Injuries, age can’t stop basketball lover

“It was October 3rd of ’98. I was working at Bayer, vacuuming out chemical waste. The hose swept under me. It threw me about 6 feet. I had to get stitches in my head. I had rotator cuff surgery. If I hadn’t been in good physical shape, I might be in a wheelchair now.

“I told my doctor that I liked to play basketball. He said, ‘Unfortunately, you’re not going to be able to play ball with all your injuries. Would you be interested in coaching instead?’ I said, ‘Yeah, player-coach.’

“That was over 23 years ago. I’m 72 now. And I’m in pain every day. I go to bed in pain. I sleep in pain. I wake up in pain. It’s from all my injuries through the years. I’ve been in several bad car accidents, too. Through it all, though, I appreciate life even more.

“Before I got hurt, man, I was flying down the court. But I haven’t let it stop me. No, sir. It’s mind over matter.

“I play ball at least two or three days a week. I play by myself. Or if there are other guys, I’ll join them. I love coming out here when there’s nobody around. I’ll take 10 3-pointers, and try to hit at least three out of 10. Sometimes I hit four or five. And I have my free throws. One day I hit 37 out of 50. I want to hit 50 out of 50.

“And I’m involved with my kids and my grandkids, so that keeps me busy. I have a son who’s a personal trainer. When he gets ready to train someone, he’ll call me. I’ll meet him, and I’ll set a standard for myself. I’ll do at least 10 laps while he does his thing. If I only do nine, that counts as zero to me. So I’ll do 10 or more. I don’t like making excuses. Excuses are a sign of weakness.

“God’s been good to me. I’ve seen a lot, and I’ve lost a lot. I lost my wife a couple years ago. I’ve lost four brothers. But I keep going. People will say, ‘Man, you’re strong.’ And I say, ‘Yeah, because I’m the captain of the ship.’ I’m strong for my kids and for my grandkids. I’m not going to say it’s easy. It’s hard. But I really believe that only the strong survive.

“I’m the kind of person who’s never used age as a crutch. I use it as inspiration.”

— Kenneth Herd