{"id":394,"date":"2016-04-30T21:24:32","date_gmt":"2016-04-30T21:24:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/stories.kera.org\/class-of-17\/?p=394"},"modified":"2017-05-26T19:13:05","modified_gmt":"2017-05-26T19:13:05","slug":"for-this-high-schooler-hoop-dreams-crash-into-harsh-reality","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stories.kera.org\/class-of-17\/2016\/04\/30\/for-this-high-schooler-hoop-dreams-crash-into-harsh-reality\/","title":{"rendered":"For This High Schooler, Hoop Dreams Crash Into Harsh Reality"},"content":{"rendered":"

Like a lot of high school juniors, Ricky Rijos, Jr. of Flower Mound High is facing uncertainty. Ricky had dreams of playing basketball after high school. Goals have changed. He\u2019s given up on basketball. Now he wants to graduate a semester early.<\/em><\/p>\n

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In Ricky Rijos\u2019 professional communications class, teacher Melody Barnhart flashes a picture of Dallas Cowboys legend Tom Landry wearing his trademark fedora.<\/p>\n

\u201cWho is this guy?\u201d<\/p>\n

One student guesses Tom Brady, the Patriots quarterback. Another offers Vince Lombardi, the iconic Green Bay Packers coach.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, no, no, no, no,\u201d Barnhart says. \u201cWho is it?\u00a0The first name was right. His name was Tom.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTom Landry.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s Ricky who nails it. His love of sports runs deep. Up until a few months ago, so did his desire to play basketball for the Flower Mound High School Jaguars.<\/p>\n

\"Ricky

Ricky Rijos is a junior at Flower Mound High. Photo\/Lara Solt<\/p><\/div>\n

Thing is, he\u2019s only 5-foot-6-inches tall. Last fall, coach Eric Littleton set a high bar for a kid like Ricky to make varsity.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou better be an assassin when you shoot the basketball,\u201d Littleton said last fall. \u201cYou better be able to shoot it from anywhere at any time against anybody. You\u2019ve got to be able to dribble and pass and catch better than anybody. And equally important, you\u2019ve got to have a heart that\u2019s the size of the moon.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ricky couldn\u2019t quite clear those hurdles.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was like the beginning of the season and I got hurt, sprained my ankle for a couple weeks,\u201d Ricky said. \u201cI was in the varsity gym at first and I came back after I was hurt, and I went to the JV gym and I just never made my way back to the varsity gym. And then I never really got that much playing time.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s just not as fun when you\u2019re not playing, I guess.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s painful, because in many cases, you\u2019re not allowing the realization of somebody\u2019s hopes and dreams, but you have to be fair.\u201d
Fran Fraschilla, ESPN analyst<\/div>
<\/div><\/div>\n
\"Ricky

Ricky Rijos, center, watches while teacher Melody Barnhart selects groups to work on a public service announcement in his Professional Communications class at Flower Mound High School. Photo\/Lara Solt<\/p><\/div>\n

‘It’s painful’<\/h5>\n

Since he was a kid, Ricky has only wanted to play basketball, practice and play more at school, after school, or in private gyms. He also worked out for hours a day to get stronger and faster.<\/p>\n

Hardly playing, though, was tough. So he\u2019s giving it up.<\/p>\n

Littleton passed on an interview. So we turned to\u00a0Fran Fraschilla, a former college coach who\u2019s now an ESPN analyst. He said this story is bigger than basketball.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s painful, because in many cases, you\u2019re not allowing the realization of somebody\u2019s hopes and dreams,\u201d Fraschilla said. \u201cBut you have to be fair.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fraschilla, who\u2019s 5-foot-7-inches himself, has two sons both under 6 feet tall. They both played in high school, then college. As a coach, Fraschilla said disappointing some passionate players comes with the job.<\/p>\n

\u201cEvery year, you have to be the bad guy and tell a number of young men you\u2019re not quite good enough to make the varsity,\u201d Fraschilla says. \u201cAnd even when you make varsity, the coach has got to be able to tell those five or six guys at the end of the bench \u2018your job is to be a good teammate and practice-player because you won\u2019t play much this year.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n

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  • \"\"
    Ricky Rijos meets with his counselor, Chasity Lansdell, at Flower Mound High School. Photo\/Lara Solt<\/div><\/div><\/li>\n
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    Ricky Rijos in his Professional Communications class at Flower Mound High School. Photo\/Lara Solt<\/div><\/div><\/li>\n
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    Ricky Rijos (left) and Colin Deyoung work on a public service announcement in their Professional Communications class. Photo\/Lara Solt<\/div><\/div><\/li>\n
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    Ricky Rijos walks past a #ballislife sign in the hallways of Flower Mound High School. Photo\/Lara Solt<\/div><\/div><\/li>\n
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    Ricky Rijos walks to his car after school at Flower Mound High. Photo\/Lara Solt<\/div><\/div><\/li>\n <\/ul>\n <\/div>\n \n <\/div>\n