PLAYERS
QUADRE LOLLIS
Quadre Lollis, a 1992 graduate of Gary West Side High School, had a standout career at Montana State where he was inducted into the athletics hall of fame in February of 2017.
In 1996, Quadre led NCAA Division 1 Men’s Basketball in Field Goal Percentage (66.4%) and was sixth in the NCAA in Rebounds (11.7 pg). The same year he was named Co-MVP of the Big Sky conference, while leading his team to the conference regular season and tournament championships. In Montana State’s first round NCAA tournament matchup with Syracuse Quadre was the game’s high scorer with 26 points – Syracuse would go on to lose to Kentucky in the National Championship game that year.
After graduating from Montana State Quadre went on to have a 16 year career overseas. He spent five years in Turkey, four years in Germany and Italy, two years in Greece and one year in Belgium. Quadre now resides in Indianapolis.
ANTHONY WHITE JR.
Anthony White Jr. is a product of Indianapolis’ Pike High School - graduating in 2010. He went on to play two years at Lakeland College in Matoon, Illinios before finishing up his college career in the Atlantic Sun Conference at Mercer University in Macon, Georgia.
Anthony’s junior year , 2012-2013, at Mercer his team won the Atlantic Sun Conference but lost to the well known Florida Gulf Coast “Lob City” team in the conference tournament championship game. The following year Anthony averaged 9 PPG and was an integral part of a Mercer team that won the Atlantic Sun earning a bid to the NCAA Tournament. The #14 seed Mercer Bears upset #3 seed Duke in the first round of the tournament- Anthony contributed 13 points in the upset! That Duke team included future NBA players Jabari Parker and Rodney Hood.
After graduation Anthony played professionally for a year in Australia for the Geelong Supercats. He averaged 18 points and 5 assists per game.
Anthony now resides in Indianapolis and works for State Farm Insurance. He currently plays for the Indy Blaze of the CBA.
SYDNEY MCDANIEL
Sydney McDaniel is a 2003 graduate of Pike High School. He played basketball at the school during one of the greatest stretches of success any high school has seen in the history of basketball in the state of Indiana. Pike played in the 4A state championship game in 2001, 2002, and 2003 – winning the state championship in 2001 and 2003. In Sydney’s senior year his Pike team went undefeated and finished ranked #2 in the nation behind LeBron James’ St. Vincent- St. Mary team. The 2003 edition of the Red Devils featured Courtney Lee (now with the NY Knicks), Justin Cage (2003 Mr. Basketball), Robert Vaden (drafted by the Bobcats), Parnell Smith (Buffalo), Darren Yates (Ball State), and David Barlow (IUPUI).
Sydney went on to play a year at Manchester College before finishing his career at Saginaw Valley State - a Division II school in Saginaw, Michigan. In his 3 years at SVSU he scored 1,100 career points.
Sydney currently resides in Indianapolis and is an officer with the IMPD -North District
EMMANUEL "RICO" COLON - ROMERO
Emmanuel (Rico) Colon- Romero grew up in Salinas, Puerto Rico. Salinas is a small fishing and agricultural town on Puerto Rico’s southern coast. Rico was a standout basketball player on his high school’s basketball team leading them to the Elite Eight of the McDonald’s tournament- one of Puerto Rico’s top national high school basketball tournament’s consisting of over 100 schools- his Junior year. The small island nation isn’t particularly known for basketball but Rico competed against future NBA big men Ricky Sanchez and Peter John Ramos while in high school.
Rico’s prep career landed him a full ride athletic scholarship to play basketball at the University of Puerto Rico. During Christmas break of his freshmen year, before playing a game for the University , Rico made the decision to take his talents to the U.S. , along with his cousin, a top baseball prospect. He landed at a JUCO in Tennessee, Hiwasee College, where he played from ’06-’08. After two years at Hiwasee Rico landed a full ride to a small, private, christian college outside of Johnson City, Tennessee – Milligan College. He was at the NAIA school from ’08 – ‘10
Rico now resides on the east side of Indianapolis and runs the fitness side of the Boner Fitness and Learning Center at Arsenal Tech High School.
