Gavin Porter poses with the WashU men’s basketball team in 2019. (Photo courtesy of Pat Juckem)

Every four years a new name goes on top of a locker in WashU men’s basketball team’s locker room. However, since 2019, as players have come and gone, one name has stayed: Gavin Porter.

Porter, then 10 years old, joined the team in 2019 through Team IMPACT, a national organization that pairs children with serious health issues with NCAA teams. Porter, who was born premature, was diagnosed with cerebral palsy at a young age.

Porter’s connection to WashU was strong prior to Team IMPACT. His mother, Mia Malcolm, and his grandmother are both WashU alums. Along with being a fan of wrestling, Porter has always loved basketball. So after getting in touch with Team IMPACT, Malcolm ultimately decided that WashU’s basketball team would be a perfect fit. The team agreed.

Days after being paired with the team, Porter was officially “drafted” to WashU. Ever since, he has been an integral part of the Bears squad that most recently made it to the NCAA Division III Final Four.

Malcolm still remembers the draft day, one of the first times she had felt her son was accepted by a sports team.

“It was [Porter] and then a little girl who had got matched with the women’s basketball team at WashU, so they had a draft day, and Gavin signed the paper. We still have his draft paper; it’s framed in his bedroom, and they gave him a jersey. They had a locker for him and all these things. It was very cool that they did that for him, and he’s just been locked in ever since.”

Just over a year after Porter signed with the team, the COVID-19 pandemic swept across the country, cancelling WashU’s basketball season. However, a pandemic would not break Porter’s bond with the squad. While in-person experiences had to be put on hold, Gavin kept in regular contact with the team, who sent him videos and text messages. Toward the end of the pandemic, they surprised Porter on his birthday, meeting him outside his house — one of the first times they had seen him since the pandemic started.

“We hadn’t seen him for so long, you know, we’d been obviously apart,” head coach Pat Juckem said. “And so our guys drove over to his house, and we met outside, and we hadn’t seen him for quite a while and brought a present and cake. You could see what this meant to both [him and the team].”

Nearly seven years later, Porter is now a sophomore in high school and continues to be involved with the WashU team. Most recently, he has attended team practices and scrimmages to meet the team and share his story. After home games he attends, Porter spends time in the team room and breaks down the Bears’ huddle. 

Juckem participated in the Team IMPACT initiative in his previous job as head coach of the University of Wisconsin–Oshkosh men’s basketball team, and his relationship with Porter has spanned the entire length of his coaching career at WashU. Porter, Juckem, and generations of WashU men’s basketball players have been inspired by Porter’s relationship with the team.  

“He was so elated [to be with the team] [to be with the team], because some of his physical disabilities are hard,” Juckem said. “But his mom shared after how meaningful it was for him to participate, not just to observe, but to participate and play along with our guys. And our guys were so, so caring and looked out for him and made sure that he had success.”

The team has also gone out of their way to spend time with Porter. When Porter graduated from eighth grade, the team and Juckem were there to cheer him on, a moment his mother vividly remembers.

“They came to his eighth grade graduation,” Malcolm said. “It’s just been such an amazing experience that Gavin gets to be wrapped in that kind of love from these guys. And it helped to build his confidence so much.”

Another way Porter has been able to engage with WashU athletics is through Bear Cubs Running Team, a program that seeks to improve the well-being of children with health challenges through running and other activities. Senior basketball player Jonathan Coffy served as Porter’s mentor with Bear Cubs.

During this time, Coffy learned that Porter was a fun-loving and active kid. The two quickly bonded over a love for wrestling.

“I got to know more about him in terms of what he likes. … He’s a big WWE fan,” Coffy said. “I learned that really likes John Cena, so he made up a handshake. And I learned that he’s a very active kid, he likes sports, but he also just likes to run. He’s a little bit of a jokester, too.”

Seeing Porter’s growth over the last four years has also been fulfilling for Coffy, who has developed an even stronger relationship with him after Bear Cubs.

“It’s also been crazy to see him grow up, because I’ve been around Gavin for about five years now,” Coffy said. “He’s a high schooler. … It’s just so crazy to see his growth and his development. He’s becoming a young man. It’s been really fulfilling.”

The Bears have inspired Porter, and he considers them to be “his team.” However, Porter’s biggest inspiration has been Justin Hardy, a WashU basketball player who passed away from cancer in 2022, during his senior year at WashU. Porter has drawn on Hardy’s courage and determination to inspire him to be HardyStrong during times he has been sick.

“He still remembers Justin and he’ll talk about Justin, even though Justin passed away, and it gives him strength to know that Justin was so strong,” Malcolm said. “And he’s like, ‘Mommy, I’m strong. Like Justin.’ The last time he had a procedure, he had to go into the hospital. He’s like, ‘Don’t worry, because I’ll be strong. Like Justin.’”