Ronald Ramón, the most Brazilian of the Dominicans

SAO PABLO (FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 Americas Qualifiers) - The showdown between Brazil and the Dominican Republic at São Paulo’s Wlamir Marques Gymnasium ended with the locals’ triumph of 100 to 82 and was very significant for both teams in search of a World Cup qualification.

But for Ronald Ramón, point guard of the Caribbean team, this meant much more than just a game. The Dominican player spent eight consecutive years in the Brazilian league, which left a profound mark on his career and his life outside the courts. “Playing against Brazil, in Brazil, was a different feeling for me. I faced the guys that were my teammates, and rivals as well. They're people that I've known for a long time, and competing at a national team level, and in São Paulo, was an extra motivation for me. But apart from my personal feelings, we know that we're at a moment where we need to win. We're aware of that. We couldn't do it and we should manage to do it in Chile and then, at home,” says Ramón.

The point guard started his career at the NBB in 2010, with Limeira. There, he played for 5 seasons, with an average of 13.5 points per game. The high performance he demonstrated was his passport to get to Flamengo, Brazil’s greatest club. “When Limeira stopped participating, we went to sign Ronald, because we needed a player capable of leading the team as well as scoring, and he could give us both things. He has a quality shot and defends with a lot of intensity,” explains José Neto, who was his coach in Flamengo. He also adds: “besides his game, he’s a first-level professional both in and out of the court, he's always involved in his team’s objectives. In my opinion, success is strongly linked to a person’s quality and that's one of the reasons why Ronald has been so successful at life.”

That human quality that Neto emphasizes can be evidenced in each one of Ramón’s greetings to the members of the Brazilian national team. He’s all smiles, hugs, high-fives and complicit smiles with everyone. “Rafa Luz, Rafael Mineiro, Arthur Pecos, Anderson Varejão... I know them all very well because they were my teammates. Also, Leandrinho Barbosa in my last year (there) or Lucas Dias and Leo Meindl, who I faced many times. Having played against them involved a lot of emotions that gave me more energy when going out to play,” the Dominican point guard commented.

With Ramón in their squad, Flamengo were league champions in the 2015-2016 season. But then came two prize-less campaigns and that caused a profound change in the roster. The arrival of a new coach, Gustavo De Conti, brought about an almost complete renovation of players. “In Flamengo you're obligated to always win. So, when those two years passed without us being champions, I knew that I wasn’t going to be back,” said Ramón, who’s without a team at the moment. He has plans to be signed again by an NBB club: “I keep my doors open to see where I will continue my career. It didn't happen here in Brazil, but that doesn't mean that I won’t be back. According to the offers I receive I’ll decide what’s best for me and my family.”

The connection between Ramón and Brazil is so strong that the oldest one of his two sons, three-year-old Ronald Jr., is Brazilian. And although he is now living in the United States, the point guard shares a strong bond with his former team mates: “I've made friends here that will last a lifetime. In both teams my teammates welcomed me with open arms, they made me feel welcome, and that’s something that I appreciate of this country.”

And Ronald not only has Brazilian friends, he has also adopted some of their traditions: “My wife always makes fun of me because there are times where I put Dominican music on, and sometimes I put Brazilian music, and I feel that both are my own. Sometimes you don't even know where you're from. Having spent so many years in Brazil made me adopt musical and culinary traditions and, of course, as well as drinks such as the typical caipirinha. That’ll always be with me.” Ramón's feelings towards the Brazilian nation are undeniable. However, there’s a choice that’s difficult for him. Which city of those he lived in is his favorite? “It's difficult to choose a favorite place. Limeira is small. There are people there that are like family to us. As a city, logically, I prefer Rio de Janeiro, where everybody would like to live in because there are opportunities to do whatever you want to do. But Limeira is like my home, that's where they opened the doors of Brazil to me, and that’s where I’d go back to visit.”

This visit to the country that embraced him for 8 years brought Ronald Ramón a sports defeat in his objective of qualifying to the World Cup. However, he won't give up: “We have a very good opportunity to take the Dominican Republic to a second consecutive World Cup. That would be huge for us. We’ve worked for that. And although we haven’t reached the victory, we must keep that goal alive, because it's possible. Besides, we could achieve it with a young team, which is something that creates expectations. The Dominican national team should already belong to young players.”

Ramón has no certainties regarding his immediate future as a player after the qualifying windows to the FIBA Basketball World Cup in China. Nonetheless, he is certain about which road he’ll take once he decides to end his career in basketball: “I'm closer to the end of my career and I'm working on what I’ll do once it’s over. My plan is to coach at a college level, but everyone knows that it's not as easy to have that opportunity as quickly and you don't know where your journey will start.”

The truth is that wherever he takes his first steps as coach, he’ll apply everything he’s learned from his teachers: “I've had very important coaches in my career. At the beginning, in All Hallows High School, John Carey and Edwin González helped me to understand the game better. They even sent me to the bench after scoring a three-pointer because it wasn’t a good throw. Also, Jamie Dixon in the University of Pittsburgh and Mark Jones at the AAU Summer Tournaments that are played in the United States. And at a professional level, Dedé Barbosa in Limeira and José Neto in Flamengo did an excellent job.”

For Ronald Ramón, facing Brazil while wearing the Dominican Republic's colors meant more than just a game. It also reminded him of the most important part of his career. It meant to relieve those eight years that he very much enjoyed. It meant a visit full of emotions for the most Brazilian of the Dominicans.

Pablo Cormick
FIBA