Guerro Hoops in Paris

It was a June to remember for Alamo Navajo rising senior Zephaniah Guerro.

Guerro got to spend time in Paris representing the United States in the Paris World Games, a youth basketball tournament. The tournament includes some 60,000 players from more than 100 countries.

“I enjoyed it a lot,” said Guerro, who is known in basketball circles as Z-Man. “The competition there is very good. Every team is competitive.”

It certainly was quite a bit different than his days playing for the Cougars.

“We played against foreign teams so when they talk on offense or defense, we didn’t know what they’re saying,” Guerro said.

Guerro, who also plays club basketball on the Puma national circuit, said he was recruited for the team, whose players came from across the country.

“The thing that was unique about our team is we did not know each other, we had to build chemistry all in three days,” Guerro said. “All the other teams had been playing together since they were young.”

But chemistry didn’t seem to be a problem.

“I didn’t know anybody on the team until we met at JFK Airport in New York,” he said. “But we clicked and we bonded right away. We were laughing and joking right away. I thought it was going to be hard, but we got along instantly.”

What’s more, it turned out he knew three of his teammates from playing against them in club ball.

And when it was all said done, his team won its first five games, all three of pool play against teams from Germany, France and Switzerland, then beating last year’s gold medalists from Switzerland in the quarterfinals and a team from Amsterdam in the semifinals before losing in the championship game to a Paris team.

“I am coming back to the United States to my reservation, Alamo Navajo with a Silver Medal,” he posted on his Facebook page. “I’ll forever be grateful and humble for this moment.”

At 6-foot, 2-inches and 220 pounds, Guerro proved to be the U.S. player with the best build to play inside, which left him matched up against a 6-11 post player in the finale.

“It was a tough game, a tough team,” Guerro said. “I handled myself pretty well, but he was a pretty good player.”

Of course, it wasn’t all hoops as the group got to tour Paris, going to the top of the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre – including Leonardo da Vinci’s “Mona Lisa” – Versailles Palace and the Arc de Triomphe.

But his favorite memory?

“Laughing with my teammates and bonding with them,” he said. “After the first day of the tournament when we had a team dinner, we were laughing and joking and that got us going for the next day. And bringing home the silver medal.”

For Guerro, being a normal teenager, food was pretty high on the list, as well.

“The food was amazing,” he said. “Every meal we had croissants or baguettes. The French food over there does not bloat you. In America, you get all tired and drowsy when you eat food, but in France, you’re all energetic and ready to go. And the pastries, can’t say enough about them. Fresh fruit, fresh cheese, everything there is fresh.”

Guerro raised funds locally to help make the trip happen and said it would not have been possible without his community’s support.

“Thank you everyone (who) has made my trip to Paris a possibility,” he wrote on Facebook. “Thank you to those who generously donated to me. Thank you to those who reached out in prayer. And thank you to those who uplifted me and spoke encouraging words to me. Playing basketball internationally on a worldwide scale was an experience of a lifetime! I have gained many new friendships and memories in my time here in Paris, France.”

And hopefully Guerro’s story will encourage others to reach out of their comfort zone, he said

“My biggest hope is that I am an inspiration to the little Rez kids back home, do good in school, respect your parents and grandparents, and work hard every day to be a better person,” he wrote. “Chase down every single opportunity with good intentions and enthusiasm.”