Larry Nance, Jr. on being an NBA legacy and living with Crohn’s disease

Larry Nance, Jr. is a Los Angeles Laker, but his surname alone means that he’ll always be welcome in these pages. When he writes a first-person essay for The Cauldron about growing up as an NBA legacy and battling Crohn’s disease, even better.

Nance Junior was not the typical NBA prospect. He didn’t dominate high school or have John Calipari after him on the recruiting trail. He wasn’t looking his 6-foot-10 father in the eye as a 15-year-old — he was just six feet tall and weighed 120 pounds as a high school sophomore. When he did start to play basketball — he did so relatively late; the elder Nance didn’t force him into it¹ — he was dismayed to find that he didn’t have the strength and energy to make as much of an impact as his heritage might suggest.

Crohn’s Disease was revealed to be the cause of both his (relatively) limited height and lack of stamina.

Once I did start to play high school basketball, some people had high expectations for me simply because of my father’s NBA success. When you’re the son of an NBA player, people assume you will be a star player or, in my case, a freakish athlete, since my dad was known as a great dunker. There was a target on my back and a perception about how I would play — especially since my dad and I share the same name — even though I was a late bloomer who received very little attention from colleges.

The truth is, until my final two years of high school, I was severely undersized and lacked energy and athleticism. Basically, I was the opposite of what you’d expect if you imagined Larry Nance’s son. Something wasn’t right. After spending years wondering why my growth was stunted, why I was always having stomach issues, and why my body was constantly exhausted, I finally found out the answer when I was 16 years old.

That’s when I was diagnosed with Crohn’s Disease.

To combat Crohn’s, a gastrointestinal disease that has no cure but which can be driven into remission, Nance was prescribed an intravenous medicine called Remicade. Many of his symptoms went away and he underwent an immediate, sizable growth spurt — “After my first dose, I grew two inches in two weeks. Then, from my sophomore to junior year, I grew six and a half inches.” He describes the medicine as his answer to Popeye’s spinach, and he still takes it now. The Lakers have accommodated his medical needs such that a nurse visits his home to administer the medication, a process which takes about three hours.

The Lakers are terrible — they lost to the Kings last night to fall to 8-29 — but Nance has carved out a decent little niche for himself in his rookie season. His minutes played, field goal percentage, and offensive rating have increased in each of the past three months, per Basketball Reference. He has averaged a double-double in three January games. It looks like he’s going to stick in the NBA, especially if he can break out moves like his old man, as he did in a preseason game against the Warriors.

Nance closed his writing with an emboldening message for anyone suffering from Crohn’s or other autoimmune disorders. He intends to start his own foundation, inspired in part by longtime Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback David Garrard, who was diagnosed with Crohn’s while playing in the NFL.²

When I speak to Crohn’s patients — either in person or on social media — my message is always the same: Never let it hold you back or limit your life in any way. There’s nothing that you can’t achieve because of Crohn’s. Yes, there will be struggles, but don’t let this illness control your life. I also let them know that there’s a huge community of people out here who are in their exact same position, so they never feel alone. We’re all going through this together and helping each other. That’s one of the main reasons why I want to share my story.

Also, I hope I can help any future basketball players who enter the NBA while battling an autoimmune disease. Now that you know that you can take medically necessary steroids, you don’t have to raise your hand and ask that question on the equivalent of the NBA’s first day of school. I have you covered.

It sounds like he’s got a good head on his shoulders. It’s always nice to hear good things about the Nances.

1. Nance, Jr: “I had a very normal childhood, and I’m thankful that my parents let me find my own path in life. Rather than being forced to play basketball and growing to resent the game like some children of professional athletes, my love and passion for the sport was discovered and developed on my own.” [↩]
2. Nance, Jr: “I’ve had the chance to talk with David in the last year, and I admire the job he has done raising money for Crohn’s research and spreading awareness about the disease. He also talks to many children with Crohn’s and inspires so many people with his story. I hope to do the same things throughout my NBA career, and I’m planning to start my own foundation to help those suffering from this illness.” [↩]