JAMAICA’S Samardo Samuels will don the No 24 shirt for Cleveland Cavaliers when the new NBA season gets underway on October 5 against the Charlotte Bobcats.

It’s a new beginning for the 6ft-9in, 21-year-old forward on a journey begun in Trelawny and now lodged at Cleveland, Ohio. Samuels, a Muschette High past student, serves as a example of dogged determination for an athlete chasing his dreams.

“While everyone was witness to his immense talent, strength, and size, they weren’t aware of the work that went into getting Samardo to where he is now,” said president of the Jamaica Basketball Association (JaBA) Ajani Williams, who has stuck with him through thick and thin.

“His father and mother Roan and Jacqueline Samuels epitomised the people of Trelawny: hard-working, humble, and all about family. His father Roan, despite having a hectic workload, drove Samardo to and from practice since he was ‘bwoy’ and wherever he had to improve, however late he had to stay with him.”

Williams noted that Samardo, well-known as a “momma’s boy”, has his mother as a avid cheerleader, and his parents never missed his high school games. “His teammates at Muschette High School can bear witness that they too were the beneficiaries of Jacqueline’s support and home-cooked meals,” he stressed.

“Samardo’s journey to the NBA has been fraught with glory and pain. He was a heralded high school player in the KFC/ISSA High School League and went on to be discovered in the Jamaica’s Basketball Star Search Camp,” explained the JaBA president.

When Samuels wasn’t drafted he was devastated but with his support group “he went back to the drawing board. Samardo dominated the NBA Summer League (for the Chicago Bulls) weeks later which now earned him a three-year deal with the NBA’s Cleveland Cavaliers.

At the NBA Rookie Orientation in New York two weeks ago with the other NBA top draftees such as the No 1 pick John Wall and No 4 DeMarcus Cousins “who Samardo ripped to pieces in his game against Sacramento, he had tears in his eyes with pride as the Jamaican flag was raised in honour of the players present,” described Williams.

“He remembered the hard work and dedication of his family, his country he loved and all those who helped him realise the start of a dream.

“His next phase is to remind people why he was the No 1 player in high school in the USA after leaving Muschette High and St Benedict’s.

“He will show them why he should have been a top-10 pick. His effort and hard work will be an ode to the hard-working people from Trelawny, the talent of Jamaicans and that good supportive parenting leads to great things,” the basketball boss emphasised.