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BLOGS of pro basketball players overseas
Behind the backboard: the truth about life overseas |
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There are currently 6791 ex-college players, who play 2012-13 season overseas
*the number is for both men and women players, who play outside of the U.S. (updated on 6/15/2013) Check Detailed list by College or by country
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BENJAMIN RAYMOND'S BLOG
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198cm / 6'6'' - Shooting Guard / Small Forward - 1987 
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Benjamin Raymond Basketball Career |
Born: May 8, 1987 in Boston, Massachusetts
Nickname: B.J.
Parents are Benjamin Raymond Jr. and Sylvia Raymond
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Career:
Toledo, OH / St. John's Jesuit
2005-2006: Xavier (NCAA): 31 games: 3.4ppg, 1.5rpg, FGP: 38.8%, 3PT: 30.6%, FT: 63.9%
2006-2007: Xavier (NCAA): 34 games: 4.1ppg, 2.1rpg, FGP: 40.3%, 3PT: 45.0%, FT: 70.9%
2007-2008: Xavier (NCAA): 37 games: 9.9ppg, 3.0rpg, FGP: 44.8%, 3PT: 41.2%, FT: 81.6%
2008-2009: Xavier (NCAA, starting five): 35 games: 14.1ppg, 4.1rpg, 1.4apg, FGP: 45.8%, 3PT: 41.0%, FT: 80.9%
2009: Portsmouth Invitational Tournament (Pre-NBA Draft)
2009 June: Boston Celtics, Cleveland Cavaliers, Houston Rockets, Minnesota Timberwolves, Portland Trail Blazers (NBA) pre-draft workouts
2009-2010: Generali Okapi Aalstar (Belgium-D1): EuroChallenge: 5 games: 17.2ppg, 2.6rpg, 1.0apg, FGP: 60.0%, 3PT: 39.4%, FT: 89.5%; Belgian League: 34 games: 13.1ppg, 3.7rpg, 1.1apg, 1.1spg, FGP: 49.8%, 3PT: 31.2%, FT: 81.6%
2010-2011: Anibal Zahle (Lebanon-Div.A): 11 games: 17.7ppg, 7.4rpg, 1.9apg, 1.3spg, FGP: 45.8%, 3PT: 33.3%, FT: 71.0%, in Feb.'11 moved to Helios Domzale (Slovenia-Telemach League, starting five): 19 games: Score-2(17.7ppg), Reb-4(7.4rpg), 1.4apg, 1.1spg, FGP: 52.1%, 3PT: 46.4%, FT: 84.8%
2011-2012: Pizza Express Apollon (Cyprus-Division A, starting five): 12 games: 13.8ppg, in Mar.'12 moved to Aerochaco Boca Juniors Capital Feder (Argentina-LigaA, starting five): 8 games: 7.4ppg, 2.4rpg, 1.0apg, FGP: 32.7%, 3PT: 29.2%, FT: 75.0%
2012-2013: In Jan.'13 signed at MIA Academy Tbilisi (Georgia-Superleague, starting five): 21 games: 14.4ppg, 6.0rpg, 2.7apg, FGP: 59.7%, 3PT-2(44.1%), FT: 70.7%
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Awards/Achievements:
Atlantic 10 Tournament Winner -06
Atlantic 10 Regular Season Champion -07, 08, 09
Atlantic 10 Tournament Semifinals -07, 08, 09
NCAA Elite Eight -08
NABC Division I All-District 4 Second Team -09
All-Atlantic 10 1st Team -09
NCAA DI All-Star Game -09
Belgian Cup Semifinals -10
Slovenian Cup Finalist -11
Eurobasket.com All-Slovenian League 1st Team -11
Eurobasket.com Slovenian League All-Imports Team -11
Slovenian League Semifinals -11
Cyprus Division A All-Star Game -12
Eurobasket.com All-Cyprus League Honorable Mention -12
Georgian League All-Star Game -13 (MVP)
Eurobasket.com All-Georgian League 3rd Team -13
Georgian Cup Winner -13
Georgian League Regular Season Runner-Up -13
Georgian League Champion -13
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BLOG POSTINGS
 AN INSIDE LOOK OF THE ATTACK ON THE APOLLON BASKET TEAM!!!!- Jan.9, 2012 (by Benjamin)
I dont know what to say .. but at the same time i have so much to say ... about the events that took place in last nights attack on the apollon basketball family... We were playing Omonia.. and we noticed in the first quarter that there fans had marched ... from one side of the gym to come directly behind us .. and then we noticed a big scuffle in the stands .. and later i found out that a couple of players from Apoel had came to watch the game and they attacked them [read more] | |
I dont know what to say .. but at the same time i have so much to say ... about the events that took place in last nights attack on the apollon basketball family... We were playing Omonia.. and we noticed in the first quarter that there fans had marched ... from one side of the gym to come directly behind us .. and then we noticed a big scuffle in the stands .. and later i found out that a couple of players from Apoel had came to watch the game and they attacked them.. (literally what im saying happened .. from my eyes) our coach yelling at any one who turned around .. He was doing a great job of keeping us focused on the game ... because that was none of our business .. our business was on the court .. then shortly after they got the apoel players out of there.. they turned there attentions to us .. they began to spit at us ... and im sad to say this is not the first time ive been spit at while playing basketball in europe.. and im sure it wont be the last.. so we just put towels on our heads and were told not to turn around... and with about 5 mins left in the second quarter half of the mob turned there