AARON MARTIN
Aaron Martin grew up in a small Indiana basketball town 15 miles east of Lafayette called Rossville. Rossville is a stereotypical small Indiana town where the entire population can be found in the high school gym on Friday nights. The Class A school has produced a state champion, multiple division 1 players, and in the mind of some the 1971 team was the best small school team in the history of the state. The ’71 team lost to eventual state champion East Chicago Washington in the Lafayette Semi-State 79-67 without it’s best player.
This is the basketball culture that produced Aaron Martin. He was a 4 year varsity player at Rossville. Aaron graduated with a career total of 1, 311 points – good for 7th on the school’s all-time list.
After high school Aaron signed with Indiana Wesleyan University. He was a 4 years starter at the school from ’09 –’13. Indiana Wesleyan won the Crossroads league each of his 4 years . The basketball highlight of Aaron’s time at IWU was playing against pre-season #1 Indiana at Assembly Hall – a team that included Cody Zeller, Victor Oladipo, and Christian Watford.
Aaron now lives in Noblesville with his wife Hanna. They are expecting their first child. He works at the Cellular Connection in Carmel as the Treasury Manager.
TONY PASSLEY
Tony Passley is a 2004 graduate of North Central High School in Indianapolis. While playing for Doug Mitchell he was an all-conference selection 3 times averaging 17.2 points and 7.2 rebounds per game his senior year. Tony was then selected for the prestigious Indiana-All Star team – one of the top 14 seniors in the state. He played alongside George Hill, Courtney Lee, and Colts offensive lineman Joe Reitz on that team.
After graduating from North Central Tony spent a year at Redlands Community College in El Reno, Oklahoma . He averaged 10. 3 points and 5.5 rebounds per game at Redlands before heading to Knoxville to play for Bruce Pearl and the Tennessee Volunteers.
Tony now works for Anthem Health Insurance in Indianapolis.
BRANDON BEASLEY
Indianapolis native Brandon Beasley led his team to the Money in winning the first City League Title in 2017.
Brandon was an All-City basketball player at Arlington High School. As a Golden Knight he set a City Tournament record for most combined points / rebounds in a game when he went for 29 Points and 20 Rebounds. Coming out of high school the 2007 graduate was recruited by Purdue and Western Kentucky but went the JUCO route for academic reasons. After spending time at Southeastern Illinois and Columbus State Brandon had interest from high profile Division 1 programs Southern Illinois, North Carolina State, and Xavier. Ultimately he ended up at NAIA William Penn in Oskaloosa, Iowa. Brandon struggled with knee injuries early on at William Penn. But once he became healthy he was one of the best players in school history earning NAIA First Team All -American honors, leading his team to the best record in school history, first ever #1 national ranking, and an appearance in the NAIA National Championship Game.
After college Brandon was in training camp with the Indiana Pacers which led to him being drafted by the Pacers D-League affiliate the Fort Wayne Mad Ants. His time in the D League was brief before going to play in Saudi Arabia and Luxembourg –averaging 20 + points a game at each stop. After sitting out two years Brandon played in Australia and the Philippines in 2017. He is looking to head to India, Mexico, or Brazil next…
Brandon is a certified personal trainer and wellness coach earning degrees in both areas. When home in Indianapolis he is training and helping people achieve their fitness goals.
ERIK FROMM
Erik Fromm a Bloomington native and 2010 graduate of Bloomington South High School was a major player in one of the most successful two year runs in Indiana High School Basketball history. From 2008 to 2010, the two years that Erik was on varsity, his teams went 49-1 and won a state championship. He led the team in scoring his senior year. A team that included future Division 1 players Jordan Hulls (IU), Dee Davis (Xavier), and Spencer Turner (Belmont). Both years Bloomington South finished 3rd in the nation ranked behind basketball factories like Oak Hill and Findlay Prep. Erik went on to represent Indiana as an Indiana All-Star and was regarded by some publications as one of the 100 best seniors in the United States.
After high school Erik chose to go to Butler and play for Brad Stevens. He was on a Butler team as a Freshmen that went to the Final Four and played a key role in helping Butler knock off #1 ranked IU in 2012. During his years at Butler he saw the school transition from the Horizon League to the Atlantic 10 and finally to the Big East.
