When Andrea Aaron received a call from her son in late September, she was at her daughter’s volleyball game in New Jersey. He told her that his mouth was tingling, so her partner drove over to her son’s apartment with Benadryl. Another call came shortly after — her son said there was additional itching. When she got to his apartment, they called 911.



Aaron had seen itching and swelling from her son before, so she figured this was another allergic reaction. His peanut allergy had been triggered a couple of times as a child. When her son was five, he came into contact with another kid who had peanut butter on his hands. And at 11, he unknowingly ate a brownie made with peanuts. Paramedics would come to Aaron’s Dallas-area home and provide treatment with an EpiPen.



This time, the difference was that Zhaire Smith had to be transported to the hospital.



Even as the Sixers’ rookie was taken into an ambulance, Aaron still didn’t...