Reagan Laetz takes a shot and the ball narrowly misses the rim. It rolls under a van parked near the basket and is stuck. Reagan quickly crawls under the car to retrieve the ball and gives it to his friend Joshua Siminski, who takes a shot.
The small sequence may not seem important, but the scene is a metaphor for the way Laetz handles being in a wheelchair.
When Laetz missed the shot and the ball went under the van, he didn’t complain. He didn’t let being in a wheelchair be an excuse for him not to get the ball either. He found a way to get the ball and passed it to his friend.
Laetz had the same attitude when he wanted to play sports. He didn’t complain that he was in a wheelchair. He joined a wheelchair basketball league.
‘My mom told me about it and I decided I would try it,? Laetz said. ‘Once I started going, I enjoyed it a lot. I liked that there was a lot of action and I liked getting to play against other people.?
During his first season of wheelchair basketball, Laetz was a member of the Junior Michigan Thunderbirds, who took fourth place at the National Wheelchair Basketball Association Junior Prep Division National Tournament in Peoria, Illinois. The Thunderbirds also went 15-1 and 11-0 in the Midwest Conference.
Laetz’s mother Ruth said she heard about the team in a newsletter she gets in the mail. She signed him up and is very happy with the results.
‘It’s given him the opportunity to build ball handling skills and chair handling skills and the chance to be an athlete,? Ruth said. ‘One of the other things I liked about the team is the kids are just like him. They are in wheelchairs, but they are completely capable of playing basketball. They are not limited by their disability.?
The Thunderbirds practice once a week in Southfield. Ruth said Laetz really enjoys the practices.
‘The practices are just like normal basketball practices,? Ruth said. ‘The main thing about wheelchair basketball is chair handling. It’s probably the biggest skill they work on. They do sucide drills, where they stop and go back. They do all kinds of running, ball handling and chair handling drills. The games are really low scoring, especially in juniors because they are all smaller kids and they are sitting. It’s mainly a lot of fundamentals with the chair and the ball. It’s not a lot of scoring.?
Laetz, who is eight and attends Oakland Christian, was one of the younger members of the Junior Thunderbirds this season which is made up of players under 14-years old. Almost all the Junior Thunderbird’s games are in tournaments with team’s from other areas. The teams keep track of the tournament results for league standings.
Being on the Thunderbirds involved a lot of traveling, so Laetz only played in two of the tournaments this season. Laetz hopes to make more next year and has gained more interest in basketball.
‘I wouldn’t say he was crazy about basketball, but now that he’s playing I noticed he sits down and watches games with his dad,? Ruth said. ‘He’s more into basketball now.?
Reagan said his favorite part of basketball is playing defense and he enjoyed the tournaments.
‘I like getting a chance to play real games against people from other places,? Laetz said.
The Junior Thunderbirds are part of the Thunderbirds organization, which includes a varsity and J.V. team for high school kids and a competitive adult team. Laetz said he hopes to one day play for the Thunderbirds adult team.