While at Butler Erik earned a degree in Psychology. He now lives in Indianapolis and works in the Medical Sales Industry.
JOHN HART
John Hart is a 2008 Beech Grove graduate who enjoyed a standout prep career on the south side of Indianapolis. His career at Beech Grove culminated by leading the Hornets to a Class 3A Sectional title. His success on the court earned him 2008 First Team All-State honors from the Indiana Basketball Coaches Association. He was also named the Marion County Player of the Year and participated in three postseason all-star games.
Following his time at Beech Grove John signed with Matt Painter’s Purdue Boilermakers. After Redshirting his first year at Purdue he was a contributor on Purdue teams that included future pros Robbie Hummel, Jajuan Johnson, and E’Twaun Moore. In 2010 Purdue was ranked as high as #3 in the country in the AP Poll. While at Purdue John was twice named Academic All-Big Ten (2011, 2012). Following the 2011-12 season he transferred to IUPUI for his senior season where he averaged 14.2 points per game. In 2014 John was the first pick of the London Lightning in the NBL draft (Canada). He played for one season with the Lightning in Canada.
John now lives in Indianapolis and works for Child Advocates.
TROY LEAF
Troy Leaf is an Indiana kid who grew up in California and has recently made his way back home. Troy’s father Brad is an Indianapolis native who played at the University of Evansville then professionally in Israel and finally landed with his family is Southern California. Troy is the oldest of Brad’s basketball playing son’s, his youngest TJ is a Rookie with the Indiana Pacers
Troy enjoyed one of the most decorated prep careers in California history at Foothills Christian outside of San Diego. He is currently the 3rd all-time leading scorer in California High School Basketball with a career total of 3,318 points. In his senior year Troy was one of five finalist for the Gatorade California Basketball Player of the Year won by Brooklyn Nets shooting guard Allen Crabbe. He signed with UC Santa Barbara where he played two years before transferring to Division II Azusa Pacific.
At Azusa Pacific Troy lead his team to their first NCAA Division II postseason tournament where they won the West Regional making it to the Elite Eight in Evansville. He was named the West Regional MVP. Troy garnered a number of other postseason awards including Pacific West Conference Athlete of the Year, Conference Player of the Year, was named to a number of Division II All-American teams, and finished the season ranked in the Top 10 in the Nation in scoring (22.7 PPG).
Troy now lives in Indianapolis with his wife. He serves as a Manager / Trainer for his younger brother TJ.
JORDAN GATHERS
Los Angeles native Jordan Gathers found his way to Indianapolis via Butler.
Gathers is a 2010 graduate of LA’s renowned William Howard Taft High School. The school’s notable alumni include Ice Cube, Easy - E, Jordan Farmar, and future Hall of Fame Receiver Steve Smith. After graduating from Taft Jordan spent a year at Rise Academy, a prep school in Philadelphia where he was a teammate of the Toronto Raptors Delon Wright. His play earned him a scholarship in the Atlantic 10 at St. Bonaventure. As a Freshmen Gathers’ Bonnies played in the NCAA Tournament against Florida State. The highlight of a good career at St. Bonaventure was hitting a game winning 3 pointer against top seeded and #18thranked St.Louis in the Barclays Center during a semi-final game of the 2014 Atlantic 10 Tournament. The shot was the #1 play on SportCenter’s Top 10 that week.
After graduating from St. Bonaventure in 3 years with a degree in Journalism and Mass Communication - Jordan decided to transfer to Butler to use his remaining year of eligibility. He started 10 games during a season in which the Bulldogs won 22 games and were a #9 seed in the NCAA Tournament- losing to Malcolm Brogdon’s #1 seeded Virginia Cavaliers in the 2ndround.
The Gathers name may sound familiar as Jordan is the nephew of the late-great Hank Gathers. The former Loyola Marymount star is one of the most well -known and popular college basketball players of all-time.
Jordan now works at Indiana University Health as a MBA-Intern working part-time while earning his Master’s degree and preparing to start law school in the Fall of 2018. He is looking forward to making Indiana his home into the foreseeable future.
