A Cardozo basketball reunion

For July 4th weekend, Cardozo's longtime basketball Coach Ron Naclerio opted to leave the burgers and hot dogs home and chose to serve up basketballs to his friends on a sunny Saturday afternoon at the Tall Oak Playground behind P.S. 46 in Oakland Gardens.
Naclerio delved into his seemingly endless collection of numbers on his cell phone and called current players, former players - some of whom he hadn't seen in years - and several friends of the program.
The Cardozo coach estimated that 108 of his former players and 42 he coached against attended the daylong pickup games. St. John's University stars Daryll Hill and Ryan Williams - part of the school's lone city championship in 1999 - were there. Recent stars Skyler Khaleel, Vic Morris, Drew Gladstone, Dwayne Johnson and Vic Morris, all of whom went to the title game and lost three years ago, showed up. Even older stars such as Hal Cohen and Roheen Oats, who won a pair of Division II national championships with Cal State Bakersfield, and Dwayne Woodward, the former Boston College star now playing professionally overseas joined in the games.
&#8220It just brought a tear to my eyes,” said Naclerio, decked out in a Cardozo 1999 city championship shirt.
One former adversary took the opportunity to exhibit his newly refined game. Vernon Teel averaged over 30 points and 10 rebounds as a senior for Flushing. Teel's raw talent remains unquestioned.
The 6-foot-4 shooting guard who attended Laurinburg Prep in North Carolina this past year, battled down low and grabbed three consecutive rebounds on one possession on Saturday, bumping bodies with older, heavier big men. Teel listed Manhattan, U.S.C. and Oklahoma as possible destinations but gave all the credit to the coaches and teachers at his prep school for improving his athletic skills and mental outlook.
He mentioned a famous speech by an African-American he needed to memorize in order to graduate. His oration, as the assignment was called, was William Lloyd Garrison's &#8220The Death of John Brown.” The speech from 1859 focuses on overcoming mental slavery.
Naclerio estimated 260 people in all were on hand, including parents of former and current players, four Cardozo teachers, and even the man he took over for - Al Matican. Naclerio started up the reunion last year and plans to make the gathering an annual event. &#8220I already got phone calls from 22 players who couldn't make it this year but will be there next year,” he said. &#8220I expect 300-400 people next year.”