The Sarasota Manatees continue to grow and expand as a basketball team. The journey of this team since 2015 has been that of excitement, ups, downs, triumphs and pitfalls. This is a team that operates more as a start-up organization than your average sports team, which is in-keeping with the constant growth and shifts in the sports industry. The Sarasota area, the entire 941 has had teams come and teams go, initially many were unsure what to make of professional basketball in the area, but history was made. We have seen players gain opportunities to travel the world gain experience and play. We have seen professionals from outside of the state come down and join this team. Amazingly this team navigated through limited local support, shoe-string and bootstrap funding and continues through the pandemic to provide family fun entertainment and provide opportunities for young players to enter the world of professional basketball. This year a few more players will head off to ABA Mexico this summer to expand their view and vision. The team has went from unexpected to the expected staple within the community and continues to grow. We had a chance to speak with rookie Jeremiah Jordan about his goals and he spoke about being inspires by Kevin Durants 35th hours, the challenges of being cut from middle school teams, playing with a chip on his shoulder and showing and proving his worth as a basketball player. The hard work, the chip on his shoulder is what has gotten him an entrance into the ABA Mexico Draft with a chance to showcase his talents across the globe. Rookie Zacari brent has had a great experience this season even through the ups and downs and says “I am watching as we improve our skills and communication together”. Veteran guard Taegon Purtill spoke about his experiences the past few years, he has seen changes on the conditioning side, improved dedication and effort along with additional skills and talent added to the team that has helped.
This team will continue to grow for years to come. The team is in the beginning survey and research stages of potentially building or leasing a permanent arena fit for a semi-professional sports team. This is a prime example of what can be built and achieved anywhere on the globe with elbow grease and serious determination. For additional information on The Sarasota Manatees visit www.sarasotamanateesbasketball.org and find them on all social media outlets.