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AMP1 Mixtape: Determination excels for amputee athletes
By Chris O'Dell, codell@starlocalnews.com
FRISCO -- With dozens of teams descending upon Frisco for the NCAA Girls of Summer showcase last Thursday, it was a different team that drew the biggest crowd at Fieldhouse USA.
AMP1, a team of stand-up amputee basketball players, took on the Primetime Basketball Event Staff and came away with a 40-23 victory.
"The team was basically formed by two people (Scott Odom and Tyler Hyatt) that wanted to keep playing basketball the way they loved to play," said Steve Osborne, AMP1 forward and head coach.
"Four years ago, it was just an idea that we had in our heads," Odom said.
The team has partnered with Freedom Innovations, who provide modern high-tech prosthetics for the players, to continue athletic careers that were once in jeopardy.
"No one would hear me out for the longest time," Odom said. "Then one day I posted a video on YouTube and found other guys that felt the same way I did."
With Odom and Hyatt working together, the end result ultimately formed AMP1 to give other amputees a shot at continuing the sport they love. That product was on full display last Thursday in an exhibition game that showed exactly what members of the team could still accomplish on the court.
"The only difference is heart, not wins," said Odom, who the team nicknamed The Chosen One. "That's the message we try to send."
Winning wasn't an issue with Oklahoma native Roderick Green leading the charge for AMP1. Green, who had one leg amputated from below the knee, led all players in the game with 20 points after pouring in 17 during the first half. Green was one of seven AMP1 players to find the bottom of the net, with the team running out to a 27-14 lead at the break before extending that advantage in the final half.
It's players like Green that Odom and Hyatt helped give a second chance to.
"We've got players on our team that are spread out from all over the country," Odom said.
Odom, who has been an amputee since he was 14, lost one of his legs to cancer after choosing to save not only his life, but also his love for sports. That determination has been vital in the growth of AMP1, with goals of a professional league in mind.
"We want to get more amputees, more sponsors, games televised on TV and get the league just like the NBA," Odom said.
AMP1 now travels to Los Angeles where the team will challenge able-bodied and celebrity squads Aug. 6-7 at the Nike 3-on-3 Basketball Tournament.
At that event, the team will have three, three-player squads with a minimum of nine games scheduled throughout the week. The AMP1 varsity team will also be featured in an Aug. 6 game on the Nike Center Court against celebrities.
With the improving market for prosthetic devices, Freedom Innovations has continued to provide physically challenged athletes with the ability to reach their full potential. Odom, Hyatt and the rest of AMP1 now want to tap into their team's full capability.
"This is something that's never been done before," Odom said. "So people's mindset is we can't do it. But if we keep working, we'll get the team where we want it to be."
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