attention to the refrees because they could not get to us.. so we were about 15 or 16 pts at this time and they start spitting on the court and at the refrees .. and try to run on the court at a refree .. i wish that i could say that was the worst of it .. but only the mob of Omonia fans new was about to happen next .. we go in to the locker room .. while they are spitting at us .. as we walk in .. and one of my teammates gets spit on and he goes back out while some other part of the mob dumps like a few bottles of water or alchol on a refree as he walks in to the tunnel... and after awhile he comes in to the locker room .. and then maybe 3 mins later .. an apollon manger .. is normally a behind the scenes guy .. tried to protect my teammate that went back out there and he came in to the locker room bloody nose ripped shirt and face completely red.. The omonia fans had attacked him .. for trying to protect one of our players .. and if you were asking where were the cops at .. im still asking that question .. well finally our head coach walks in and trys to keep us focused on the game .. and then i see a a window of the locker room open and there was something with smoke coming out of it hits the floor.. AND COACH YELLS EVERYBODY RRRUUUUUUUNNNNNNN as he's running out the door ofcourse .. and i have never been that scared in my life everybody was running in to eachother .. and i was at the opposite end furthest from the door.. so i chose to run in to the shower.. with a couple of my teammates .. and cover my ears and close my eyes just incase it was one of the concussion things the cops use before they raid something.. in reality it was more like 5 secs waiting for the bang but it felt like an eternity ... then i realized it was a smoke bomb so the rest of us ran out of the shower.. and back out to the court .. with the rest of the team and i hear my coach yelling to a cop we cant play like this we have to leave for the safety .. of our players.. and then i notice one of my cypriot teammates arguing with ONE of the mob member's.. and i yell out a few choice words .. because i was furious at the experience i had just wnt through .. and i take one step towards him i see that our bench.. the chairs we were sitting in for the game were no longer there.. and i took another and seen where they were.. there were about 30 guys with ski mask and bandannas covering there faces.. they were using t- shirts... to cover parts of there face .. and then i yell to my cypriot teammate to get back.. becasue they all saw me .. and they rush towards us and threw chairs at us and water botttles and gatorade bottles.. and we had no choice but to pick things up and throw them back .. we were literally fighting for our lives at this point.. 30 ppl we held our own ... then it turned in to what looked like to me like 100 in a matter of a minute then there was nothing any of us could do .. i got grabbed from behind as i guy was racing after me with a stick because i had just threw a chair in to the mob .. for a second i thought it was them but it was a security guard who .. saw and pulled me in to a room .. and hid me in a back closet and then shortly after two other of my teammates who got sepreated from the group.. and at this time .. 7 of my teammates where pinned in a hallway being attacked by about of 100 Omonia fans .. they were punched in the face kicked and hit with sticks and rocks over the head .. they broke glass over another one of my teammates face... they attacked a cypriot father for trying to protect his 16 yr old son... 5 guys just pounced on him... we found out that a few players from our youngster team were sitting in the stands watching the game and they got jumped on by like 5 or 6 guys .. these are just kids 13 or 14 yrs old being beat on by 5 20 plus year old men for no reason at all..when we all came into the same room again and to look at all the damage that had been done from the attack of the Omonia fans.. we had 3 guys who need stitches the youngsters.. with black eyes and cuts from being punched and kicked and hit with sticks and rocks .. i was ok .. i had changed in to omonia basketball players warm up .. and i was even with the omonia team at this point .. they put both teams in the same room.. at this point .. then one of the youngsters said that one of the omonia mob members that had just got finished kicking him and punching him.. shouted thats for what your fans did to our players last time.. and i was at the last game between omonia and Apollon .. and our fans did not attack the omonia team with sticks and rocks chairs bottoles and glass .. so after the whole team being rushed to the hospital by police escort .. I just have a couple question .. where were the police at !?!?!.. where is the protection .. for the players.. after having a night to get my thoughts together .. i have come to a conclusion.. about last night.. THERE WAS NOTHING THAT ANY