Paul Savramis

Paul Savramis Discusses Rising Stars Newest Partnership

South Shore’s popular and hugely successful Open Season basketball program is becoming part of the Rising Stars family. Rising Stars founder Paul Savramis opens up about Open Season and similar grassroots programs joining Rising Stars in the following interview excerpt.

Q: Everyone is talking about this new merger and your recent outreach efforts – how did it all come about?

Paul Savramis: We had been looking for new areas in which there was a need for what we offer to expand and the Great South Bay was a perfect target area. Recent gang violence and enrollment of children into gangs at the elementary level had community leaders up in arms and resulted in a invitation for us to expand our team and academic support programs there,
Once we established that, the Open Season teams came on our radar.
We knew Open Season was a program that dealt with very young players and that their coaches and managers had been approached numerous times but they had rejected every offer. Finally, we decided it was worth a shot to see what it was all about and find out why. As it turned out, our mission and values aligned really well with what they (Open Season) were looking for the kids off the court and things just fell into place.

Q: What does this new partnership mean for current Open Season players?

Paul Savramis: It’s going to be very exciting for the Open Season teams as Rising Stars brings years of experience, contacts with other organizations, relationships with professional basketball players, and, most importantly, an educational aspect. Rising Stars has always placed student athletes’ education first and foremost. The best thing they liked is that Rising Stars is not looking to take away or change any of the many positive things they have accomplished.
All we will look to do is add.We will provide scholarships and other academic services.

Paul Savramis Talks About Rising Star Alumni and Former Student Jay Williams

Jay Williams is a two time college all american,national champion and  former professional basketball player ( 2nd overall pick just after Yao Ming in the 2002 NBA Draft.) His career was promising, his future bright. But fate intervened. In this retrospective, Paul Savramis discusses the remarkable spirit of the former Rising Stars student athlete.

Q: How do you know Jay Williams?

Paul Savramis: Jay was one of my most promising student athletes in high school. We grew very close as he matured into a young man. In my opinion not only was Jay unquestionably one of the best point guards in college basketball history but also one of the best rounded students in college . Though he no longer plays, Jay is now among the top basketball analysts at ESPN and Rising Stars’ Goodwill Ambassador.

Q: Why did you encourage Williams to finish college instead of going directly into the NBA?

Paul Savramis: Jay was offered the chance to leave Duke after winning a national championship his sophomore year as the number one pick in the NBA draft. As proud as I and his parents were of his accomplishments on the court, we all agreed that Jay’s basketball skills were rivaled only by his academic prowess. We all agreed that professional  basketball could wait one more year. He proved that was the right decision when he earned a degree from the University in just three years, which for Duke is a highly unusual feat. Today that accomplishment off the court is as regarded as those he has made on it.

Hearts & Hoops | Paul Savramis

Rising Stars student athletes flexed their giving muscles at Rising Stars’ Hearts & Hoops event on December 14, 2015, reports Paul Savramis.

December is a busy month for most, says Savramis. But that didn’t stop more than 100 of Rising Stars’ student athletes and their families from taking the time to give back this holiday season. On December 14, 2015 Rising Stars hosted Hearts & Hoops, a one night event that benefited five different organizations.

According to Rising Stars founder Paul Savramis, the night was filled with laughter, tears, and hope for the New Year as students decorated cards for homebound seniors, wrapped gifts for underprivileged kids, and learned
about the soldiers who’d be spending this Christmas away from their loved ones. Hearts & Hoops volunteers decorated cookies for families with children receiving medical care at the Ronald McDonald House and dropped off over 100 coats for men, women, and children for NY CARES.

Rising Stars Founder Paul Savramis Shares Exciting News

Rising Stars continues to focus on its transition to educational support. Here, founder Paul Savramis answers questions about recent progress and shares some exciting news about the future of the organization.

Q: We understand there is a new tryout process for your students. How has that worked out so far?

Paul Savramis:  You’re right - we changed things up a bit for this year. Our September tryouts resulted in a total of 12 teams. Of the 132 winter league players, I’m happy to report that nearly three dozen are girls. We have the teams practicing and playing once per week. We’ve got some great talent hitting the court, so keep an eye out!

Q: Does Rising Stars offer scholarships to the winter team players?

Paul Savramis: Yes, we do! And, I am pleased to say that 30% of our players are receiving either a full or partial scholarship. Our target for scholarship participation is 20%, so we are way above our goal and are so excited to offer the Rising Stars opportunity to so many kids.