Having been at Flamengo for 11 years, Danielzinho celebrates his professional experience
A product of Flamengo's youth academy, the under-22 point guard talks about his career in Flamengo's first team and plans for his future at the club.
By Communication - Official Club Website - in
A story built on a red-and-black past, a victorious present, and a promising future. Daniel Lorio, known as Danielzinho, has had Flamengo in his life since childhood. The young FlaBasquete point guard will complete 11 years with the club in 2015, having played other sports at the Gávea headquarters before discovering his passion for the orange ball.
"I did gymnastics, futsal, and futsal. My brother played basketball and invited me to a training session. I went out of curiosity, had my first training session, and loved it," says Danielzinho, who found his true identity in sports, earning calls to state and national youth teams. "I ended up playing for the Rio de Janeiro national team and the Brazilian U-15 team. I excelled and worked hard to continue," he says. Danielzinho was trained at Flamengo and is one of the promising players of Orgulho da Nação. You can participate in the development of Flamengo athletes by becoming a Guardian Angel. Without spending a penny, you can deduct up to 6% of your income tax and invest in Olympic sports.
Daniel is part of the FlaBasquete squad that won the Carioca, the NBB, the Liga de las Américas, and the World Cup, and he's thrilled to have been part of the club's most successful season in history. "Being part of the club's history is unbelievable. It was my goal from the start. I didn't get much court time, but I felt important. (José) Neto made a point of telling me how important I was to the team. It was the best year of my life in the sport," he says. The point guard owes his success to the coaches who took him to the professional team, especially three of them, whom he can still see at the Hélio Maurício gymnasium in the clubhouse. "When I started, Igor Meletti was my coach. He still works with the club's youth academy. He was about 12 years old at the time. Besides him, Neto and (Paulo) Chupeta helped me a lot and still do. I make a point of talking to them all the time. They're experienced, winners, and I want to hear everything they have to say and improve."
According to coach José Neto, young players undergo specific training to transition from the youth team to the professional ranks. "Our proposal is to incorporate the work we're doing at the youth level into the adult team. It's a continuous effort. Instead of working with 12 or 13 players, we're working with 15 or 16. We train with more players, half of whom are adults and half from the youth team. Daniel comes from this approach. He's now more involved, playing with us, traveling with us. We try to instill the same game concepts and philosophy in both teams," explained the red-and-black manager.
Among the youngest members of the first team, Danielzinho boasts a wealth of important titles in the youth ranks. He was a two-time Brazilian U-22 champion, a Rio de Janeiro youth and youth champion, and a champion of the interior games. And he wants more. "I try to set short-, medium-, and long-term goals for myself. My dream is to be able to help the team more, get on the court more, and actually play. I want to train hard and do well in the U-22s. I will always strive to do my best for Flamengo."
Danielzinho and the entire Flamengo team have another historic match ahead. The Red-Blacks face the Orlando Magic at HSBC Arena for the Global Games Rio. The first batch of tickets is sold out. Stay tuned for when sales resume.
"I did gymnastics, futsal, and futsal. My brother played basketball and invited me to a training session. I went out of curiosity, had my first training session, and loved it," says Danielzinho, who found his true identity in sports, earning calls to state and national youth teams. "I ended up playing for the Rio de Janeiro national team and the Brazilian U-15 team. I excelled and worked hard to continue," he says. Danielzinho was trained at Flamengo and is one of the promising players of Orgulho da Nação. You can participate in the development of Flamengo athletes by becoming a Guardian Angel. Without spending a penny, you can deduct up to 6% of your income tax and invest in Olympic sports.
Daniel is part of the FlaBasquete squad that won the Carioca, the NBB, the Liga de las Américas, and the World Cup, and he's thrilled to have been part of the club's most successful season in history. "Being part of the club's history is unbelievable. It was my goal from the start. I didn't get much court time, but I felt important. (José) Neto made a point of telling me how important I was to the team. It was the best year of my life in the sport," he says. The point guard owes his success to the coaches who took him to the professional team, especially three of them, whom he can still see at the Hélio Maurício gymnasium in the clubhouse. "When I started, Igor Meletti was my coach. He still works with the club's youth academy. He was about 12 years old at the time. Besides him, Neto and (Paulo) Chupeta helped me a lot and still do. I make a point of talking to them all the time. They're experienced, winners, and I want to hear everything they have to say and improve."
According to coach José Neto, young players undergo specific training to transition from the youth team to the professional ranks. "Our proposal is to incorporate the work we're doing at the youth level into the adult team. It's a continuous effort. Instead of working with 12 or 13 players, we're working with 15 or 16. We train with more players, half of whom are adults and half from the youth team. Daniel comes from this approach. He's now more involved, playing with us, traveling with us. We try to instill the same game concepts and philosophy in both teams," explained the red-and-black manager.
Among the youngest members of the first team, Danielzinho boasts a wealth of important titles in the youth ranks. He was a two-time Brazilian U-22 champion, a Rio de Janeiro youth and youth champion, and a champion of the interior games. And he wants more. "I try to set short-, medium-, and long-term goals for myself. My dream is to be able to help the team more, get on the court more, and actually play. I want to train hard and do well in the U-22s. I will always strive to do my best for Flamengo."
Danielzinho and the entire Flamengo team have another historic match ahead. The Red-Blacks face the Orlando Magic at HSBC Arena for the Global Games Rio. The first batch of tickets is sold out. Stay tuned for when sales resume.