BOCA RATON – Giancarlo Rosado has been dreaming of this moment for at least the past several months.
Starting tonight (Nov. 25; 7 p.m. tip-off), he will suit up for the FAU Owls men’s college basketball program and hope he can help lead them to new heights. The forward’s journey will begin at South Alabama in the season opener for both teams.
“You can expect a player that plays hard and does what ever his coaches and teammates need him to do,” the 6-foot-8, 239-pound forward said. “My ultimate goal at the college level is to play so good that I create a pave way to play professional basketball.”
Since Rosado transitioned from high school at Palm Beach Lakes to college at FAU the past summer, he has been laser focused on getting himself right for the next level.
“I’ve been here for the whole summer putting in work and trying to get better everyday,” Rosado said of his approach to planning for FAU’s 2020-2021 men’s basketball season.
Looking back, Rosado had a plethora of college basketball options to choose from. At the end of the day, the Palm Beach Lakes 2020 alum felt quite comfortable about an FBS program that is close to home.
“Well the system fits my game nicely,” Rosado said. “The coaching staff had a vision for me to get better and develop my game to become the best player I can be. Also, the schooling was hard to pass up on.”
One thing that Rosado values a great deal is the concept of building relationships. It is something that helped him excel on the high school level.
“On and off the court, that’s your brother,” Rosado said. “That’s how I look at it every time we put on these jerseys. We’re going to war with each other, and that mindset carries to off the court.”
Rosado led Palm Beach Lakes last season to a 12-11 final record, which ended in the 7A-Region 3 quarterfinals against eventual 7A state semifinalist Forest Hill. He went on to average 26.7 points per game and nine rebounds per game.
Rosado won a slew of honors to close out his high school basketball career, including the Palm Beach Post All-First Team, the Sun-Sentinel Player of the Year, PBC Hoops Player of the Year, 7A Mr. Basketball runner-up, and 7A First Team All-State.
“Personally I had one of the best seasons of basketball in my whole career,” Rosado said about last year’s campaign. “I was just able to put everything together and have a great season. As a team, we had a good season. No one really expected us to make it that far, and we played a great schedule. So overall, I feel it was good.”
However, what was not so good is the effect that the COVID-19 pandemic had on how Rosado’s high school experience ended. There was no traditional graduation ceremony, no high school prom, no grad bash, and no senior trip.
“You know obviously it wasn’t a good way to end high school,” Rosado said. “But at the end of the day, the school system and the country had to take the necessary precautions. So in the big picture, everything happens for a reason. I’m just happy it didn’t affect basketball season.”
Now as Rosado has worked to get acclimated to college life and move on from the high school way of life, there is one thing that stands out to him above all else.
“Process,” Rosado said. “That’s the only word I can use. I just got better every offseason, trusting in my coaches and trainers. That’s what made my high school basketball experience great, and that’s what will make my college basketball experience great as well.”
PHOTO CREDITS: FAU Men’s Basketball and Morgan Waters
