Together We Played, Together We Shined – Great Neck North HS Unified Basketball Inaugural Season

Vince Lombardi, the Hall of Fame and two time winning Super Bowl Green Bay Packer coach famously said, “winning isn’t everything, it’s the only thing”. This Spring, however, Great Neck learned that in unified sports, it’s not the wins or losses that matter, or even how the game is played but, rather, only that the game is played. 

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The inaugural unified basketball season at Great Neck North High School concluded in May. This was the first time in Great Neck that life skill students, with intellectual disabilities, were paired with general education students to train and compete together in a seven game season against other schools. The team, coached by Varsity Basketball Assistant Coach Jennifer McKnight, consisted of eighteen players, ten of whom were life skill students and eight were general education students. 

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“Preparation for this season began two years ago”, said Ms. Nastri, “when Madison Toch brought the idea to Coach Braun and myself. Madison believed Great Neck students would benefit from this experience after watching a unified game at Jericho High School. For me, it was a privilege to be part of the development and planning process involving New York State, Coach Mitch Braun, the Great Neck North Athletic and Special Education Departments and administrators, including our Superintendent, Dr. Bossert”. 

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Dr. Bossert was particularly excited for the unified season because of its success in his previous school district. Bossert saw this as a “wonderful opportunity for all students, both those with special needs and those who want to give back, in a very special way, to their classmates and community”. 

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Coach Mcknight, an experienced college basketball player and high school coach, “didn’t know what to expect” and, accordingly, went into the season “without any expectations”. McKnight “definitely” believed her previous playing and coaching experience would translate well to the unified game. That said, as the season went on, she had to adapt her traditional routines because “no matter how much I prepared for practice, it wouldn’t necessarily play out the way I planned”. Instead, she learned to “embrace the need to go with the flow”. Because of that adaptive approach, “practices went really well and the more experience everyone got, particularly because no one had previously played basketball, the more comfortable they were on the court”. Ultimately, “what surprised me the most was that I didn’t expect our team to be in as many close games and achieve so much success as we did because it was so new. I am just happy that the players and community enjoyed it”. 

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Looking back, the season was a tremendous success. McKnight said “the season was really special particularly because Great Neck hasn’t had anything like this before. I formed a great bond with all the players and it was beautiful to watch the players and community form bonds amongst themselves”. Dr. Bossert said. “Walking into the gym, the feeling of unity, friendship, teamwork and Great Neck spirit were all readily on display”.

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The players, too, enjoyed participating. Ava Ruderman said, “once my CYO basketball days were over I never thought I would play basketball again. Even more, I enjoyed the practice and game time spent with my teammates. Teaching them to shoot and then watching them score in a game brought me incredible pride. Seeing my teammates accomplish something they probably never dreamed possible made me happier than if I had done it myself. Taking pride in the achievements of others is something I will definitely take from this experience and it will make me a better person”. 

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For Hudson Mashieh, this was “the most fun I ever had playing basketball. When I was younger, my basketball coach placed so much emphasis on winning that I didn’t enjoy the experience”. Mashieh continued, “all those feelings immediately went away on this team. Seeing the smiles and hearing the laughter of my teammates play a game they likely never imagined being able to play made me realize that wins and losses just weren’t that important. I learned to embrace the joy that came from forming relationships with people I likely would never have gotten to know and realizing just how similar we are”. 

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The culmination of the season was the last regular season home game which was, according to Nastri, “a wonderful celebration of all the efforts of our players, volunteers, mentors and coaches”. The stands were packed, music played loudly, balloons were everywhere and pictures of the graduating seniors were on the walls. The players were introduced one at a time and ran out onto the court to thunderous applause. Almost the entire Board of Education, Dr. Bossert and his entire Cabinet, Athletic Leadership, Best Pals, other building administrators and teachers attended. “It was incredible to see such an outpouring of support at both the building and district level,” said Nastri. 

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While Great Neck lost the game, it was truly irrelevant. Michael Smolens’ Facebook post best described the moment; “Today I attended an event in town that needed to be publicized. I attended the GNNHS-Manhasset unified basketball game this afternoon at North. A packed gym and an enthusiastic crowd, cheering for both squads made the experience oh so special. Everyone involved; the players, coaches, officials, administrators and fans, made it one of the greatest events I have ever attended anywhere!!! The positivity was contagious!!! As a spectator, I feel better for attending, and all involved should feel so proud for spreading caring and thoughtfulness within the communities through 32 minutes of basketball. My only disappointment is that this is the final game of the season. The support from the crowd was outstanding, and I hope that next year more people get to share the experience I felt. Thank you to everyone who made it happen and proved that kindness and altruism can still be part of education and athletics!” 

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As soon as this season ended, attention turned towards the future. Nastri believes this program “will continue next season based on the wonderful feedback we received and the demand from students to play”. McKnight would “definitely recommend the team continue next year and believes it is a great way for all students to get involved and connect with different students who attend our school”. Even more encouraging was Dr. Bossert who said, “we hope to see the

Unified program both continue and expand. We are considering a Fall season and other sports as well. In addition, we are looking to bring the program to our middle and elementary schools.