RON PATTERSON
Local star Ron Patterson is a 2012 graduate of Broad Ripple High School. The former Syracuse Orange and IUPUI Jaguar grew up just a few blocks north of The City League at 39th and Hillside.
A standout career at Broad Ripple earned Ron national attention from ESPN ranking him the 25th best shooting guard in the country. He left the school as it’s all-time leading scorer at 1,532 points - a distinction he will hold for the rest of his life as the school closed in 2018. Patterson, was a coveted recruit coming out of high school – the first committ in Tom Crean’s famed 2012 class at IU “The Movement” (Yogi Ferrell, Peter Jurkin, Jeremy Hollowell, Hanner Mosquera – Perea). The Movement was a title first coined by Patterson on social media while he was still in high school. Academic issues at IU led to a prep school after which Ron signed with Jim Boeheim and the Syracuse Orange. At Syracuse Patterson teamed with future NBA players CJ Fair, Jerami Grant, and Tyler Ennis. After two years at Syracuse Ron decided to return home to be close to family. He played for two years at IUPUI where he averaged double figures in points his senior year.
Ron now lives in Indianapolis with his son BJ. His goal is to get on a professional roster soon.
CHRISHAWN HOPKINS
Chrishawn Hopkins is a 2010 graduate of Manual High School located on Indianapolis’ South Side. Known for his leaping ability the high flying guard was recruited to Butler by current Celtics head coach Brad Stevens then spent three years at Wright State.
Chrishawn got a late start in his Indiana high school basketball experience transferring to Manual from Las Vegas as a Junior. His first year with Jim Merlie as a Redskin Hopkins averaged 17.3 points per game. The summer between his Junior and Senior year Chrishawn played on the AAU circuit for the Bloomington Blaze. He averaged 42 points a game for the whole summer – scoring over 60 four times. His senior year, 2009-2010, Chrishawn was the fifth leading scorer in Indiana, averaging 25.3 ppg. His play earned him Indianapolis City Player of the Year and secured him a spot on the coveted Indiana All-Star team.
After a standout high school career Hopkins received over 60 Division 1 offers. He narrowed his list to IU, Virginia, Wright State, Miami of Ohio, and Butler. Chrishawn chose Butler, a team coming off a heartbreaking two point loss to Duke in the 2010 National Championship game. As a freshman the little used guard was inserted into the East Regional Final against Billy Donovan, Chandler Parsons, and the Florida Gators. Butler trailed by 11 points with 9 minutes to go and were shooting a woeful 36% from the field. Hopkins quickly assisted on a Matt Howard bucket and knocked down a big three that sparked Butler to the victory and the 2011 Final Four. That year Butler would lose to Kemba Walker’s UConn Huskies in the National Championship game. As a Sophmore Hopkins started 24 games for the Bulldogs and had a career high 22 points against Evansville. Following the 2011-2012 season Chrishawn transferred to Wright State. He played 2 years for the Raiders.
Hopkins lists Kyrie Irving, Klay Thompson, and Victor Oladipo as the toughest players he has had to play against.
Chrishawn now lives in Indianapolis and plays Semi-Pro basketball for the Indy Blaze.
ROBERT VADEN
Robert Vaden is a household name in Indiana. Basketball has taken the former Cathedral Irish, Pike Red Devil, and Indiana Hoosiers standout on a circuitous journey around the world. He has played on the grandest stages the sport has to offer .
The name Robert Vaden became known around Indiana in 2000 when he committed to Gene Keady and the Purdue Boilermakers as a high school freshman at Cathedral without ever having played a varsity game. After spending his first two years of high school at Cathedral Vaden transferred to Pike for his Junior season. He joined a Pike team that was already loaded. The team consisted of current Dallas Mavericks guard Courtney Lee, 2003 Mr. Basketball Justin Cage, Parnell Smith (Buffalo), Darren Yates (Ball State), and David Barlow (IUPUI). That year, 2003, Pike went undefeated, won the state championship , and finished the season ranked #2 in the country behind LeBron James St. Vincent – St. Mary team. Some consider that team to be the best Indiana High School Basketball Team in history. At the end of Vaden’s junior year he de-committed from Purdue and re-opened his recruitment, quickly committing to Mike Davis at IU. Robert transferred to Bridgton Academy in Maine in 2004, his senior year of high school in order to focus on academics. He wanted to play immediately at IU and that was not going to happen if he stayed at Pike. The transfer meant that he would not be able to compete for Indiana Mr. Basketball- an award he was considered the favorite to win in 2004. Robert finished high school career, in 2004, as the #38 recruit in the country. He took his talents to Indiana University to play for Mike Davis.
