Tracy McGrady recently took to Instagram to share a touching story of how he met a 13-year-old kid, Iran Brown, who was shot by a sniper in 2002. Brown was a huge McGrady fan, and the then-Orlando Magic star was asked if he could in some way inspire the teenager as he fought for his life.
“I get a call from the PR team from Orlando, they said that the kid that just got shot by the sniper is a huge fan of yours,” McGrady said. “Can you send a video, cheer him up, just give him inspiration, some courage to keep fighting? Young kid is going about his day and out of nowhere you get shot by a DC sniper.”
It was a special feeling for McGrady that someone who was fighting for their life was thinking about him. He and the Magic invited Brown to a game as his condition improved, and McGrady was determined to put on a show for the teenager.
“When he got healthy enough, we invited him down to the Christmas Game that we played Detroit and I had to put on a show for him,” McGrady continued. “And I think I dropped 46 that night. But to have him in attendance knowing what he just went through, Detroit didn’t know what they were up against.”
The 44-year-old called it the most memorable fan moment of his career.
“This kid is in the building, I know the story, I know what he’s been going through, like they in trouble today,” McGrady stated. “I have to put on a show for this kid. We won the game, he’s proud, it was just my most memorable fan moment. If you out there Iran and see this, I still think about you brother.”
McGrady ended the night with 46 points, 6 rebounds, 1 assist, and 3 steals, as the Magic won 104-99. Brown certainly would have walked out of that arena with a huge smile on his face after witnessing that performance. I think we somewhat understate just how inspiring athletes can be, especially for young kids like Brown. They can give them so much strength in times of need, as was the case here.
It was on October 7, 2002, that a 13-year-old Brown became one of the victims of a shooting spree that had terrorized the Washington metropolitan area. He was on his way to middle school in Bowie, Md, when he was shot and was hospitalized for multiple weeks, as per ESPN.
“He was hospitalized for several weeks with severe injuries to major organs, including his spleen, stomach, and pancreas. His spleen was removed.”
As Brown lay in the hospital, he received a jersey from McGrady, which would have certainly meant a lot to him. When he recovered, the Magic and their sponsors arranged a vacation for him that he would never forget.
“The Magic and their sponsors paid for Iran and his family to take a Florida vacation, complete with a chance to shoot baskets with the team, visit Walt Disney World and attend two NBA games.”
It was good on the Magic’s part to go to those lengths for Brown. It would have been amazing for the teenager to have an experience like that, after going through something so terrible.
It also appears that this video did reach Brown and he would love to reconnect with McGrady.
It would be incredible if these two do end up meeting after all these years, and I hope it does happen.
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