'There is nothing he can't do'

George Walden has given plenty to his 16-year-old son besides his name: a profound affection for Laney High School, the skill to hook a bowling ball with enough force to clobber 10 pins, and an appreciation for basketball.

Most important, though, was the lesson that has allowed his son to enjoy these things: There's nothing you can't do.

That advice often resonates with George Walden Jr., who has refused to let his limitations obscure his desires. Born with deformed arms that restrict his reach and confine his range of motion, George is a varsity basketball player at Laney, a team expected to contend for a state title next month.

A junior, he is one of 12 reserves on the Wildcats, who have won 19 of 23 games heading into the final contest of the regular season tonight at Josey.

"George is the heart and soul of this team," said Justin Durham, Laney's coach.

Said George, "I have fun making these guys go hard every day. I think I bring a little spark to the team, like I'm all of them's little brother."

At a typical Laney game, the Wildcats will pummel their opponent -- they haven't lost at home, and their average margin of victory is 14.6 points -- and delighted fans will holler for Mr. Durham to put George into the game.

George, who is 5-foot-9, is capable of controlling the ball with both hands, climbing over defenders to attempt layups and feathering in jumpers 25 feet from the basket.

"There is nothing he can't do," Laney athletic director Otis Smart said.

Said Mr. Durham, "He knows his limitations; that's why whenever he gets in, he always scores."

When George was a child, he was a constant on the sidelines of his father's and sister's basketball games. His sister, Nicole, was a standout player at Laney who graduated in June. His father coaches the Georgia Heat, an area girls Amateur Athletic Union team.

"So all that time I was thinking, 'What am I going to do? He wants to play this game,'" his father said.

The answer was easy: Just let him play. As George grew up and his love of sports bloomed, he participated in just about everything he had time for: football, track and basketball.

"When George was born, yes, it threw me for a loop," his father said. "But I thought, 'This is going to be a miracle. ... So I kept (encouraging) him, saying you are what you have on the inside. You are your heart. Now, it's locked in.' "

Born without a right wrist, George does virtually everything left-handed, except shoot a basketball. He said his father placed the ball in his right hand when he was young, and it felt natural to arc the ball toward the hoop that way.

He developed the skill, he said, by shooting outside at his grandmother's house in Hephzibah and watching tapes of his father's favorite player, Michael Jordan.

George, though outgoing and polite, conditioned himself to internalize his frustrations. He never allowed his parents to see how his condition affected him, like the time he came home from a middle-school track meet in tears because classmates had made fun of him.

"I'll be straight up: sometimes I think about what it would be like to play with full limbs; I'll cry sometimes," he said. "But I'll just pray about it."

George said he no longer trembles when people look at him. In fact, he enjoys attention, whether he's on the basketball court or at the bowling alley. He once rolled a 254 and has acquired the left-handed technique to throw three different hook balls and a spare ball. He sometimes imagines himself bowling in college and studying computers.

"I feel like God has written this for me, because if not, my head would be so big it would probably fall off my shoulders," George said.

Four years ago, George said, he had an opportunity to consider surgery to correct his limbs. He described the risk as "basically life or death."

He declined.

"I wouldn't change a thing. I want to be an inspiration to everybody, to show kids with a disability they can do anything they want. All you have to do is keep God first and keep working hard."

Reach Matt Middleton at (706) 823-3425 or matt.middleton@augustachronicle.com.