It’s impossible not to root for Nuggets rookie guard Bones Hyland
Nov 29, 2021, 11:12 AM
How can we not pull for Bones Hyland?
He plays the game of basketball with a flair and with energy and with a passion that is evident in attitude, body language and production. The guy just loves to play the game. There is nowhere he would rather be than on the basketball court. It’s hard not to love watching this guy play.
And then, when you know his backstory, you really want to pull for him!
March 25, 2018 is a day that changed Bones Hyland forever. He was a junior in high school, and a star on his high school basketball team in Wilmington, Del.
That evening, he was watching the NCAA Tournament. Duke against Kansas was on his computer in his bedroom. The game had just begun when he smelled smoke.
He opened his bedroom door and flames nearly consumed him. He was trapped in his second-floor bedroom, with the only way out being through his bedroom window. Bones knew there were three others in the home at the time – his grandmother and two infant cousins – but it was impossible to get to them.
His only means of escape was to jump. He did just that, landing on a set of brick stairs and rupturing his patella tendon. His grandma and two cousins were rescued and taken to a hospital, but only one of his cousins, an 11-month boy, survived.
Hyland was so distraught that he couldn’t even attend the funerals. Plus, he had his own physical issues to deal with after the incident. Recovery from the ruptured patella tendon was going to take a minimum of six months.
But Bones was determined to come back. And be better than ever. He felt he owed that to his grandmother and cousin. And he did just that.
As a senior, he was ranked as the 64th-best player in the country. He could have played college basketball anywhere he wanted, but chose Virginia Commonwealth to be close to home and family. He turned out to be the highest-rated recruit in VCU history.
We all know what happened after that. A stellar career at VCU led to his being drafted by the Nuggets with the 26th pick in last summer’s NBA Draft.
Good for the player and good for the Nuggets!
How do we not pull for Bones Hyland?
