Ryan Abbott, Year 12, Waverley College
From Year 12 Student, Ryan Abbott
I got into Basketball when I was 8 years old, but only played in my first representative season in Year 7 (2015) when I was approached by an u14’s Division 2 coach for Sydney Comets. That’s when I started taking Basketball more seriously and made my first Division 1 representative team for Comets in Year 9 (2017). I was cut from the NSW State team in both 2017 and 2018, and only made my first NSW team last year in 2019. From there, I was fortunate enough to make the Australian Under 17’s team last year, where we won the gold medal against New Zealand at the Oceania Championships in New Caledonia.
Playing at Waverley College has been very special to me ever since I started in Year 5. At the Junior School, I played for the Bs in Year 5 and As in Year 6, where we went undefeated. In the Senior School, I played for the 7As, 8As and 1sts from there. Playing for Waverley made me so much more passionate about Basketball, every Saturday putting on the blue and gold jersey and making some of the best memories of my time at the college. The USA Basketball tour was also a fantastic experience – being able to experience life overseas, playing quality Basketball and creating friendships with students from other years that you wouldn’t normally see.
After graduating, I plan on studying and playing Basketball overseas in the USA. I hope to earn a scholarship to a Division 1 school and receive an education there. I haven’t decided where I’m going to go yet, but I want to choose the best school for me for both Basketball and academics. My biggest aspiration is to play professionally after that, preferably in the NBL here in Australia. That’s the ultimate goal!
Ryan Abbott, Year 12, Waverley College
