Instagram: @ricardomarshtraining and @freakmarsh
Website: ricardomarshtraining.com
Many young hoopers create a vision of themselves having a future occupation playing professional basketball; the ultimate dream job. This vision may occur the first time one picks up a ball or even way down the line well into a player’s college years. I conduct player interviews with high school guys from around the region frequently and always ask the same final question: where do you see yourself in ten years' The answers never quite change in how the guys adamantly express a desire to continue their careers into the professional level. I respect the goal; the majority of us have had that dream where we see ourselves invited to the Green Room of the NBA draft… waiting to hear our name called by the commissioner. Getting to the NBA will most likely always rest as the number one goal for those striving to play professionally, but I personally feel we’re all starting to see an increased recognition of other opportunities at that particular level. NBA G-League, overseas, and Semi-Pro play could all serve as potential options for players. While these alternatives have been in the picture for quite some time, many still may not know what specific type of experience the professional life brings. Take a minute to chat with Ricardo Marsh; he has a lot of answers.
Having finished his professional playing days for a couple of years ago, Marsh currently holds his own training organization, titled “Ricardo Marsh Training.” Training sessions, which can incorporate both basketball and strength/conditioning focuses, mainly take place in Midlothian, VA daily. In addition to providing gym work, the organization also hosts summer and exposure camps around the regions of Virginia and North Carolina, as well as holiday tournaments for high school teams. When coming across him in-person, it takes no time to discern Marsh’s passion for his profession.
“I actually started this type of training back during my playing days when I competed overseas,” Marsh explained. “I used to work out every day and came across kids in nearby neighborhoods who asked if they could jump in. Of course, I would never say no to that. I just think back to my days growing up; we never had trainers or anything like that back then. Once I really saw that this started to help the kids and their parents, I knew right then and there that I wanted to move forward with this whole thing.”
With the inclusion of close friend and former college teammate, Rasheed Wright, Marsh knew each other could combine to teach a wealth of basketball knowledge. Wright played professionally in France for a total of thirteen seasons. For the last seven years, since the training first emerged, the duo has seen a myriad of talent come through Midlothian to get in some court work.
“We’ve been blessed to work with some great guys. Not just as players, but also people. Isaiah Todd, Armando Bacot, Jr., Curt Jones, David McCormack, and Melvin Johnson are all some names who stand out.”
Marsh most likely can look at the middle/high school players now and reflect on his own youthful days working to become a better player. Now, as a mentor, he can relate to the players in an easy manner due to the life experiences he’s learned at each stage of his career. That orange ball sure has brought him a long way.
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Standing at 6’8,” height has never proved as an issue for Marsh, dating back to his childhood. Nonetheless, surrounding peers did not forcefully push him to get involved with the game even though he stood taller than most kids.
“Yeah, I started playing basketball when I was eight. It actually came after I had already played soccer, football, and baseball, all around a year or so earlier. I was just playing sports by the season back then. I wasn’t the kid who had the dream of making it to the NBA; I don’t even know if I cared about the NBA back then, honestly. That’s what makes it easy to connect with every kid. The kid who has trouble believing in himself. The kid who believes in himself too much. Oh, and the kid who lives regularly but starts to grow and realize his talents.”
If Marsh had to fall under a certain category of ‘those kids,’ it would likely pertain to the one who ‘grows and realizes.’
“I tell kids this all the time: I played JV in high school for two years. Wasn’t even the best player on my team when I first arrived to high school.”
We obviously idolize professionals and the high level they perform at but that shouldn’t ever lead us to forget how they’ve had to put in the same (or more) amount of work compared to that of any hooper trying to reach the highest level.
“My habits carried me the most. Even though I wasn’t a standout when I first got into more competitive ball, those habits of work ethic, discipline, and respect for the game combined with my height (6’5” in early high school years) separated me a little bit from the pack. It wasn’t just purely basketball talent. I probably emphasize that the most to my clients now: the habits you build from team sports can carry over to other facets of life. That’s the beautiful thing of it all and what I enjoy most, personally.”
Holding values of good habits would prove more than beneficial, as Marsh went on to have an outstanding career for Orange High School (Hillsborough, NC). After averaging a double double for his senior year, he collected all-conference, all-state, and honorable mention All-American honors. Deciding on Old Dominion University for his college ball, Marsh stepped in to contribute right away during his first year on the Norfolk, VA campus. His stellar career saw him make his way to the all-time record books; placing 20th on All-Time Scoring (1,350 points) and 15th for All-Time Rebounding (690 boards). It wasn’t much longer until he turned his attention to overseas hoops; the forward enjoyed a 13-year career, which included play in the countries of Turkey, Japan, Israel, Latvia, Ukraine, Serbia and Dubai. In 2007, he led the Israeli Basketball Premier League in scoring. A year later, he was named an all-star while competing for the Turkish Basketball Super League.
