Rajon Rondo Gives Free Celtics Tickets to 9-Year-Old Fan Who Was Nearly Struck by Stray Bullet

by Ryan Tepperman on Wed, Apr 25, 2012 at 12:37PM

Preston Jackson was in his upstairs bedroom last Wednesday when, out of nowhere, a stray bullet narrowly missed making contact with him.

Instead, it went through his shirt, which happened to be a Boston Celtics No. 9 jersey.

After All-Star point guard Rajon Rondo heard about Jackson's story, he decided to surprise the 9-year-old with tickets to Wednesday's game against the Miami Heat, according to the Celtics' team website.

"I couldn't believe what I was hearing on the news when they reported what happened to Preston," Rondo said. "Preston was the victim of a senseless act and I didn't want his love of basketball to be affected by what happened."

In addition to the tickets, Jackson and his family received a tour of TD Garden and got to sit courtside for the Celtics' pregame warmups. Rondo also gave out sneakers and a new, autographed No. 9 jersey before posing for a picture with Jackson and his sister.

"It felt really good to meet Rondo," Jackson said. "This was the best moment of my life. I'm always going to remember this."