THE Persaud brothers, Damian and Tyler, were among the overseas-based players recruited by the GABF to form what they’re hoping to be a strong Championship contender squad, to represent Guyana at this year’s Caribbean Basketball Confederation (CBC) tournament. 

Tyler 21 and his 19-year-old brother Damian, arrived in Guyana last Sunday, making their inaugural visit to the homeland of their parents.
While most of their relatives live in Guyana the Persaud brothers were either too busy with school or just simply busy working on their craft and never found the time to visit whenever their parents did.
“We always wanted to come but it’s always something that kept us from doing so until now,” explained the older brother Tyler in an interview with Guyana Chronicle yesterday.
“I’m happy to be here and even more proud that I can get a chance at representing Guyana and teaming up with some of the talented players who all want to play for this country. I never got a chance at representing my country until now and I really would like to see us going there and actually winning this tournament,” Tyler said.
The younger Damian pointed out that for him, being just 19, there’s still plenty that he wants to learn from the game and playing here and trying out for the national team will also be a learning experience.
“I think I’m the youngest at the camp so for me, it’s all about learning. Learning from the other guys here about FIBA basketball and also me showing them a little about what I know about the game as well. So I think it’s going to be great and I’m looking forward to actually playing with these guys,” Damian said.
Both brothers attended the prestigious Kiski Academy Prep School in Saltsburg, Pennsylvania, which is among the top 20 basketball playing high schools in America.
While Damian is now being heavily recruited by some of the USA and Canada’s top colleges, Tyler has already begun to create a path and destiny of his own.
The 21 year-old forward attended the NCAA Division 2 Glenville State College and when he was drafted into the school, the university’s basketball head coach Stephen Dye, said “Tyler is a long and athletic player that can play several positions. He has the ability to really get to the basket as well as play from the perimeter.”
Tyler later transferred from Glenville and headed back to Canada and played at Windsor University in Ontario, where he continued to be one the top players in the country.
Meanwhile, the brothers expressed delight at rubbing shoulders with players who had experienced life in the NBA with the aim of learning the game of basketball from them.
“We know that players like Rawle Marshall will be in the team and it would be good if Darren Collison can play as well, because it would be great for us to learn from those guys.
A number of players should be coming back to play for Guyana that would’ve played at some of the highest levels in the world and we’re hoping to learn a lot from those guys to make us better players as well,” Tyler said.
Guyana will play in both the men and women version of the championship which runs from July 1 – 12.

(By Rawle Toney)