By Karia Ransom

ORLANDO, Fla. (May 31, 2024) -- Ten–year–old Roderick McDonald, who plays for Team Chemistry out of Orlando, Florida, had a traumatic experience when he broke both knees within months of each other last year. 

“I was playing defense and stomped hard which resulted in my knee cracking and at the time I did not know it was broken. I was out for three days and then we went to the doctor and found out my knee was broken,” McDonald recalled. 

A few months after that incident, he injured his other knee and was out through February of this year.  

“I was playing football at recess and hyper extended my knee when I was running,” McDonald said.  

During his recovery, he said his dad was his number one motivator. His other motivation? To get back onto the court in time to play at Disney’s ESPN Wide World of Sports for the 2024 AAU Memorial Day Classic.  

“I stayed motivated by watching people play basketball … and since I wanted to be at Disney, I did everything my doctors told me,” McDonald said.  

This year’s event felt special to McDonald considering he can play again, and he said that the environment of the AAU Memorial Day Classic means everything to him. 

“He has overcome a lot mentally, physically, and emotionally to get back to where he is,” said McDonald’s dad and coach, also named Roderick. “This was tough on him, mainly due to his age, because that can be a lot for a kid who was only nine at the time.” 

The elder McDonald said he believes it was mentally harder for him to watch his son go through this, than it was for his son himself.  

Through the help of the team’s other coach, Mark Borders, the young McDonald’s recovery was a smooth process.  

“Coach Borders was a huge part of his rehab by training him hard and making sure he was constantly stretched out,” Coach McDonald said. 

Team Chemistry ended the 2024 AAU Memorial Day Classic with a 1-2 record, but the real victory was seeing young Roderick McDonald back on the court with his teammates and at the event he loves.