Ex-NBA star Tony Snell opens up about his autism and ‘wasn’t surprised’ by diagnosis after taking son to get tested
Ex-NBA swingman Tony Snell shares an eye-opening late-in-life diagnosis that has inspired him to be a role model.
The nine-year NBA veteran revealed on The Today Show that he had been diagnosed with Autism at 31.
Snell discovered this after his young son Karter, two, was tested for Autism, with which he was later diagnosed.
His wife, Ashley, tested him after he missed a few developmental achievements behind a doctor’s recommendation.
The diagnosis made Snell reflect on his childhood and opt to get tested as well.
“I was always independent growing up. I’ve always been alone. I just couldn’t connect with people on the personal side of things,” Snell told “Today.”
“I’m like, ‘You know what, if he’s diagnosed (with autism), then I think I am too.”
“So that gave me the courage to go get checked up.”
However, being diagnosed when he was 31, Snell said the news made sense.
“I was not surprised because I always felt different,” Snell stated.
“I was just relieved, like, ‘Ahh, this is why I am the way I am.’ It just made my whole life, everything about my life, make so much sense.”
“It was like a clarity, like putting some 3-D glasses on.”
Snell was a standout athlete growing up in Los Angeles, California, before attending the University of New Mexico for three seasons.
The Chicago Bulls selected him in the first round of the 2013 NBA Draft.
He played for six teams during his nine NBA seasons and said he thinks that not being diagnosed earlier in his life assisted him in reaching the NBA.
“I think I’d have probably been limited with the stuff I could probably do,” Snell said.
“I don’t think I’d have been in the NBA if I was diagnosed with autism (at his son’s age) because back then, like, what is autism?”
“They’d have probably put a limit or a cap on my abilities.”
Snell wants to use his platform as a role model and has partnered with the Special Olympics.
“I just want to change lives and inspire people. I want to make sure my son knows that I have his back,” Snell expressed.
“When I was a kid, I felt different … but now I could show him that I’m right here with you, [and] we’re going to ride this thing together. “