If you aren't familiar with Chole's story, this is worth a read, she sounds like an incredible young woman. I think the STrib is working on a big profile of her as well:
Some scouting services and writers have already tabbed Johnson as the top-rated player in the country in the Class of 2028. Although we don’t have a handle on others who might contend for such an honor nationally, we’re not going to dispute their assessment. What’s more remarkable, however, is the fact that Johnson plays basketball at all. Given where Chloe was just a few years ago when she was “discovered” at the YMCA in Duluth, it’s something of miracle.
At that point, Heather and Greg Johnson were at their wit’s end. Their daughter Chloe was suffering the far-reaching effects of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), a mental health condition in which people have recurring ideas, thoughts or obsessions that are beyond their control. OCD can have a devastating effect on daily life. Chloe, for example, would wash her hands over and over and over until they bled. She also had severe anxiety and was diagnosed with Selective Mutism. The Johnsons were planning to take their mostly silent daughter to the East Coast for weeks of intensive therapy. Then they went to the Y and met Dyami Starks.
Soon after the child began channeling her struggles into the game, pouring the same degree of effort and energy that had been directed in harmful ways into a new-found passion. It wasn’t long before it became obvious that Johnson’s basketball development was beyond exceptional. Chloe’s skill level soared and her life slowly evolved in a positive direction.
Now Chloe spends hours each day in the Johnson’s home gym, working with Dyami and on her own. Teach her a skill on Friday afternoon and by Saturday morning the 13-year-old has it mastered. Show her some basketball video and her comprehension of the concepts discussed is nearly immediate. She makes 200 threes a day and sometimes shoots in complete darkness. It’s uncanny. Basketball has become Chloe’s safe space, a refuge of peace and contentment. The result is what we see today. On the court she’s truly remarkable, off the court she’s just as special.
As a result, Johnson can do things with a basketball that the vast majority of us cannot. The way she sees the floor. How she handles the ball. The passes she makes. The sense of timing and pacing. The super soft release. The advanced understanding of the game and her place in it. She’s just different.
After playing mostly with boys two and three years older, Johnson is now the anchor on both the Starks 15U and 17U squads. She played 17U last year as a 6th grader and was outstanding. Teams routinely double-team the big guard and game plan around her abilities time and again. The other girls get physical. They also get frustrated. And sometimes – like on Sunday morning – the shots don’t fall.
On Friday, 13-year old had an hours-long unofficial recruiting visit at the University of Minnesota, a rare occurrence for a kid who is just finishing 7th grade. It will be one of many in the years ahead and dozens of nice scholarship offers will surely follow. On Saturday morning, the Duluth...
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