GREELEY, Colo.—Jesse Burnett stands in the middle of a basketball court, staring down at his shoes. Wearing bright blue athletic pants, the soft-spoken 35-year-old’s boyish charm radiates across the court. But as soon as he grabs a basketball, his shy nature disappears and he is all about the game.
The Greeley resident and Special Olympics athlete has a serious passion for basketball, and the Special Olympics and National Basketball Association have taken notice.
The organizations selected Burnett as one of 12 Special Olympics athletes from around the nation to travel to Orlando, Fla., for this weekend’s NBA All-Star Weekend. The athletes will participate in many activities, including the first Special Olympics Unity game, according to a Special Olympics news release.
Burnett suffers from acute anxiety disorder and Fragile X syndrome, a genetic condition where a small part of the gene code is repeated on the X chromosome, according to the U.S. National Library of Medicine website. But the conditions haven’t stopped him from reaching the level of Division A athlete, the highest athletic level for the Special Olympics, said Special Olympics of Colorado Northeast Area manager Andy Gonzales.
“He’s the Tim Tebow of the Special Olympics,” Gonzales said. “There are other players who are better basketball players in Colorado, but they don’t have the drive or the attitude Jesse does. Jesse is just well-rounded.”
Burnett will participate in the Unity game Sunday afternoon, where Special Olympics athletes from the Eastern and Western conferences will compete against each other. A few NBA legends will join in the Unity game, including Clyde Drexler, Chris Mullin, Dikembe Mutombo and Sam Perkins, according to the news release.
“It’s going to be very exciting,” Burnett said. “Getting to practice with them on the actual floor is going to be very fun for me.”
Gonzales, Burnett’s longtime friend and former coach, said when it came time to nominate athletes to participate in the All Star Weekend, Burnett was an obvious pick. They created a submission video and sent it off more than two months ago, Gonzales said. Two other submissions were sent from Denver, but Burnett was the only one selected to represent Colorado.
Waiting to hear from the selection committee kept Gonzales at the edge of his seat, but Burnett put it in the back of his mind, choosing instead to focus on practicing with his teammates.
“I wasn’t nervous, I was very confident,” Burnett said. “When I heard I was going, I was very happy and very honored to get to participate.”
Despite the recent flurry of recognition for his skills, Burnett said he is just lucky to be able to play the game he has always loved, and maybe see some of his heroes during the weekend.
“I’m excited to represent Colorado,” Burnett said. “It’s one of the highest honors I’ve ever received. I mean, look at me. I’m a Colorado athlete getting to follow my dream.”
