Who is Justice Brooks and what's his NBA connection? All you need to know
Justice Brooks is a 19-year-old based in Atlanta who was diagnosed with Sick Cell Disease. He was recently in attendance at the Boston Celtics versus Atlanta Hawks game. While Brooks is from Atlanta, the sickly teenager was spotted sporting a Celtics jersey. Apparently, Boston star Marcus Smart was responsible for inviting Justice.
But how exactly did the two of them get to know each other?
Marcus Smart attempts to save Justice Brooks from Sickle Cell Disease
According to Yahoo Sports, Justice Brooks and Marcus Smart met earlier this year on a donor registry platform. Brooks and Smart teamed up on "Be The Match," a platform for blood donors to help save people with life-threatening blood diseases such as sickle cells.
“I met Marcus through Be The Match. And we flew out to Boston, me and my mom. And we met him at his house,” Justice said. “We did a big media day. There was Boston news there and different news outlets and we did different interviews together. Before we did any interviews, Marcus came down to meet me."
Brooks continued:
"When we first met, he came to me, he shook my hand, and we started talking about basketball. Immediately it was like a genuine connection. We were talking like we had already known each other.”
Smart learned about Justice's battle with sickle cell anemia in September thanks to "Be The Match". The young man was then welcomed to the Boston Celtics star's Massachusetts home. As the two hoopers got together to discuss basketball and other topics they share in common, they immediately developed a special bond.
Thanks to their newfound friendship, Marcus Smart now aims to help the teenager find a donor that matches his blood type. Unfortunately, Justice Brooks' chances of finding a matching donor are slim. According to sources, Black patients have a 29% chance of finding a matching donor. Despite the setback, Brooks remains optimistic about his situation.
“He never allows his situation or what he’s going through to affect how he comes out to the world,” Smart said. “He’s always gonna be him. He’s a loving person. He’s smiling all the time and he really cares. He has every right to be down. But yet, he chooses to be up.”
Justice Brooks keeps himself occupied as he waits for the ideal match. People can also find Brooks streaming video games on Twitch whenever he's not watching the NBA. Hopefully, the 19-year-old can be cured of the disease that he's had since he was 11 months old.