As the tennis ball approached his body, Kyle Swick remembers having no decision to make. He would ordinarily try to return the serve, like any normal high school tennis player, but this time the ball was hurtling toward him with enough velocity and spin to send him into full protective mode. Swick put his racket up defensively, hoping primarily to keep the ball from slamming into his chest. He wanted to save himself, but could not have known at the time how little hope he held.



When Gordon Hayward’s delivery snapped off the hard court, Swick says he just barely managed to place his racket in front of the ball, ensuring his sternum would remain intact for at least one more point. Swick did not yet know he was wrapped in a story that would follow him for a lifetime, echoing louder and louder with each step Hayward took in his storied athletic career. All Swick saw at the time was a tennis ball traveling toward his midsection at a dangerous speed. He had never competed...