A Milford Special Olympian gets the thrill of a lifetime. She was chosen to play on the same court as NBA All-Stars last weekend, where her coach happened to be her favorite player.
Ashley Aldrich was nominated by her Special Olympics coordinator. They knew they had a shot but could never imagine what would happen next.
Ashley was one of 12 athletes with intellectual disabilities who’d get their own jerseys and use them to play a modified game at All-Star Weekend. She's from Milford, Mass. and got involved with Special Olympics because of basketball.
"I like point guard, it's my favorite position," Aldrich said.
She’s learned valuable life skills in the process.
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"You can help other kids," Aldrich said. "I just thought it was good."
Once in Charlotte, she was given new Kyrie Irving sneakers and, during warmups, another stunner.
"One of my new teammates that I met down there came up to me and went, 'Ashley I think your dream came true,'" Aldrich remembers. “And I'm like, no, no, don't tell me that."
Her coach was 'Uncle Drew' himself, Celtics superstar Kyrie Irving.
"Oh my God, my face dropped," said Aldrich, who hit a jumper in the contest with Irving watching.
"Couldn't have asked for anything better," said Andrew MacLeay of Special Olympics of Massachusetts. "And it wasn't just a jumper, it was a deep three I heard."
Scoring aside, Aldrich's passion for helping others was also on display.
"I believed that everyone should have the chance to get the ball, so I tried to make sure that everyone got the ball," she said.
At halftime, Kyrie put on a show for the team.
"He did some tricks and stuff, so I was like trying to do it with him," Aldrich recalls. "He's like, 'Oh, honey, it's going to take years before you become like me.' I'm like, 'Oh, I know.'
"It might take me a while, but I think I'll get it."
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Determined as she is, there’s no doubting her. The only question is if she’ll ever change her phone background from her photo of Kyrie.
Ashley's love for basketball isn’t going anywhere soon, but she says her next move is to learn how to become a swimmer.
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