BAY ST. LOUIS, Miss. -- This is Malcolm Reid.
The son of former NBA player Billy Reid.
Starting point guard and co-captain for defending state champion St. Stanislaus.
An under-the-covers-before-the-light-goes-out speedster who is armed with a deadly crossover and court vision that is better than 20-20.
This is Malcolm Reid.
"I'm Malcolm Reid. I'm 4'9" and doctors said I could never walk, and now I'm playing ball," Reid said.
Malcolm was born bowlegged, and with his hips out of alignment. Doctors looked at x-rays and said he'd never put one foot in front of the other.
He's lived his whole life proving people wrong. And he's had a strong support system along the way.
"Just the fact when they said he would never walk was kind of a low point," says Billy Reid, Malcolm's father. "But we believed in God, believed in him, and he got through it."
Billy Reid played for the Golden State Warriors for 3 years in the 1980's.
Having grown up on the tough streets of New York City, Billy has a chip on his shoulder, and he has taught his son to work hard and never give in to others' expectations.
"He said whatever you want just go get it, and I'll be right here helping you," Malcolm said.
First Malcolm learned to walk, then to run. But when Malcolm was a high school freshman, he was cut from the Oak Grove basketball team.
"The coach cut him because he was so short, and I stuck with him, worked him out and it's paid off," Billy said.
Malcolm has since gone out and earned everything the hard way, paying his dues on junior varsity at St. Stanislaus.
When legendary high school coach Ricky Stone took over the program this year, he quickly realized that he had found the diamond in the rough.
"Ever since I stepped foot on this campus he's been a leader," Stone says. "He plays a lot bigger than his size, that's for sure. He's very quick, and a tremendous ball handler as well."
"People say I have a crossover like Derek Rose. I'm so quick because I'm low to the ground, and nobody can really guard it," Malcolm said.
Not surprisingly, Malcolm's favorite player is Mugsy Bogues, the shortest player in NBA history, a 5'3" guard who logged 14 years in the NBA.
"Just watching him play how hard he played ... he was just like, 'Bring it on,"' Malcolm said.
At St. Stanislaus, Reid brings it on both ends of the floor.
"His first step is pretty quick, he can get by you very quickly, and the fact that it's not bouncing that high makes it that much tougher," Stone said.
"Once you watched him play, you notice he was a guy that was overcoming, and beating the odds."
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Information from: WLOX-TV, http://www.wlox.com
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