Today we’d like to introduce you to Al Greer.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I’ve been playing wheelchair basketball since 1982. Somebody in my hometown took me to a game and introduced me to the coach, which eventually got me playing.
It was a very exciting time- that was the first time I found out about wheelchair sports. It was amazing to go from watching everything from the sidelines to actually playing the game. I moved to Memphis in 1998 and started playing with the Memphis Grizzlies Wheelchair Basketball Team in 2010. I became head coach in 2016.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Our biggest obstacles are raising awareness and the rising costs of competition. A lot of people don’t know that adaptive sports exist, and they often have a lot of misconceptions about what we do and how competitive the games are. Being a wheelchair athlete is very physically demanding– you have to be fast, agile, and accurate.
We compete regionally and nationally, so we travel a lot. It requires a great deal of dedication and hard work to compete at that level. And the costs keep going up– not only gas and hotels but also the costs of equipment. A good basketball chair is critical to the sport– it’s essentially your legs out on the court. And they have to be customized to you– it’s not one size fits all. Imagine trying to play at the national level with shoes that are too big– you’re not going to keep up, and you’re probably going to get hurt. Our chairs are like that, except instead of costing a few hundred dollars, the right chair costs thousands. It’s a huge barrier to play.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
The Memphis Grizzlies Wheelchair Basketball team is the only adaptive sports program in the Midsouth/Memphis area. The Memphis Rollin Grizzlies’ mission is to improve the quality of life for adults and youth with spinal cord and lower extremity disabilities and to advocate for disability inclusion in all aspects of society.
We use our love of basketball as a common thread to create community partnerships that build bridges, not barriers.
Since 2003, the Memphis Rollin Grizzlies have offered adults the opportunity to play wheelchair basketball. In 2022, we expanded our program to include youth ages 6-18. Sanctioned by the National Wheelchair Basketball Association (NWBA), the Memphis Rollin Grizzlies provide a pathway for our players to play and compete at a national level.
Locally, we do so much more. For almost 20 years, we’ve provided a wheelchair community, peer mentorship, and support to help individuals adjust to new injuries, develop relationships, re-enter the workforce, and go to college.
Risk-taking is a topic that people have widely differing views on – we’d love to hear your thoughts.
We welcome anyone with a lower limb disability who wants to play with us. More than that, we work to break down the barriers to everyday life experienced by individuals with disabilities, from physical wheelchair skills to going back to work after an injury. We build community through basketball– we lean on each other, work together, and grow together. You can get in such a rut after an injury- so much has changed, you don’t know who you are or what you can do. Not only do we offer a physical outlet for folks with disabilities, but we also push each other to take on new challenges and try new things, and offer support through the ups and downs of life. Through competition, we provide an opportunity for individuals to be a part of something bigger than themselves, and to excel through hard work and dedication.
This year, we are focused on returning to the National Tournament after a 7-year hiatus. We are also working to build our youth program for ages 6-18. Our big dream is to host an NWBA Tournament in Memphis next year to celebrate our 20-year anniversary.
Contact Info:
- Website: rollingrizzlies.org
- Instagram: @rollingrizzlies
- Facebook: @rollingrizzlies
- Twitter: @rollingrizzlies
Image Credits
TCB Fights and Amanda Wiig
