Father and son duo line out for Mayo Meteors basketball team

A BASKETBALL team is small enough. Five players on the court. And yet, when the Mayo Meteors lined up the weekend before last, there was two Freeemans on the squad list. Paul a 42 year old former Irish international, and his son Kevin who is turning 17 this week.

“It was different,” admitted Paul: “As soon as Kevin came on, I was looking to get him the ball to shoot. I’m used to coaching him, so playing alongside him was a big change. I’ve coached all his teams since he started.”

Giving Kevin the ball certainly paid off. He likes to shoot and knows how to. After the match, the junior joked about a media post stating father and son combined scored 31 points. Kevin quipped that people would think his dad Paul scored most of them. 

“In reality, he had one more point than me. Not a bad start for his first game,” said the proud father, explaining their flourishing partnership on the court: “I naturally play closer to the basket, while his strength is outside shooting. When I draw defenders inside, it often leaves him open. In that game, he scored three three-pointers and finished with 16 points, while I had 15 and several assists to him. Our skills complement each other well.”

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The match in the third tier Basketball Ireland Development League was lost to Clare Cascaders 73-78. But that wasn't the biggest news as it doesn't happen very often that father and son end up on the same team, especially on a higher level.

Talking to Paul, it's quickly obvious that the apple didn't fall far from the tree. Kevin jumped on the basketball train early, at U-10 level, and has been coached a lot by his dad Paul since.

Interestingly, their respective playing styles reflects the times they grew up in. When Paul was a young teenager, basketball, especially looking across the Atlantic, to the NBA, was still predominantly physical, huge tussles under the rim were the rather the norm. ,

But this began to shift in the late 2000s during a time when teams started to focus more on three-point shooting. Paul's son Kevin admired the famous Stephen Curry from the Golden State Warriors at a very young age and the baby faced assassin has clearly inspired his approach to basketball. 

But it's good to have dad there on the court, with a different perspective, to push the young gun to a different level: “I still emphasise rebounding, physicality, and taking high-percentage shots.

He needs to balance his outside shooting with driving to the basket. In his first game, he did that well: three threes, three layups, and a free throw.”

Paul acknowledges, that Kevin has improved steadily through hard work, and that as he has grown. He says his skills have become more effective at senior level. He’s now about 6’6 barefoot, 6’8 in shoes, with nearly a seven-foot wingspan, and he shoots very well from outside. 

Those attributes make it easier to step up. Father and son might even give the video game NBA 2K a go sometimes. Paul concedes: “He probably has a slight edge over me now, which is good. But on the real court, I’m still competitive.”

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