Vaden started every game his first two years at IU. He averaged 10.5 pts/gm his freshmen year and 13.5 pts/gm his sophomore year. He famously hit a 3 pointer with 3 seconds left in a first round NCAA Tournament Game against San Diego State that propelled the Hoosiers to a 87-83 victory and into the second round against Gonzaga. Mike Davis resigned after the 2006 season and Robert followed him to UAB. As a Junior at UAB he averaged 21.1 pts/gm and was named First Team All-Conference USA. He finished his college career 21stall-time in career 3 pointers made in NCAA history.
Robert was taken 54thin the 2009 NBA Draft by the Charlotte Bobcats who quickly traded him to the Oklahoma City Thunder. He was a part of the same Thunder draft class as James Harden. Vaden spent time with OKC’s D-League affiliate, the Tulsa 66ers, before being called up to join the Thunder at the end of the 2012 season. He was with them until their matchup in the Western Conference Finals against the San Antonio Spurs. Basketball also took Robert to Italy, Slovakia, Germany, and Belgium before returning to the G League in 2014. Over the years he has had the opportunity to play against the very best players in the world. Vaden says that Kevin Durant and James Harden are at the top of his list in terms of the toughest players he has had to guard.
Right now Robert is in Indianapolis working out with Andre Owens and Robert Blackwell preparing for his next basketball opportunity. BIG 3?
MARC RICAFORT
For the past three years The City League has drawn the best men’s basketball players from all over Indianapolis. A list of names chocked full of former Division 1 and Professional athletes. Guys that have played at IU, Purdue, Butler, Syracuse, in Europe, and in the NBA. Despite this wealth of talent The City League has been led in scoring the past two years by a player who played no organized basketball after middle school.
Marc "Nap Curry" Ricafort came up through the Noblesville Millers basketball feeder system during Dave McCollough’s tenure at the school. Once he got to high school he lost his love for the game quitting basketball after a team camp at DePauw heading into his freshmen year. He opted to play golf and tennis which he participated in all four years of high school.
Marc left Noblesville in 2008 for Muncie and Ball State to continue his education in finance. He started playing for fun in intramural leagues and eventually began running with Ball State men’s basketball team in the summers. After graduating from college he became “obsessed” with improving his game. Marc currently plays 4-5 nights a week in leagues all over the City – Grand Park, The Factory, Irsay YMCA, Noblesville Boys and Girls Club , and Best Choice Fieldhouse. Last summer he got in contact with and was worked out by famous NBA trainer Jordan Lawley in Irvine, California. Ricafort still uses Lawley’s workouts to keep his game sharp. He also studies the nuances and specific skills Steph Curry and Dame Lilliard have incorporated into their games’.
In the 2018 City League Marc led all players in scoring with a 27.2 ppg average. In 2019 Ricafort’s team played in 7 games at The City League in which he hit 55 three pointers – just under 8 per game. He ended the tournament as the Scoring Champion for a second year in a row averaging 28.9 ppg.
In addition to working on his game Marc has also put a lot of value in taking care of his body. After playing ball or working out Ricafort spends time at the Recovery Room in Carmel using their Full Body Cryotherapy and Normatec boot treatments.
Marc lives in Indianapolis and works at TRIMEDX, an affiliate of St. Vincent/Ascension Health Hospitals. He works in Operations and has been with the company for 5 years.
ANDRE OWENS
Former Perry Meridian star and Bobby Knight recruit Andre Owens is the contemporary Godfather of the local basketball scene in Indianapolis.
