Team Rio Constructed to Win it All

Team Rio National

Widely considered as one of the elite teams in the class of 2019, Team Rio National has added the type of quality pieces that could result in a national championship.  Finishing with an impressive 16-4 record in last year’s ultra-competitive National YouthBasketball League (NYBL), the New Jersey based team has upgraded an already stacked roster.  Most everyone who follows the class is familiar with studs Scottie Lewis (6’4 WF), Brian Antoine (6’4 SG) and Mikeal Jones (6’6 PF/C), but guys like Jordon McCoy (6’4 WF) Jalen Gaffney (5’11 PG) and Ahmadu Sanor (6’0 SG/WF) are all solid contributors to the team. The addition of Tariq Ingraham (6’8 C New Castle, DE) adds size in the post and will allow Team Rio to compete with any team in the country.

Antoine and Lewis are playing some great basketball right now and college coaches have taken notice. In fact, the “big three” of Lewis, Antoine and Ingraham are all receiving high major interest as college coaches are flocking to the gym to watch the trio practice. Although he gets very little ink, Ahmadu Sanor is starting to make a name for himself and his play at the Winter Warz was impressive.

While many teams were forced to shut it down until the 2015 travel season, Rio has stayed busy. In fact, recently, the team dominated the competition at Mike Melton’s Winter Warz last week, finishing 5-0 on the weekend. In addition, Rio’s resume includes wins at the Fun Sport tourney at the Barkley Center, Fab 48 in Las Vegas last July, and the Nike Showcase in January. It should also be noted the Team Rio has only lost to 1 team since the NYBL concluded last season and that was a single digit loss to DC Premier. Team Spokesman Brian Klatsky is confident in his team’s ability to compete for a title this season. “We have been in the NYBL since day 1 and this is the year we can take home a championship,” said Klatsky. With only a few short weeks remaining until the tip off of the NYBL the excitement is really starting to build!

Lewis, Antonie, Jones, Ingraham, Gaffney, Sanor & McCoy