Kareem Green and Camelo Anthony

There are guys overseas that would die to be able to say they played with and against guys like Kemba Walker, Sebastian Telfair, Carmelo Anthony, Demar DeRozan or Tobias Harris just to name a few like Kareem Green (F) did in young years. But there is no one on earth who would want to have been in the shoes of Kareem Green in the last decade. This guy has literally seen it all and thank God still living in 2023. He was like any other young kid full of life despite having grown up in tough Harlem, but he had found his love to basketball. He was about to embark on a college career, but then tragedy hit him over and over. His brother was murdered and mother passed away on his birthday. If that wasn’t enough to lead the ground work for never ending depression, his roller coaster in hell continued going down a neverending path as his best friend, grand mother and uncle all passed away withing a short span of 3 months. One can’t imagine the living hell he was going through. This would have been the perfect time to just say farewell to the world forever. ‘My mother in my eyes was murdered too. The hospital gave my mom the wrong medication causing her death so I felt really betrayed because the hospital is a place people go to, to get help. It was a living hell. I’ve never experienced anything like that before. I lost my whole support system in less than 3 months. It’s a feeling I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy. A lot of dark nights and fighting with yourself. I’ve never talked about this but yes I thought about joining my family every-day for like a year I was seriously depressed. The only thing that kept me going was my nephew Steven who I raised to this day. If I died he would have no one in this world to look after him so I chose to be strong for him and through the grace of God I’m here today. If you don’t believe in God I’m here to tell you God is real and he brought me through hell and back and now I’m doing interviews in Germany and heading to Italy’, smiled Kareem Green. He lost his whole support system within 3 months, but God told him to get up and now he is chasing the basketball dream again.

Kareem Green who has a who is who list of toughest guys he has ever faced on the floor with John Wall, DeMar DeRozan, Sebastian Telfair, Jimmer Fredette, Tobias Harris, Lance Stephenson, Tyreke Evans and Landry Fields to just name a few was born on Valentines Day in 1990 in Manhattan, New York. His father died 3 days before Christmas when he was 5 years old. He began to play at age 6 and began his basketball career at Thurgood Marshall Academy from 2004-2008 averaging 19,0ppg and 12rpg where opponents had to put up with 270 pounds of fierce strength and was ranked top 50 in the state with guys like Kemba Walker and Lance Stephenson. He then played 2 years of prep school at South park academy in Houston, Texas graduating in 2010. He then wanted to play at Western Wyoming (NCAA), but grades disallowed him to. He then was set to play at Clark Community College in Washington and then his life turned upside down. The guy had everything going for him and then unfortunate happenings occurred. One has to wonder if he ever asked himself why me? ‘I never asked myself why me? This is part of my story and my journey, so I trust God. I trust the process and I trust the hard work I’ve been putting in and it will pay off. If I asked why, I’d be pitying myself and I would rather find solutions to improve my situation than looking for sympathy or empathy from others. I’m a hard worker and I respect and love the game but I had to fail many times in order to get to where I’m at now’, stressed Kareem Green. Was the hype just to enormous going to Wyoming? ‘No, the hype of going to Western Wyoming did not blow up my ego. I had a big ego since the 8th grade when I first became a ranked player in the country and in my state. I should have worked harder when the lights were on but instead I chose to party and make mistakes that young people normally make. Life has a funny way of humbling people and now as a basketball player I’m super grateful for every opportunity and every game I will never take this game I love for granted again’, commented Kareem Green. With so many hardships falling on his shoulders, his only escape was food. His weight ballooned from 250 pounds to 600 pounds. He wasn’t bedridden, but it was hard to move around. ‘The big weight gain came just from eating and drinking alcohol, That’s all I did for 2 years straight. I didn’t leave my house. I didn’t do anything. I just sat by the window and drank alcohol, listened to sad music and ate. Until God said get up and I’ve been up ever since. I started watching workout YouTube videos and found people like CT Fletcher, Larry Wheeler and Greg Monson and from there I started lifting super heavy and became a gym rat and now I’m bench pressing 425lbs I squat 700lbs I deadlift 500lbs I literally eat sleep and breathe iron. My journey is my journey and I wouldn’t trade that for anything. When I was depressed, I thought my mind was weak but I had to reach that point to find out how strong my mind really was’, remembered Kareem Green.