“Turkey was the first country I played in, back in 2003. I didn’t know much about overseas basketball at first but it really opened my eyes when I came across some other really good college players over there. Like, top players from programs such as Duke. EVERYBODY was good over there, whether you came from another country or played locally. The places with fewer Americans usually have the better local players. For example, in Spain, you can only have about two Americans on a team; they’re able to do that because the Spanish players are so good. Italy, Turkey, Serbia, and Russia all operate in that same way pretty much.”
Having spent over a decade in playing all around the globe, Marsh can mull over the different sights his journey has brought him since its first beginning.
“I spent a lot of time in Turkey, about 5.5 years total, so I learned how to speak Turkish. Because of that, it was one of the more comfortable places I played. Tokyo and Israel were two of the countries that I enjoyed living in the most. There actually wasn’t a language barrier in Israel; a lot of slang used over there, pretty much how we hold conversations as Americans. It’s beautiful in Israel.”
After a couple of years into his overseas career, Marsh heard from a different league: the biggest one.
“The stint I had in the NBA was with the Atlanta Hawks. I had worked out with Charlotte and Washington but Atlanta came calling to show interest in having me on the roster. When I departed from there, the organization still actually wanted me to head into the D-League (as it was referred to back then). But, I realized some things after taking time to think stuff through. If I would’ve went to the D-League right after college, that would’ve been a different scenario. But, I had my shot at the NBA after playing overseas for five years, where I already established a reputation. So, I just decided to head back to Serbia after being released from the Hawks.”
With stints at the NCAA Division I, overseas, and NBA levels, one can expect an honest insight from Marsh at how each compares and/or contrasts.
“College ball probably compares the closest to overseas just because of the focus on defense. Overseas guys play really physical. There’s more true big men and defenses play smart to limit your dribbles. Some of the bad habits that you might pick up from the NBA can lead to you struggling overseas. I’ve seen a lot guys go through that. The preseason grind can be a little tough for overseas ball but I honestly don’t think anything is harder than the college preseason. In-season practices don’t differ too much but we would actually play soccer while overseas frequently, at least once a week, for some conditioning.”
Adjusting to life far away from home can definitely have its challenges but came with reward for Marsh, as it shed some new light.
“It’s an experience. Typically, the experience resulted in me finding more appreciation to live here in the United States. I wouldn’t say that I went to any place and found myself saying ‘I want to stay here forever.’ Tokyo and Israel were two places I could see myself living for several years. But there’s nowhere else like home. I went through some subpar places as well. But man, in all, it’s humbling. You adapt to certain ways of living that go into your character and help build you through adversity. Being overseas, going through ups and downs both on and off the court, it just taught me the importance of being myself all the time. Oh, and how to trust your instinct. If something doesn’t feel right, get out of there.”
Some certain aspects of his career across the water still linger in Marsh’s mind often.
“I used to always just like the challenge of playing in different countries. Proving myself to my new teammates/coaches and trying to exceed expectations of what they may think about you based on film or whatever else. I like culture so it was always cool to try out new things, especially new foods. So, yeah, I miss playing sometimes. I honestly don’t miss being gone that long though. At the time, it was just a way of life. But now, older with a family and watching my kids grow, you can’t really replace it. It’ll always rest in my heart though.”
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For those looking to make their own way down the professional pathway, Marsh has three key pieces of advice:
- Set your boundaries for what you want and don’t want as a pro. There’s many levels. Not setting those boundaries can leave you finding yourself all over the place in situations filled with regret.
- Stay true to yourself and your family!
- Basketball doesn’t last forever. Start figuring out what you might want to do before retiring.
In regards to his own training platform, the future looks bright with some future goals in its expansion.
“Trying to hopefully carry our training into a bigger gym with more courts. Our objective is help these kids reach their highest goals, most of which includes going to college and turning pro. We work with college and professional players along with the young ones too so it’d be good to get even more old heads in here to act as role models. I’d like to see some of our members go into the field of coaching; a lot of them could do well at it, without question. But it’s all fun, man. Putting everything in motion with what we’ve learned from the past. I just want everything and everyone to continue to grow.”
“Having the label of a professional basketball player on the resume makes some of these kids look at me and Rasheed (Wright) in a certain way. But I just tell them, at the end of the day, we’re the same in how we all play ball. We may differ in experience and background but we all play the same game. Everybody has to work for what they want in the same way.”
Love the game and it will love you back! I hope this helps give players an idea of how the professional basketball journey operates. Put in the work, be smart, and stay focused.