Brothers meet their basketball idols

Brothers Riley Draper-Shaw and Lachie Draper-Shaw lived out a lifelong dream by spending a training session with the Adelaide 36ers this week.

The brothers were courtside with mum, Shan Shaw, to see the side go through their paces in the build up to Friday night’s match against Tasmania JackJumpers in Hobart.

After the session, Riley, who is in a wheelchair but has leg braces and can walk, was thrilled to meet his basketball stars, especially import power forward Montrezl Harrell.

“It was really cool to see all the Adelaide 36ers train,” Riley said.

“Seeing how they prepare for the game, it was awesome.

“Trez was great out there, he can shoot the three, get physical if he wants to.

“He is really inspiring.”

“I couldn’t have done this without mum and Lachie, they are tremendous support.”

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In 2023, the club partnered with Variety -  the Children’s Charity of South Australia, through the Variety SA Grants Program which provides funds for individuals, schools and organisations to support children in need.

The partnership enabled 10 schools and up to 500 young people the opportunity to participate in the Adelaide 36ers schools program.

Mum Shan said the support Variety SA has given to her family has been enormous.

“It’s nice for the boys to see this kind of stuff and to not come from very much, especially this little guy (Riley), he was supposed to die at five and he is still with us,” Shan said.

“We have been through thick and thin.”

Adelaide 36ers GM of Social Impact Ross Wait the family love basketball and to have Riley, Lachie and Shan at training was inspiring.

“Riley’s mission was to come and see the guys train, and through the partnership with Variety SA we wanted to assist in making this happen. He loves watching basketball but unfortunately there’s not much scope for him to participate in the game he loves at the moment,” Wait said.

Shan said Variety SA has been with her family every step of the way since they moved to Adelaide when Riley was four and Lachie was seven.

“Variety did everything for us, it was pretty tough with us on our own,” Shan said.

“Riley is pretty unique, he has a couple of genetic diseases which aren’t registered with the NDIS, so Variety have filled in the gap.

 “Lachie has autism, but he plays at Forestville and he is in div two now and aspires to get here one day.

“He has only been playing two years, he used to play AFL, so see how he goes.”

Variety SA has a mission to ensure that all kids deserve a fair go within the community, this aligns with the focus of the Adelaide 36ers community initiatives which is to inspire social change and equip the next generation with important life skills through basketball.

 The club wants to ensure that all schools, and disadvantaged young people, can have the opportunity to participate in programs that inspire them no matter what their background.