Josiah Johnson was in kindergarten when he started playing basketball. And though the 8th grader was born without legs, he has never let that deter him from pursuing his passion. He also made it known that disability is not an inability after he made his middle school’s basketball team, WLKY reported.
“It’s something I had to do,” Johnson said in reference to playing basketball. “I don’t want you doubting me because I don’t have legs. I want to show you that I’m just as human as you, and just as good as you are, if not better.”
Johnson became a member of the Moore Middle School basketball team after he successfully tried out. “I acted like I wasn’t excited in front of coach,” Johnson said after he was selected. “When I went in the gym, I was excited.”
The 8th grader has also not let his condition impact his work rate. “He shows up every day,” Johnson’s coach, Daquan Boyd, said. “If we have to do sprints or something like that, he runs them too. That’s very exciting to see him go out there and do what everyone else does, as well.”
And besides making the cut, Johnson also impressively started their game on November 17. “Not a lot of people can do what he does,” Jalen White said. “He encourages us by telling us what to do.”
Johnson also has a message, “Prove your doubters wrong.”
