By: Josh Brown

Billy Garrett Jr. is the first player in NBA & TBT history with sickle cell disease…and that’s just the beginning of his story.

After being diagnosed with sickle cell at birth — a condition that inhibits the ability of hemoglobin in red blood cells to carry oxygen — Garrett was discouraged from playing sports. Despite this, with the support of his family, Garrett decided to pursue his dreams of playing in the NBA. 

After a standout high school career in Chicago, Garrett decided to stay close to home and committed to DePaul. He had a breakout season as a freshman, averaging 12.4 points & 3.2 assists per game & was named Big East Freshman of the Year. Then sickle cell reared its head & almost cost him everything. 

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In January 2014, Garrett was on a team charter when he started to feel pain in his knee. It turns out it was a sickle cell crisis, an incident that would land him in the hospital with dehydration, vomiting and a direct threat to his life.

Despite this incident, Garrett decided to charge on, returning a few games later to finish the season. He ended up playing all four years at DePaul, finishing his career as the Blue Demons all-time leader in free throws made.

After two years in the G-League, Garrett made history. While on a 10-day contract with the Knicks in April 2019, he became the first NBA player in history to play in a game with sickle cell. Over the course of four games with the club, he averaged 6.5 points per game.

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After playing with House of ‘Paign in the TBT 2020 bubble — becoming the first player in tournament history with sickle cell — Garrett formed SCD Hoops for TBT 2021. The team’s aim was to raise awareness and funds for the disease. 

“It’s bigger than me,” Garrett told The DePaulia newspaper. “I thought what better way to try to spread awareness for sickle cell through the TBT, something that is nationally televised and it’s basketball — something I have been doing my entire life. I thought that I could put together a team good enough to be able to make it through the tournament, and really be able to do something special.”

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