Art Garcia | Mavs.com

Posted: June 4, 2008

The scene wasn’t unlike any other basketball camp – kids running up and down the floor, dribbling, shooting baskets and going through drills with smiles on their faces. In more ways than one, the gathering on the Mavericks practice court made wishes come true.

The Mavericks helped kick off the Make-A-Wish Foundation’s national awareness campaign Destination Joy presented by LAY’S by hosting a clinic for 50 kids Tuesday from the organization’s North Texas chapter. President of basketball operations Donnie Nelson, along with head coach Rick Carlisle and Jerry Stackhouse, led the morning session that included a tour of American Airlines Center, the team’s locker room and training facility before getting out on the court.

“This hits home,” said Nelson, a member of the Make-A-Wish Foundation of North Texas board. “It’s something that we’re really fortunate to be able to engage with kids like this. This is the annual kickoff, so this is a really special deal for the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Unfortunately, there are not enough wishes to go around. We’ve got more kids than wishes, so we’re just asking North Texas to be generous with their donations.”

The Mavericks have granted approximately 20 wishes for the North Texas chapter in the last year. North Texas foundation president/CEO Barry Smink said kids have come from as far away as Europe and Australia to meet players such as Dirk Nowitzki, Jason Kidd and Stackhouse.

“It puts things in perspective,” Stackhouse said. “We play basketball and we enjoy it and we take a lot of pride in it, but at the same time things are a lot more important than a basketball game. We’ve been very fortunate over the years in the NBA to be blessed with great basketball last year, the year before and now this year is awesome with Boston and LA in the Finals.

“All those things are great, but when you look at these kids and some of the ailments that they deal with, and their dream is to maybe to come here and spend some time with the Mavericks, I think that’s great. When I was asked to be a part of it, it was a no-brainer.”

Nelson used the time in the training room to tape a few kids up. Carlisle went through a detailed shooting drill stressing concentration and consistency. The kids soaked it all in and did their best to put those fundamentals to good use.  

“These kids, to me, epitomize what it means to be brave,” Carlisle said. “A lot of them have gone through some very difficult things and a lot of them have come through with flying colors. There is a dad here with a little girl with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma who recovered and told me that she just got a scholarship to Hampton to play basketball, which is a phenomenal story.”

That girl is Jericka Jenkins. The 17-year-old point guard from Lancaster was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma when she was 14. She’s been disease free since November, 2007. She had a wish granted earlier this year by attending the NBA All-Star Game in New Orleans.

Jericka is headed to Hampton University in southeastern Virginia this fall to play for the Lady Pirates. Her story typifies the character of so many of the Wish Kids.

“I never stopped playing,” Jericka said.

The Make-A-Wish Foundation of North Texas grants the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions to enrich the human experience with hope, strength and joy. The Foundation has granted more than 3,700 wishes in its 25 years in North Texas.

Destination Joy presented by LAY’S encourages everyone to help make these important wishes come true by donating their time, talent and resources. To learn more about how you can help make wishes come true in North Texas, visit northtexaswish.org.

Coach Carlisle shows off his newly taped ankle. mavs.com

The group takes a photo in the Mavs locker room. mavs.com

Donnie speaks to the group before starting the clinic. mavs.com

Coach Carlisle put on a shooting clinic for the kids. mavs.com