The big man who lists Tobias Harris, Kemba Walker (we came in 4th place 8th grade nationals that’s where we lost to Tyreke Evans and DeMar DeRozan), David Seagers, NYC street ball legend Steven Ruple and big brother D wash (Murdered in 2015) as his best teammates of all-time was living in hell for some years, but was lucky getting vital support. ‘Those years were extremely tough for me 2 of those years I just sat by the window depressed. I used to have the same nightmares about not playing and I would wake up with my heart racing and sweating heavily. I knew I had to get back into basketball somehow. And yes I had my older brother champ and my nephew Steven that was it, just us 3 trying to survive and make a way’, commented Kareem Green. Some how he found his way out of his massive hole and depression. It actually was another sad experience that helped him get back on track. ‘I was in a relationship for 8 years with my girlfriend at the time and we lived together during the time. I was depressed she left me, and it took me a while to understand why she left me. I didn’t love myself so how could anybody else love me. I registered for school. I started working out. I started working again in hopes to get my love back but it didn’t work so I started loving myself more and instead of doing things for her and other people I started doing things for me. And here I am now’, commented Kareem Green. He got in shape again and finally got some pro experience playing with the New York Crusaders, New York Empire and the Bronx holy flames in the MBL and PBA. ‘I want to say thank you to those organizations that gave me an opportunity to play pro. I believe my game has developed drastically. I’m always working and looking for ways to improve my game. I’m in the weight room 2-3 hours a day I don’t leave the court until 500 shots are made. I’m working on my cardio and conditioning constantly. I feel butterflies and excitement every game like it’s my first. I’m like a sponge right now I just want to soak up as much knowledge as I can. I will never take this game I love for granted again’, said Kareem Green.

Let’s fast forward to August 2023. The Harlem native who lists Lebron James, Michael Jordan, Kareem Abdul Jabbar, Bill Russel and Kobe Bryant on his personal NBA Mount Rushmore has continued to grind in the lab and gotten opportunities. He recently played in Nagua, Dominican Republic, and played in Disney World in the ESPN men’s national championships down in Orlando Florida. As always he is working on his game at the famous Rucker park where your always good to meet NBA players. His next gig will be the Howard Hoops Pro Combine in Milan, Italy. He recently flew to Minneapolis to meet the founder Ron Howard. Howard had a fine career overseas and for more than a decade after has helped young starving and talented Americans come overseas to live the basketball dream. He is more than excited to be able to show his game in Milan. ‘I definitely can’t wait to display my skills and show the world what I can do. The two skills I want to show the most are my leadership skills and my passing. I know how to score and create for myself but being able to create for others is a different kind of enjoyment’, said Kareem Green. He found Ron Howard on Instagram. He instantly became interested in his combines and important information that he was posting in blogs. ‘I’m super grateful and thankful for finding Coach Ron. He’s giving hoopers a chance to live their dreams and become professional on and off the court. He’s a great guy and heaven sent for real. To play in Italy is a huge opportunity. Coach Ron keeps it real and very easy to communicate with. We talk every week He’s really a great guy’, stated Kareem Green. But he quickly learned that Ron Howard isn’t only basketball 24/7, but is a guy where he can have long and memorable conversation about things that really matter in life. ‘I was able to fly to his combine In Minneapolis and he’s the real deal. We did a hard two hour workout followed by 7 to 8 games. After the combine Coach Ron picked me up from my hotel and we had lunch and we didn’t even talk basketball. We talked about real life things and after that I knew Coach Ron was everything I thought. He was Loyal, smart, passionate about the game and passionate about helping others. He’s truly a great guy on and off the court’, warned Kareem Green.

Kareem Green with Ron Howard

So what kind of game will people overseas witness from the ex PBL player who has Lebron James as his GOAT and feels the classic Coming to America movie should have been left alone? He is a player that is a mix between Nikola Jokic and Zach Randolph. ‘Jokic is a big man that can post up, shoot, pass and defend and he’s not athletic at all. He doesn’t jump high or run fast but he’s smart and he plays with heart. Zach was a dog in that paint and could shoot and pass as well, Zack didn’t jump high or run super fast either, but he was a great big body’, added Kareem Green. He is a big man that has a fine post up game, mid range game, can dish out the dimes and has a great IQ, leadership qualities and communicator. But he also has other attributes that continue to be off the radar. ‘A few of my hidden strengths in my game that aren’t noticed right away is my ability to impact a game without scoring. Passing, taking a charge, diving, and communicating. And being a good teammate isn’t always noticeable right away either’, commented Kareem Green. He has many abilities on the court, but the thing he is working on most at the moment is his body. ‘I’m working on my conditioning and getting in shape. That is the most important area of my game I’ve been working on the most. Everyday I’m working in the gym 2-4 hours, 2 hours lifting, 1 hour cardio bike, elliptical, or pool. My main thing is being able to get up and down that floor and defend. I’m also working on more ball handling and expanding my range’, warned Kareem Green. His former teammate and friend Kemba Walker will be playing his first season overseas for top Euroleague team Monaco and be living it up in the casino city Monte Caro. The chances of him playing against Walker are slim, but wouldn’t be something if he got a job overseas. ‘Playing in the NBA and overseas in Europe has always been a dream of mine since I was a kid. Getting a contract overseas would mean the world to me. My goal when I get there is to be a leader, play hard, win, and show the world what I can do. It would be super cool to get a job overseas while my boy Kemba is over there hooping’, said Kareem Green. No matter what happens, his mom who is looking down from heaven is so proud of him. Kareem Green battled against the worst adversary and is back in life with his feet on the ground