Andre grew up on the Far Eastside of Indianapolis calling the area around Post Road home. It was on the Eastside where Andre’s famous work ethic and killer mentality was bloomed. In third grade, playing in a youth league with older boys, Owens’ scored on the wrong basket , a move that elicited laughter from those in the gym. At that moment Andre decided he wanted to work hard to make sure nothing like that ever happened again on the basketball floor.
Safety concerns on the Eastside led Andre’s mother to send him to live with his grandmother on the southside – putting him in Perry Township and at Perry Meridian High School. At Perry Andre blossomed into an Indiana All-Star in 2000. He was joined on the 2000 Indiana All-Star team by future NBA players Zach Randolph and Jared Jeffries. After his All-Star experience Andre headed to Bloomington with Jared Jeffries play for the legendary Bobby Knight and the Indiana Hoosiers. Knight was famously fired by Indiana in the fall of 2000 leading to Assistant Mike Davis being promoted to Head Coach. Conflict with Davis prompted a transfer to the Houston Cougars to play for Muncie native Ray McCallum. Andre had success at Houston – leading Conference USA in scoring in scoring his senior year averaging 18.3 PPG.
Owens began his professional career by signing with the Utah Jazz as an undrafted free agent for the ’05 – ’06 season. After being traded to the Warriors in the summer of 2006 he was released by the team and eventually picked up by the Pacers in 2007. In 31 games with the Pacers he averaged 4 ppg. His stint in the NBA was followed by 7 years Overseas with stops in Serbia, Turkey, Russia, Ukraine, Spain, Africa, and Austria. His professional career was revived in 2017 by Ice Cube’s 3 on 3 League – The Big3. Owens was the 2ndoverall pick in 2017, the 1stoverall pick in 2018, and was given his own team –Aliens -in 2019.
Andre now lives on the Northeast side of Indianapolis. He runs a towing company – Owens Towing and spends a lot of time working on his craft with other Indianapolis professionals in the Lions Den.
JENNA SULLIVAN
Brookston native Jenna Sullivan grew up on an Angus Cattle farm outside of a stereotypical rural Indiana town surrounded by corn and soybean fields with rusted basketball hoops nailed to barns throughout the community. A standout career at Class A Frontier high school led her to the west side of Indianapolis to suit up for NAIA Women’s Basketball power Marian University.
Twenty minutes north of West Lafayette sits Chalmers – a quaint Indiana town – home to Frontier High School. Jenna Sullivan was a basketball, volleyball, and track standout at Frontier but eventually decided basketball was the sport she wanted to pursue. Each of her 4 years of high school she earned All-Midwest Conference honors and was Player of the Year as a Senior. She was also the White County player of the year as a Junior and Senior. In 2012 Sullivan was named the North vs South Jr. All-Star team. As a Senior Jenna was again a North All-Star in the annual North vs South All-Star game. Additionally she was an nominated All- State, named to Hoosier Basketball Magazine's 2013 Top 100 Girls List , and invited to HBM's Top 60 Senior Workout. She finished her career at Frontier as one of three 1,000 point scorers in school history.
Her standout high school career led her to Indianapolis to play for former Indiana Miss Basketball, Purdue standout, and Seattle Storm guard Katie Gearlds at Marian University. The Knights are a power in Cycling, Football, and Women’s Basketball. Jenna was part of teams during her time in college that elevated the brand of the Marian Knights women’s basketball program. In 2015, her sophomore year, Marian was the Crossroads League Tournament Champion. As a Junior, in 2016, Sullivan was on a team that was the Crossroads League regular season champs and NAIA II National Champion – the first in school history. In Jenna’s Senior campaign, 2017, Marian repeated as the NAIA Division II National Champion beating St. Xavier (Ill.) Jenna Sullivan left her mark on the career lists at Marian. She is the school’s all-time leading rebounder (1000), shot blocker (203), and played the most games in school history (141). She scored 1,096 points leaving as the school’s 11thall-time leading scorer.
After finishing school Jenna was an assistant coach for the Martin Methodist women’s basketball team in Pulaski, TN. She is currently working on making her way back to Indianapolis.