APOLLON PLAYER COULD DO.. there was nothing we could do to prevent it from happening and there was nothing we could really do to protect ourselves.. the omonia fans came with the intention of attacking us .. and they came with a plan .. they came with what they needed and anything they could use .. they came with masks and bandannas to cover there face.. they came with smoke bombs .. to smoke us out of the locker room and then ... tried to act like it was only one mob member to get us out in the open .. but really when it was about 100.. they did not come to watch the game .. we were only up by 10 pts at halftime .. they didnt watch any of it .. hardly they attacked the players from Apoel first while the game was going on .. they came with a mob mentality .. and just attacked us .. and the thing that hurts me the most .. besides feeling so violated by being spit on and watching 14 yr old boys being beat with a stick and rocks .. by a 25 yr old man .. that hurts but not as much as knowing nothing is going to come from it .. they all got away .. the police got there two late .. there will be no consequence .. for there actions.. they just went home .. went to bar and and laughed about beating us with sticks and rocks .. because they wanted to prove they are more rowdy then our fans.. all i know is it needs to stop.. we are here to play basketball .. and not get caught between a pissing contest .. and im sure some of the omonia fans that attacked us will read this.. i just want you to know you attacked us because your friend did and he did becasue his friend did .. you had a mob mentality ... you are a follower.. a coward .. your like a bully in highschool .. those are the best years of there life.. and this moment might be the best of your life .. having your face covered and beating a kid with a stick .. if that makes you feel tough or more like a man .. i feel sad for you .. well the apollon family still may be shaken up from the attack and we maybe still be a little bumped a bruised today we are all ok .. but keep us in your prayers.. and for the young man who died earlair this season after being attacked in a night club .. thanks for reading .. God bless
BJ Raymond
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Raymond starts blogging- Dec.30, 2011 (by Benjamin)
Well firstly, i want to thank eurobasket for this opportunity to have my voice heard... and secondly .. its a tough time to have my first blog ... we just suffered a 2 pt lost to aek on the road last night. Hmm what do i have to say about the game.. well i feel we wanted to play the game but just was not ready from the start last night. Aek was the more hungary team and they showed it from jump.. in the first quarter .. they were up by 15 pts in the first 4 mins of the game [read more] | |
Well firstly, i want to thank eurobasket for this opportunity to have my voice heard... and secondly .. its a tough time to have my first blog ... we just suffered a 2 pt lost to aek on the road last night. Hmm what do i have to say about the game.. well i feel we wanted to play the game but just was not ready from the start last night. Aek was the more hungary team and they showed it from jump.. in the first quarter .. they were up by 15 pts in the first 4 mins of the game .. they started off beat us at every phase of the game .. we gave up 9 offensive rebounds in the first quarter alone..but just as a champion prize fighter its not about how hard you can hit .. but how well you can take a punch and hit the mat and get back up... we were down by 19 pts with 5 mins to go in the game.. and as my college coach said in the last 4 mins of the game.. its winning time .. and to the credit of our team.. we scored over 20pts in the last 5 mins of the game .. we had a shot to win it or tie it at the end of the .. game.. i would like to give credit to our team .. we fought, kicked and scratched to get back in the game .. but we got what we deserved.. i do believe we are the better team on paper, but last night Aek was the better team plain and simple ..but i was happy to see that we had the heart.. of a champion boxer. Well how am i feeling about last night, well 'Things are never as good as they seem and things are never as bad as they seem'..MJ. You cant get to high on yourself when things are going well and you cant get to low when things are going bad.. I'm going to stay positive about this one.. we showed heart and character of a championship team..and we played for ourselves and the Apollon basketball family.. even though we fell short last night .. we are still in second place .. we have 4 of our last 6 games at home.. and we still believe in ourselves one win wont make a whole season just as one lost wont cost you a season... I want to say thanks for reading this .. you will be hearing from me soon.. Happy holidays everybody...
God bless,
BJ Raymond
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