Child with Down Syndrome gets attention from Ron Baker, Fred VanVleet

As if we needed another reason to love Ron Baker and Fred VanVleet, along comes 9-year-old Keaton Palmer.

He’s been bouncing a basketball, his grandmother said, since he was old enough to walk. And he’s been a basketball fan, and specifically a fan of Wichita State, for about as long. But the kid, like so many others, is gaga for the two former Shockers.

“He’ll literally shoot baskets for hours,” Janet Adamson, Keaton’s grandma, said. “He has a goal in his driveway and we bought him kind of an arcade-type basketball goal that he plays on in the winter. And I even have a little plastic Fisher-Price basketball hoop that he likes to get out when he comes to our house.”

In many ways, Keaton is like any kid his age. In another — he has Down Syndrome — he is not.

Which is why Adamson was touched to the point of contacting me and other media members over the weekend after Keaton participated in Baker’s basketball camp at the YMCA Farha Sports Center, where VanVleet was an instructor.

Both former Shockers are trying to make it to the NBA. Baker has been invited to the New York Knicks’ camp and VanVleet has a chance to make the roster of the Toronto Raptors.

While in hot pursuit of their dreams, both are still granting the wishes of others.

Keaton, wearing a Shocker jersey he would just as soon never remove, got to meet his heroes. And they encouraged him to participate in some of the drills with the other kids. And while all of his was going on, Adamson could not contain her tears.

“I love to win! I love it when the Shockers win,” she wrote in an e-mail. “But the scoreboard doesn't necessarily always indicate winners. Sometimes actions and how you treat others make you a winner. And after what I saw (Saturday), these young men are WINNERS and I will never forget what they did for my grandson and how they treated him.”

Adamson also praised new Shocker Darral Willis Jr., for being so gracious to Keaton and the more than 150 other kids who participated in the Baker camp.

“The organizers of the camp went to Ron and Fred and said there was a little guy who really wanted to meet them,” Adamson said. “They stopped what they were doing and came over to talk to Keaton and get a picture taken with him. You should have seen his smile, it was just the biggest smile you ever saw. He watches them, he knows who the Shockers are.”

Keaton’s mother, Andrea Palmer, said she was star struck when she met Baker and VanVleet. But it’s the look on Keaton’s face she’ll always remember.

“Basketball and swimming are really his two big things,” Palmer said. “But I played basketball when I was growing up in El Dorado and my dad was my coach, so I would say basketball takes a precedence over swimming for Keaton.”

Keaton’s fraternal twin brother, Kaden, also attended the Baker camp. Earlier in the summer, they were at Gregg Marshall’s camp at Koch Arena.

“Kaden really watches out for his brother,” Adamson said. “At the end of the camp, Ron picked two kids from his group to play against another group on the basis of sportsmanship and one of the kids he picked was Kaden. I attribute that a lot to having Keaton as a brother because he’s learned to look out for him and to include him and to share the ball with him.”

Keaton, Adamson said, would not take off his Shocker jersey after getting home from the Saturday camp. And when she saw him late Sunday afternoon, he was still wearing the jersey.

“I finally made him take off the jersey Sunday night because he needed a shower,” Palmer said. “But he took it off reluctantly.”

Keaton, who lives with his parents in Mulvane, likes to be referred to as “Ron Baker” or “Coach” — as in “Coach Marshall” — when he’s playing basketball on his driveway or at his grandparents’ house in Derby.

“Darrel is Keaton’s favorite Shocker now because of the camp,” Adamson said. “When they were doing their drills and running, he stayed beside Keaton and took the time to help and guide him.”

Keaton’s mom said every time he sees a picture of Willis now, he asks if Willis can come over to their house. He also wondered whether VanVleet could be his uncle.

If you know anything about Baker and VanVleet, you know how much they love kids and appreciate the reverence shown to them. During their Shocker careers, both were accommodating to their young fans. Their popularity is tied not only to their immense basketball talents, but to their willingness to embrace the many kids who worship them.

They have created a big fan base during their time in Wichita. It might not be long until Keaton Palmer adds a couple of NBA jerseys to his wardrobe.

This story was originally published August 2, 2016 at 3:09 PM with the headline "Child with Down Syndrome gets attention from Ron Baker, Fred VanVleet."