Raul Sosa Gets HIs Hustle On (Part 1)

Raul Sosa is hungry and he's on a mission. The YMCA/PR Playmakers coach has been focused the last several years learning the game from the ground up. He's been winning championships at the YMCA, training young kids and working at PRP as a coach. He was brought in by Todd Washington, the founder AAU powerhouse along with Torrimar/Robinson School Coach, Mike Alverio to identify players. Washington trained and nurtured Sosa for several years and when asked, Washington had this to say about Sosa starting his new company, Royal Strategic Training."When I met Raul he was a junior coach at the YMCA who seemed to be a really bright kid. When you spend the amount of time and capital we did to train and teach a guy like Coach Sosa, you hope and expect him to leave the nest and start his own thing. Part of being a boss is watching guys you took under your wing and seeing them learn to fly. Its a wonderful thing." When asked if he saw Raul as future competition in terms of competing for players Washington responded," Stop it. PRP doesn't have competition. We are in our own lane. We are not in the business of worrying about what everyone else is doing. We are focused on our guys. I get a kick out of these programs and coaches hating on us. How are you going to hate on a program that only cares about helping players get a free education? So to answer your question, ofcourse I don't see Raul as competition. He is like one of the kids in our program. Im routing for him to be successful in everything he does." "Sosa has expanded beyond personal training and moved into the camp business with the 1st annual 1on1 Phenom Basketball Camp, December 21-31 in Toa Baja. The camp is for kids ages 8-13. For more information contact Coach Sosa as 787-649-9447 or visit his site at www.strategictrainingpr.com.


As soon as we get a hold of Coach Sosa we hope to get some more info on his company, the kids he works out and his plans to expand Royal Strategic Training throughout Latin America. He's harder to get on the phone then the President!

Recruiting For Carmelo Betancourt Heating Up

IPRB has learned that that several top prep schools and colleges are interested in Betancourt. A high school basketball recruiting insider confirmed today that, "Everyone has heard about this kid that is the next big thing out of Puerto Rico but only a hand full of schools actually know his name. There is no video on the net, he hasn't done anything on the summer circuit nor has he attended any of the elite shoe company camps, yet everyone is trying to recruit him. Everyone in PR that knows basketball tells me that the kid is as good if not better than Arroyo and Barea were at this age and that is amazing. Those two dudes could ball."

IPRB spoke to Carmelo and his mom today. As soon as he finishes his finals he is going to come and spend some time with us. There is something special about this kid. He clearly has a great support system with his mom and dad in the picture guiding him in the right direction. Its funny, most kids who are as good as he is already know it. When we mentioned to him that some of the biggest programs in the country are interested in him, he seemed not to believe it. As if he really does know the hype that exists or is simply ignoring it. That is so refreshing. That is so unusual. It's MELO!

Remember he is only in the 11th grade. Will he stay in PR and dominate the island next year or will he enroll in one of the top prep programs? Montrose Christian and Montverde Prep two of the top prep programs are very interested. The kid is a major D1 prospect so sky's the limit for him.

We know you've been patient so give a couple more days and we will let you meet the best high school player people in the USA know nothing about.