Student with cerebral palsy scores final basket to help team win

A student at East Haven High School in Connecticut stole the show during a recent basketball game, but it isn’t because he scored the most points.

It is actually because the freshman students made the biggest difference.

Dejon Knight, 16, isn’t on the East Haven Varsity Basketball Team, but he practices with them.

Every day Knight fights, and has been since being diagnosed with cerebral palsy.

“Bullies, I got bullied a lot and then, when I moved here, like I found a new home,” Knight told WFSB.

East Haven freshman Adam Perrotti is Knight’s best friend and was at a game last Tuesday where something amazing happened.

The coach of the freshman team told Knight to dress for the game, and then he was called to the floor at the end and helped the team win with a final basket.

“I knew what he went through - all these years and stuff - and just to see his goals and dreams come true, it meant a lot to me,” Perrotti said.

Knight said the team hoisted him up and cheered him on, which made him happy.

Perrotti helped organize the student fan section where everyone ran from the bleachers.

“I’ve never seen anything like that, it really made me, like, made me feel good to be there for him - and I know it meant a lot to him for us to be there,” Perrotti said.

The students are now hoping to get Knight some air time on ESPN, as he has already proven that anything is possible.

“He’s a positive influence without question. He’s there every day, he’s on time, he’s working hard, and he’s contributing as much as possible. He sets the bar for the rest of the team,” said Anthony Verderame, East Haven’s director of Athletics.

“All disabled, we’re just like normal people, we can do the same thing - it might take us a little time - but we can compete with the big guys,” Knight said.