‘Work of Art’: Elias Graham, 8, is the inspiration behind TERRA’s boys’ basketball team

Since before he was even born, Elias Graham has been battling.

Elias, the eight-year-old son of TERRA boys’ basketball coach Adam Graham, was born with a congenital heart defect: Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome.

Betty Graham, Adam’s wife, had been pregnant 20 weeks when doctors discovered there was something not quite right with Elias’ ticker.

The irony is that anyone who knows Elias would swear that, if anything, the kid has a heart surplus and not a heart defect.

“Eli is an amazing kid,” TERRA assistant coach Alfie Hernandez said. “He’ll probably never be able to play basketball, but nothing fazes him.

“That kid is a rock. He’s had all these trials and tribulations, and yet he’s always smiling. It’s inspirational.”

Those “trials and tribulations” include three open-heart surgeries. His first operation was when he was just one week old.

Betty was 34 weeks pregnant and at a medical checkup when doctors noticed that the fetus – Elias – had stopped growing.

“They told us we needed to get over to South Miami Hospital immediately,” Adam said, “or Elias may not make it.”

Elias was born on December 11, 2013, via a Caesarian section.

Adam cut the umbilical cord, and – within seconds – a group of doctors and nurses had rushed Elias to another room, where he was fitted with an oxygen mask. From there, he was placed in an incubator.

At birth, Elias was just 15 inches long, and he weighted 3½ pounds.

“He was the size of a football,” Adam said.

Elias had his first surgery on Dec. 18, 2013, and he finally got to go home the following month.

But, six months later, Elias and his mother had just left their doctor and were in an elevator when the boy started a full-throated scream. He was struggling to breathe. Betty rushed him back to the doctor, which led to his second surgery, on June 2, 2014.

Four years later, on June 29, 2018, Elias had his third surgery.

“All three operations were performed to reconstruct his anatomy,” Adam said, “to help blood flow to his heart and to ensure that oxygen was getting to his lungs.”

Along the way, Elias has dealt with speech and food delay. He was four years old when he started talking conversationally.

At six months, it was painful for Elias to eat. As a remedy, doctors temporarily put a tube in his nose that connected to his stomach, allowing food to get in his body.

‘WORK OF ART’

These surgeries and procedures have left Elias with several scars. The most prominent is a one that travels from underneath his throat to just above his navel.

He also has two marks under his chest -- scars that serve as reminders of the drainage tubes that he once needed.

Things have gotten better for Elias the past four years, although there are limitations to his physical activity, and there’s a certain amount of catching up he has to do at school.

But he can and will overcome, according to his mom.

“We’re raising him to be a confident kid,” Betty said. “He calls his scars his ‘works of art.’ It’s not a disability. It’s just different, and it’s not going to define him.”

At a recent trip to an inflatable bounce house, Elias was running non-stop until his body issued a warning.

“He got super pale,” Betty said. “I got him water and told him to breathe, and he was fine. But I used that opportunity to talk to Eli. I told him that I’m not always going to be there. He has to learn to take breaks and listen to his body.”

LEAVING BASKETBALL

Elias condition – combined with the danger of COVID – is why Adam took last year off from coaching. Had Adam gotten COVID and spread it to Elias, the repercussions could’ve been dire for the boy.

Once COVID came into the world’s consciousness in March of 2020, Betty made the quick decision to work from home and to have Elias and his sister, six-year-old Mila, attend school virtually.

Betty then waited for Adam to make his decision, knowing it would be difficult because of his love for basketball.

In fact, the first time Adam and Betty met was a blind date set up by a mutual friend, and it happened at a Miami Heat game on Oct. 27, 2009. The Heat were playing the New York Knicks that night, but Adam showed up wearing a Lakers jersey.

Little did he know that Betty – who was born in Mexico but was raised in Los Angeles since age five – was also a Lakers fan.

“He was wearing a Kobe jersey,” Betty said. “I thought, ‘Are you kidding?’ I found the only Miami guy who is a Lakers fan and a Kobe fan. Oh, OK.”

Two years later, on Nov. 16, 2011, the Lakers fans were married.

“I knew since I met him that basketball was going to be a big part of our lives,” Betty said. “When he took last season off from coaching, I was relieved. I knew it wasn’t easy for him to give up basketball.”

TERRA athletic director Deb Margolis supported Adam.

“I’ve known Adam for 15 years, and I was well aware of his son’s health,” Margolis said. “It was a logical and expected decision.”

To fill the void for a year, Hernandez stepped in as interim coach, and TERRA went 7-11.

This season, Graham is back in charge, and the TERRA Wolves – with four sophomores among the team’s top seven players -- are off to a 4-4 start.

Everyone in the Graham household – including Elias – is vaccinated against COVID. That gave Adam some comfort in deciding to return to coaching this season. But he is still vigilant about wearing a mask and attempting to keep a safe distance from his players and the opposition.

“I know (Adam) is cautious, but I’m very concerned,” Betty said. “Still, I have to remain positive.”

As for TERRA, Graham is eager to see the Wolves continue to make progress. In his first three years as coach, the Wolves went from 1-21 to 5-17 to 12-11.

Hernandez -- whose full-time job is as a battalion chief for Miami Dade Fire and Rescue -- said Graham would’ve made a great commander had he not become an advanced-placement world history teacher.

“We missed Adam’s wisdom last season,” Hernandez said. “When he left, it was a shock to everyone. He’s our leader.”

Elias feels the same away about his dad. Elias has a lot of passions. He sings, takes karate lessons and plays the violin. He bakes and cooks everything from waffles to chocolate/peanut butter cakes.

But his biggest love may be sports, and he badly misses going to his father’s games.

“I like cheering and sitting in the stands,” Elias said when asked about TERRA’s games.

Betty’s said TERRA’s ups and down are never far from Elias’ mind.

“If he’s awake when Adam comes home from a game, the first thing he asks is: ‘Did you win?’” Betty said. “He has a special relationship with his dad. That’s his hero.

“Elias wants to be Adam’s assistant coach one day.”

This story was originally published December 22, 2021 at 1:23 PM.