New Bedford Guide Your Guide to New Bedford and South Coast, MA
Meet Brian Rudolph, 27-year-old teacher’s assistant, basketball player, and coach.
Spending his whole life in New Bedford, Brian has always found an attraction to basketball, one that even landed him a position to play for Loyola University Maryland. After graduating with his Bachelors degree in Advertising and Public Relation, he came back to New Bedford, where he started working for the public school system and coaching Junior Varsity Basketball for NBHS.
During the day he works with children who have disabilities, assisting them in staying focused during class and coaching them through the triggers they may face throughout their day. At night he helps lead the JV basketball team to face against the same teams he did during his time at New Bedford High. When he was younger he felt that his calling was to just play basketball, but as he has grown older and matured he knows that he is meant to coach. He loves being able to teach his players life lessons through coaching and show them that there are opportunities for them beyond what is being offered to them in the city.
He also spends his summers playing for the Cape Verdean National Basketball team, where he has played against professional basketball players from across the world for the past four season. Their hard work has even led them to the AfroBasket, which is Africa’s qualifying tournament for the Olympics. Although he led the team in scoring throughout the season, an injury kept Brian and the team from taking home the top spot, and a seed in the Summer 2016 Olympics. Despite the loss, he is relieved that he was able to come back and be here for his family and his students.
His hope is to help spearhead a summer basketball league at Monte’s Park, which will allow the neighborhood kids an outlet in the summer, rather than turning to the streets. Growing up he’s seen struggle and success in his immediate family and wants to see not only success in his life but the lives of the students he impacts everyday.
“You can’t cheat the grind. It’s not just about basketball either, whatever kind of work you put into something, is what you will see in the end. You reap what you sow.”
Faces of New Bedford is a project by Colton Simmons. If you are interested in booking a shoot or getting prints from the series email all inquiries to colton@coltonsimmons.com
Follow Colton on Instagram: https://instagram.com/simmonscolton
