Grant Park’s boys basketball team has not had many wins to celebrate in its current rebuilding phase, but no on-court success can equal the win the Grant Park community recently got with the return of junior Luis Maldonado to the court.

More than a year since he was diagnosed with stomach cancer, Maldonado has played in 12 of the Dragon’s 17 games this season and is sixth on the team in scoring as he works his way back to full strength on the court.

“I’m getting close to being completely over with this, and it’ll hopefully be over in a couple months,” Maldonado said. “For sure by the end of the school year.”

With the many challenging months of treatment, surgeries and uncertainty now expected to be wrapped up soon, Maldonado said there is no place he’d rather be than back playing with his teammates.

“It feels great to be back,” he said. “It’s a little different since I was with a group of guys [that graduated last year] since my freshman year on varsity. But now it’s a good group, it’s really fun to play and fun to be back.”

Maldonado emerged as a rising star in soccer and basketball his freshman year. He scored seven goals in his first high school soccer season, finishing second on the team, and played in 16 varsity basketball games after that.

Then, a few months into his sophomore year, and after a soccer season that saw him finish third on the team with 10 goals, everything changed for Maldonado.

He played sparingly his sophomore basketball season, appearing in nine games while working through the early months of his treatment, and then he had to miss his junior soccer season a few short months ago.

One of the hardest parts of the last year for the normally active Maldonado, who also participates in rodeo in addition to his sports at school, was not being able to do the things he enjoys.

“It was really hard,” Maldonado said. “It really hit me at the start. I was just so used to being out and about, doing what I loved. Just being at home and watching everyone else do what I loved, it was hard to see.”

Something that helped make those dark days a little brighter for Maldonado and his family was the outpouring of support from the community, whether it was the school, the sports and rodeo communities or the Grant Park community as a whole.

From fundraisers to other showings of support, such as head coach Mark Boccia and the soccer team dedicating their 2025 season to Maldonado and having his jersey on the bench for every game, the community’s impact is something Maldonado’s older sister Karina said she and her family won’t soon forget.

“We’re definitely just so grateful for the community being so big and so helpful when we needed it,” Karina Maldonado said. “It was such an honor to be from Grant Park, for sure. We can’t thank enough families, moms, dads, all of the above. Everyone has been so great with us.”

Grant Park basketball coach Joe Smuskiewicz has known Luis Maldonado throughout his high school journey, serving as the JV coach and varsity assistant the past two seasons, and now he is in his first season as head coach.

While the community was happy to do their part and lend support, Smuskiewicz said that Maldonado does his part in supporting his team and teammates both on and off the floor, making everyone’s day a little brighter when he’s around.

“Luis is a great kid, and it’s definitely the best part of our season having him back out on the court,” Smuskiewicz said. “We’re all inspired by his will, in spite of everything he’s fighting through. He brings it, and he has a smile on his face every day.

“It just makes everybody better being around Luis each and every day.”

As Maldonado looks ahead to the rest of his junior year and the rest of his life, he has a bit of a different outlook than he did 14 months ago, mostly trying not to take anything for granted.

“There can always be someone to be wishing to be in the situation you are,” Maldonado said. “No matter what, just don’t give up. You can do whatever you want if you put your mind to it.

“It’s amazing. I just feel blessed to be able to play the game and be back with my friends.”