ORLANDO, Fla. — It’s hard to not find a smiling face on a Thursday afternoon inside the gymnasium at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Florida.

Over three dozen basketball players are locked in during a clinic led by Orlando Magic coach Jamahl Mosley. The biggest smile is spread across Randy Gregory III’s face.

“Just love hoops, man. Just love hoops,” Gregory said. “This is what I grew up doing in the gym right here.”

The Magic assistant is in his comfort zone leading drills and coaching up the next generation.

“Some people say they got introduced to the game," he said. "This was just part of my life. I was born. My dad coached college basketball, so all I knew was college basketball. Wasn’t even a choice or an option. This was part of everyday lifestyle.”

From a coach’s son to on staff in the NBA, Gregory’s path is still his own.

“Unimaginable. I couldn’t have dreamed anything like this," he said. "It just all played out. This is only something God could’ve played out.”

At 26 years old, he’s earned his way. His coaching career started under the tutelage of John Calipari as a student manager for the University of Kentucky. From there, he found a spot on Steve Clifford’s staff in Orlando in 2019, then was retained by Mosley in 2021.

Memories and thousands of photos on his iPhone document his journey. The most impactful snapshot is from 2011 at a Miami Heat game with his father, Randy Gregory II.

“This is crazy. This is the first year he got diagnosed," the younger Gregory said. "That was one of those moments where you just got full of fear because there was so much uncertainty. Okay, what’s next?”

Randy II enjoyed wild success at Community College of Baltimore County Catonsville. He retired from coaching in 2015 with over 200 career wins. The last four years, he simultaneously battled amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a nervous system disease that affects brain and muscle function.

Since then, Randy II’s condition has left him wheelchair-bound, with little motor function and the inability to speak on his own. While balancing his own basketball future, Randy III helped take care of his father.

“It took away, ‘Let’s have fun’. It took away, ‘Let’s be a teenager’,” Randy III said. "That thought process went out the door. You’ve got to figure things out for your family, and you have to now become the man of the house.”

Through it all, Randy II stayed positive and reminded his son that life itself is always something for which to be thankful.

“Man, this is what it is,” Randy III said. “There’s a lot worse things going on in the world. I still have my dad. I still have my mom. Life isn’t as bad as we want to make it seem.”

Through it all, you’ll find Randy Gregory III courtside, locked in with a smile on his face. This is his path. Wherever it takes him, he’ll never walk it alone.

“None of this is possible without him," he said. "I just say thank you to him for showing me this beautiful game, and it’s changed our lives forever.”