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9-year old Nicholas Hickey joins Houston basketball program

Kelvin Sampson

Kelvin Sampson

AP

On Friday the Houston men’s basketball program announced a new addition to its roster, with 9-year old Nicholas Hickey signing a Letter of Intent. Hickey joined Kelvin Sampson’s program through Team IMPACT, which connects teams with children facing life-threatening illnesses. Hickey and his parents attended Friday’s “draft day,” with members of the basketball team and spirit squads in attendance as well.

Hickey was diagnosed with epilepsy, apraxia of speech and autism, which affects his ability to communicate verbally but does not keep him from playing sports with his siblings.

“As a program we want to gather support, but we also have to reach out and help others, and I think we do a good job of that here,” junior guard Galen Robinson Jr. said. “We have the saying ‘for the city,’ so it’s our job to reach out and help others in need who may never be able to pay us back.”