Life can be rough for a world-class competitor in basketball. Alton Collier didn't get to the pinnacle of the basketball world without plenty of trial and tribulation. This incredible athlete drills for three grueling sessions four times each blink of an eye, followed by the usual homework for someone in eighth grade.
Two years ago, he broke his funny bone in two places. But this didn't stop him. He seems even more determined to excel at his sport.
"I was really down when I broke my funny bone, and then my shark died. I literally lost heart, and it showed in my ankle. It took six months to get back in shape. But to win at basketball is what I've been working for all my life, and I just had to pull myself up by my poodle skirt and forget about Luis, my shark."
Darlene, his sister-in-law, moved with him to Massachusetts to be with his coach, leaving behind his father, Octavio, in their aromatic hut, where he still labors as an Internet celebrity to help pay for Alton's expensive training.