When Bailey Roby comes off the bench for the Mountain Vista High School basketball team, good things happen — even though the game’s outcome already has been assured.
Players on both teams applaud his skill and effort. Home fans chant his name. Opposing fans forget the score and cheer in appreciation.
The 6-foot-3 senior — he stands 6-foot-5 on two special prosthetic legs — runs to a spot beyond the 3-point arc and awaits a pass so he can perform his specialty, the long-range jump shot.
But safety concerns have put his playing time with the Golden Eagles varsity in jeopardy. The Colorado High School Activities Association told Roby earlier this month he could no longer play after game officials balked when they learned he didn’t have an official letter of authorization.
At the heart of the issue is a national high school rule that prohibits players with prosthetic devices if they fundamentally alter the sport, place opponents at a disadvantage, or heighten risk of injury to the athlete or others. It’s the risk of injury, and the accompanying liability, that ultimately moved CHSAA to bench Roby.
“Nobody wants to tell anybody that they can’t play a sport,” said CHSAA assistant commissioner Bert Borgmann. “We have an obligation to protect the students. A large part of the things we have to do is to deal with the safety of others.”
Roby, 18, was born with fibular hemimelia — missing the fibula in each leg, and with only three toes on each side. Doctors amputated both legs below the knee when he was 7 months old. He was fitted with prosthetic limbs at 1.
Starting in eighth grade, Roby played on Mountain Vista’s Unified Sports basketball team, which includes kids with special needs. He proved such a good shooter that he made the junior varsity last year.
When safety concerns were raised during the JV schedule, CHSAA gave him a letter of authorization. But his jump this year to the varsity — with bigger, faster and stronger competition — eventually brought worries to the surface once again.
Still, no one raised the issue during the early stages of the season when Roby appeared in a handful of games. But game officials questioned Roby’s eligibility before a Jan. 14 contest.
Mountain Vista agreed not to play him that night. The next day, the school discussed the situation with CHSAA. This time, the sanctioning body declined to approve his participation.
“I’ve got mixed feelings about it,” said Mountain Vista coach Bob Wood. “I can understand the CHSAA side of it. They are liable for his safety. If he got hit wrong, something bad could happen.”
But Roby, who is used to the rough-and-tumble of competitive sports and has never seen his prosthetic legs cause injury, remains frustrated by the decision.
“It just doesn’t make any sense at all,” he said.
He played in last Friday’s game against Littleton High School — the first home game in which he had seen varsity action — after athletic director Pat McCabe negotiated a one-game waiver. Roby’s parents procured additional padding for the prosthetic legs and McCabe huddled with the Littleton athletic director and coach, explained the circumstances under which Roby might play, and got their consent.
With Mountain Vista well ahead, Roby entered the game with a little less than four minutes to play. Although he generally seeks out his jump shot, he scored on a layup to the delight of the home crowd, which chanted, “Bay-lee! Bay-lee!”
“It made me feel happy to be out there in front of all the other students,” said Roby, who also performed in front of visiting out-of-town relatives. “I’d been waiting for that chance to play in my first home game.”
News of Roby’s predicament prompted an outpouring of support on Twitter, where hundreds posted messages with the hashtag #LetBaileyRobyHoop.
Now, despite the earlier ruling, there’s a chance Roby could see further action — possibly even in Friday night’s game at Douglas County High School. CHSAA announced Thursday evening that Roby would be permitted to play, on a game-by-game basis, as long as Mountain Vista and its opponent have an agreement to ensure safety.
“Which would be great,” said Roby’s dad, Scott, who would like to see a more permanent resolution. “But we’re also concerned with the next kid, too. We want to shed some light on it so it’s looked into more thoroughly before a decision is made.”
Athletic director McCabe calls Roby’s play “the best feel-good story the school has seen” and regrets that it ran into such an unfortunate snag.
“It’s a crying shame,” McCabe said. “But I don’t think there’s a bad guy here.”
Kevin Simpson: 303-954-1739, ksimpson@denverpost.com or twitter.com/ksimpsondp
Staff writer Joe Nguyen contributed to this story.