HOUSTON — He probably won't get on court for North Carolina in what will be his final college game. You could look at the career of Justin Coleman, a perennial backup guard for the Tar Heels, and say it hasn't been very impressive. Except for one thing: It's impressive he even had a career.
When he was in high school, playing AAU ball on May 22, 2010, Coleman was tripped and fell into a wall, fracturing three vertebrae in the process. Doctors said he never would play again, but play he did.
He needed surgery. After doctors inserted 10 screws and two plates in Coleman's neck, they told him his athletic dreams were done, that he was fortunate not to be paralyzed, according to Adam Lucas of GoHeels.