The top-seeded Duke Blue Devils will play the fourth-seeded Arizona Wildcats on Thursday night in an attempt to extend their March Madness run.
Jon Scheyer, the head coach of the Blue Devils, has guided his club to a 33-3 overall record and the top seed in the competition thus far. This season, Scheyer, who has been Duke’s coach since 2022, has a team that can win it all.
Scheyer played collegiate basketball with the Blue Devils before joining the NBA, having begun his coaching career in 2014 as an assistant to the renowned head coach Mike Krzyzewski at Duke. Before sustaining an eye injury that would change his career, he only spent one season playing for the Miami Heat’s Summer League club.
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Let’s review Scheyer’s brief NBA career and the effects of his eye injury on his vision.
Does Jon Scheyer have legal blindness?
Indeed, Scheyer’s right eye is legally blind. It stems from an injury he had while playing in the Heat’s Summer League in 2019. Joe Ingles of the Golden State Warriors poked Scheyer in the eye during a game.
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Joe Ingles and Jon Scheyer’s eye poke incident
Midway through the Miami Summer League season, Scheyer was playing in his second game when Warriors player Joe Ingles jabbed him in the right eye. Ingles poked Scheyer in the eye while attempting to grab at the ball.
His eyesight is affected by the severe eye injury that followed, which included a traumatic optic nerve avulsion and a retinal tear. Scheyer’s right eye is legally blind as a result.
Scheyer stated on the A Field of 68 podcast in September 2023, “I think it’s another example of how quickly you have to pivot or how quickly things change.” “I’m taking my talents to South Beach,” LeBron James declared on television while I was in Miami for their summer league camp. I recall eating supper with Shavlik Randolph. LeBron declared that he was a member of the team.
“I’m not sure if it was before or after, but Chris Bosh mentioned that he was heading to Miami at one time. I’m thinking, “Dude, I’m going to be LeBron’s teammate.” This is incredible! I struck the game-winning stroke in the opening Summer League match. I was stabbed in the eye during the second game, and I instantly lost my vision. The agreement was a bit ridiculous. Due to an optic nerve lesion, I haven’t been able to restore that eyesight as of yet.”
Doctors called Scheyer’s eye damage “one in a million” in a 2011 New York Times article.
While recovering from his injuries, Scheyer experienced headaches and wore an eye patch; upon his comeback, he finally put on goggles. Midway through the 2011 season, he returned to play for the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, the Houston Rockets’ D-League club.
Scheyer averaged 13.8 points, 4.1 assists, and 3.9 rebounds per game while playing in 16 regular season games.
He continued to play abroad, agreeing to a two-year contract with Maccabi Tel Aviv of the EuroLeague. He signed with Gran Canaria of Liga ACB after just one season of play in Israel.
He started his coaching career with Coach K, who appointed him as a special assistant in 2014.
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