10-day deal. Snell would need to be called up for a rest-of-season deal by this Friday to qualify.
Some among you may be rolling your eyes at the prospect of a millionaire asking for help — a perfectly reasonable response — but the cost of care over a lifetime is not cheap (over $3.5 million per person per recent estimates).
And, unlike stars like Alyssa Milano, Snell is not asking for anything from the public but an opportunity to work for billionaires he helped make plenty of money for as well in his playing career.
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The Maine Celtics star hopes to continue using his annual basketball camps to raise awareness for people like himself and his children who are on the spectrum. Especially after going through the rough childhood and formative years people on the spectrum often experience.
“I always knew I was different from everybody else,” said Snell. “Just observing other kids, just observing everyone around me. How they were interested in each other, and they just clicked. I couldn’t find a way to click or relate. Basketball was honestly the only reason I had friends.”
Through the Tony Snell Foundation, the Maine vet hopes to “have kids on the spectrum and kids not on the spectrum play together, interact, and see we can compete at a high level, together, and figure things out.”
Hopefully, as he plays for a team in the NBA for the rest of the season with one less thing to worry about.
Be sure to check out the article in full here.
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