Jacob Crespin: Inspiring people of all ages and abilities

PROSPER, Texas — Thanks to his childhood friend Buddy, Jacob Crespin recognized his passion for basketball and started practicing the sport at age seven. He was born without his left hand which made him realize how sometimes certain people wouldn’t let him show his true talent.

“I always loved basketball, always played it,” he said. “Sometimes coaches did not want me to dribble the ball as much and this hurt my confidence. In turn, I used this as my drive to elevate my level as far as basketball goes. I do not blame it on the coaches but some of the biggest things they said was ‘Jacob can’t go left, he can’t use the left side of the court.’ This was a big motivator for me to show them that I could.”

Unfortunately, Crespin was cut from the team his junior year of high school. After taking a couple of weeks to meditate on how he did not make the squad, he decided to continue with his passion by posting Instagram videos of him playing the sport.

“All of the sudden I turn viral,” he said. “Things have been insane since then.”

Crespin uses his social media to frequently post videos showing his basketball skills, inspiring the nearly 30 thousand followers he has on his account. It has gone so well for him that he has opted not to attend college at the moment, rather, continue building on social media and motivating his fan base.

“At first my parents were skeptical about it, obviously they wanted me to go to college, but they started seeing income and growth, so they allowed it,” he explained.

Crespin also added how he receives positive feedback from kids and parents in similar situations to his.

“This has just made me realized that my social media is working,” he said. “These people are gaining confidence from seeing me. It’s a good feeling. I post something everyday cause you never know who needs to hear it.”

His positive attitude is unmatched and that’s a trait he wants to pass on to future generations.

“Embracing the fact that I was missing a hand helped me to not get bullied as much when I was young,” he said. “As a kid who’s different and seeing how everyone else looks the same, it’s sometimes hard to love yourself. However, I tried to turn this situation into a positive thing and pass on this knowledge to other kids to maintain their confidence in themselves and their life in general.”

Crespin has grown so much in the game that he has evolved his tactics and skills to the point where he’s trying out playing on a semi-pro league.

“I’m confident in my abilities and I think that this is going to be my next big thing to show that it’s not just internet basketball, but rather show that I can really hoop,” he said.

Crespin has a message for people to continue following their dreams.

“Negativity is predominant everywhere. You have to believe in yourself,” he said. “There’s always going to be doubters and people who say your ideas are crazy. It sounds very cliché, but never give up.”

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