Contributor
RON RUTLAND JR.
Now pushing a brand of active wear with the tagline “Blessed by the Game” basketball has presented Ron Rutland Jr. with a wealth of opportunity. The game has taken the 1987 Pike High School graduate to the University of Indianapolis, Europe, South America, and has allowed him to rub shoulders with some of the world’s best athletes.
Ron Rutland Jr’s illustrious basketball story started on the northwest side of Indianapolis at Pike High School. As a senior Ron’s 19.4 point per game average led Pike to the Indianapolis Semi-State at Hinkle Fieldhouse losing a close game to Mount Vernon. That year he was named Central Suburban Athletic Conference and Marion County Player of the Year. Ron holds the distinction of being the only player ever to be named Marion County Player of the year and not be selected to the Indiana All-Star Team. In 2012 he was selected by the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame to the Silver Anniversary Team- a group of the 15 best senior basketball players from 1987. This group also included Rick Fox and Marion’s Lyndon Jones.
A standout high school career led to a basketball scholarship at the University of Indianapolis. After four years at UINDY Ron left as the school’s all-time assist leader and is top 10 in career scoring. He was named First Team Division II All-Great Lakes Region in 1991 and was inducted in the Greyhounds’s Athletic Hall of Fame in 2017.
The summer of 1991 Ron traveled the country playing in NBA Hoop It Up Tournaments for a team sponsored by Champion. At a tournament in Dallas representatives from American Airlines watched Team Champion and asked to them to represent the United States as a Showcase Team at a European Championships 3 on 3 Tournament in Rimini, Italy.
After a couple years playing overseas Ron was back in Indianapolis in the summer of 1996 playing in the Dust Bowl when current IU assistant coach Ed Schilling came to scout him. Schilling was John Calipari’s assistant with the New Jersey Nets at the time and was told by a Nike rep to check out the overlooked point guard. Ron was invited to play with Kerry Kittles, Ed O’Bannon, and Yinka Dare on the New Jersey Nets Summer League team that summer. He was not invited to training camp as the Nets went into camp that fall with a guard combo of Khalid Reeves and Robert Pack.
Ron’s professional career spanned 8 years – 7 years in Europe and South America as well as a year in the now defunct Continental Basketball Association. His favorite stop was Spain where he played on a team with Andres Nocioni and against future NBA players Pau Gasol and Jose Calderon. Former Utah Jazz point guard Delaney Rudd and NBA journeyman guard Darrell Armstrong were the two toughest players that Ron matched up with during his basketball career.
Ron now lives in Indianapolis with his wife Meisha and their two children – Ronnie and Mckenzi. He runs his own business selling insurance and coaches youth basketball.
JEERMAL SYLVESTER
Jeermal Sylvester was instrumental in connecting The City League and EmployIndy to host the YES Indy 317 Basketball Tournament. We recognize one of EmployIndy's own whose story has been greatly impacted by basketball.
Jeermal Sylvester grew up on Chicago's West Side in the 1980s dreaming of being the next Walter Payton. It wasn't until making a move to South Bend in high school that he became interested in the game of basketball. Playing organized hoops for the first time as a Sophomore at South Bend Riley he proved to be a quick learner and have an aptitude for the game. As a Senior, averaging 21.7 ppg and 13.9 rebounds, Jeermal led his team to the Semi-State getting knocked off by a pair of 6'10 twins on their way to Notre Dame. That year Jeermal was named to the prestigious Indiana All-Star team , a team that included Damon Bailey and Eric Montross. Following his Senior year Rick Majerus recruited Sylvester to Ball State where he would become a two -time 1st Team All MAC selection leading the Cardinal to three 20 win seasons and an NCAA Tournament birth. After his time at BSU the game took Jeermal overseas with stops in France, Argentina, and Singapore.
In 2015 Jeermal Sylvester was honored by the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame as a Silver Anniversary Team Member being of the top 18 players in the 1990 Senior Class. Sylvester is now the Youth Recruitment and Business Engagement Manager for Employ Indy. "Mr Me Too" also travels around the country sharing his story with young people to encourage them that they can become what they want in life.
