Featured  collage by GoTeamLiberia (Darius Sherman,  basketball player)

At GoTeamLiberia.com we strive to highlight Liberian athletes and Olympic hopefuls. With the 2022 Youth Olympic Games heading to the Continent, we must show the world that the youth of Liberia are talented too. A video by JellyCam went viral on Facebook and now we are here!

Meet 16 year old Othniel Darius Sherman. He attends the School Of Prime Systems (SPS) in Monrovia, Liberia. He plays small forward for the Cardinals which is coached by Coach Stone at the YMCA. Darius first held a basketball at the age of 5 and has been perfecting his game since. Standing at 6’2”, this young baller has handles, a mean crossover and can effortlessly dunk.

“Basketball has been a big factor in my life because it showed me that nothing comes easily without working for it and it also taught me the skills of being a leader; I’m the leader of my school team and all the hard work lies on my shoulders and has also [given] me the exposure to meet new people.” -Darius Sherman

Darius says he practices everyday and his favorite drill is shooting alone. Of course, he would rather dunk the ball than shoot, but he has a clean jump shot. When Darius is not on the court, you can find him at home playing video games or hanging out with friends.

Basketball player Darius Sherman in various shots (image from Darius’ Facebook).

Darius shares his hopes for basketball in Liberia:

“I hope there will be more basketball gymnasiums with better infrastructure and I hope there will be programs to take kids out of Liberia and give them exposure to competitions outside of Liberia.”

Darius looks up to LeBron James, not only as his favorite player, but for his born leadership. If Darius could play anywhere in the world, he says he would choose the USA. He believes the competition is very tough and would better him as a person.

In closing, Darius advises all youth that want to play basketball to keep their head up high and work hard everyday,

“…pay attention to school because you can’t be a professional basketball player without going to school. Keep dribbling and shooting the ball for at least two hours everyday and have someone record your workout drills, practices and games because you might not know who’s watching you.”

We can’t wait to see more from Darius!! Keep up the good work!