JV basketball coach finds positivity as he recovers from surgery

After the girls’ JV basketball coach Danny Wallace blows his whistle to signal the start of their next drill, sophomores Sirisha Munukutla and Kirstin Kruka stand underneath the basket, waiting for Wallace to demonstrate the drill. However, instead of demonstrating the drill himself, he asks a varsity player to perform the move.

Wallace, 29, recently underwent surgery to fix an impingement in his hip where his bones were rubbing up against each other, tearing cartilage and causing pain. Initially believing his condition would improve, Wallace dealt with the pain for 11 months before orthopedic surgery was recommended to reattach the cartilage and put his hip “back together.”

After his surgery in mid September, Wallace has had to work around his physical limitations during the recovery period to continue to coach the girls’ JV basketball team.

“I didn’t want to take time off because it’s something that I really love doing,” Wallace said. “I love coaching and spending time with my students and athletes; it’s what I look forward to doing every day.”

While ahead of pace in his recovery, Wallace is unable to demonstrate all of the drills and plays he teaches and now must find other ways to coach, like using experienced  players to demonstrate the drills and plays.

Varsity coach Mike Davey says Wallace has remained an effective coach even with his injury because he knows how to communicate and demonstrate with the help of experienced players.

According to Kruka, working with older players has been effective and she appreciates Wallace’s efforts.

“I really admire his progress because it was a pretty rough injury,” Kruka said. “He’s been really strong about it, and he doesn’t really let [the injury] get in the way [of his coaching].”

Wallace was also able to reflect on how his experience dealing with his injury changed his outlook on life.

“The limitation has made me more humble, and I have more respect for people who go through these things,” Wallace said. “Something as simple as learning how to walk again took me six weeks. It’s amazing how much you take things for granted.”

Even as he is dealing with his recovery, Wallace is maintaining his patience and high hopes for the team’s season.

“I’m doing really well; humor is the best medicine in my opinion,” Wallace said. “I think all I can do is keep on being positive and try to be as helpful as I can with my girls.”