Tom Di Maria has traveled a staggering 4,520 miles to play basketball in a new country. For many, this might seem crazy. For Di Maria, the move allows him to continue to grow playing the game he loves.
“I want to try to be the leader of the team because I am the point guard,” he said.
Di Maria is a 19-year-old student-athlete at Santa Fe College and a native of Brussels, Belgium. He now lives and plays basketball in Gainesville.
Despite the distance, he has worked to adjust to his life in a new country and is looking to make an impact on his team. With aspirations of playing at the next level, the move to Gainesville has helped Di Maria get one step closer to that goal.
Di Maria said he got into basketball by playing with his cousins growing up. He said that he would typically play one-on-one against his older cousin and that is where he learned many of the elements he uses in his game today. Although Di Maria and his family were always involved in basketball, he explained that it was not always a very popular sport in Belgium when he was younger.
“I think a few years ago, not really, but now it is becoming more and more famous,” he said.
As Di Maria got older, he began playing for the Belgium Basketball National Team and gained experience in international competition. Di Maria said he still enjoys playing in European competitions and intends to continue playing in tournaments during the off-season.
“I have the under-20 European championship this summer,” he said. “I like to play European style.”
Playing in one of the European championship tournaments was a stepping stone in Di Maria’s development before Santa Fe College. Roughly two years ago, Di Maria competed in his first European championship. Over this past summer, his team finished fourth in the under-20 competition.
Di Maria’s path to Santa Fe College started when he traveled to North Carolina with a group of Belgium basketball players and was noticed at a Combine Academy scrimmage.
Santa Fe Head Coach Chris Mowrey explained that one of his former assistant coaches noticed Di Maria at this event and originally put him on his radar. Mowrey said he was impressed with what he saw in Di Maria’s game film and decided to offer him a scholarship to come play for him in Gainesville.
“He knows how to run a team,” he said. “He’s got good size at the point guard position and really improved his shooting.”
One person who hasn’t missed a beat in keeping up with Di Maria’s basketball progress, despite the distance, is his mother, Stephanie Janssens. Janssens is Di Maria’s self-proclaimed biggest fan and still keeps tabs on all his games.
“I was at every practice with him and every game,” she said speaking about Di Maria growing up. “I want him to do his best every day, and I know his goal is to play professionally.”
Janssens has attended three Santa Fe games in person so far and said that she loves to watch her son play. When she is back at home, she still watches every game, even with the six-hour time difference.
“I follow the games [using] a link to watch every game, even if it’s 1 a.m.,” she said.
It is also tradition for Janssens and Di Maria to speak with each other over the phone about his performance after his games. It was clear that the two shared a special bond, and Di Maria said the support he receives from back home helps him continue to focus on his game.
One of the biggest challenges he has faced in his adjustment to living in a foreign country has been the language barrier. Di Maria’s roommate and teammate, guard Kevin Pazmino, 19, from Weston, Florida, was a witness to his improvement in communication.
“I would say the first challenge was English,” he said. “As he started hanging out with the team… his English developed over time.”
As he spent more time around the team, Di Maria started to pick up on different slang and social cues from them, Pazmino said. He added that Di Maria was “almost fluent” in his English at this point and understands many aspects of the language.
Santa Fe Saints forward Macius Trowe, 20, also played a role in helping Di Maria improve his English upon arriving in 2022. Trowe is a German native but moved to New York when he was 16 years old and eventually to Florida. Trowe said he related to Di Maria’s early struggles with the language barrier and offered his help.
“I remember I used to teach him all the words, kind of, you know what to say, when to say something,” he said. “I grew up in Germany too, but I’ve lived here a long time now.”
Asked about being homesick for Belgium, Di Maria said he sometimes misses his family. And then there are the French fries – a treasured food in Belgium that seemingly are sold on every corner.
“So bad. Are you crazy?” said Di Maria, who laughed when asked how American fries stack up. “Belgium French fries you have to try once in your life.”
Di Maria’s transition – from family and fries – has been made easier thanks to the support from his teammates.
All three players shared the opinion that this year’s team has gotten off to a very strong start in connecting off the court and being around each other. These close bonds have helped several players, including Di Maria, feel more comfortable.
“I feel like we’ve done a lot more activities or team bonding type of things,” Pazmino said. “I really think it’s going to be good this year and translate on the court.”
He also mentioned how he has enjoyed living with Di Maria for the past year and it has brought the two very close. Due to Di Maria not having a car in Gainesville, Pazmino said he is the one who typically drives him to and from practice, games and most other activities they do together.
“Living with Tom is really fun,” he said. “We play 2K, NBA, PS4, all that stuff.”
Di Maria said he is very fond of video games and loves to play them when he is not on the court. He said that his favorite to play is the popular NBA 2K video game franchise that releases a new game every year.
“2K24, that’s my game,” he said.
Di Maria said that his favorite part of living in Gainesville was that he could fully focus on basketball while getting his education. He is hoping to play at the next level, whether it be at a Division I college in the United States or professionally in Europe. He credits the time he can put in at Santa Fe with helping him get closer to his goal.
Being a long way from home, Di Maria has been able to find another home at Santa Fe College. With the support of those around him and the close bonds he has created with his teammates, Di Maria has adjusted to his move and is focused on achieving his goals for his future.
“We’re teammates, but you create a bond with him you kind of become a brother with him,” Pazmino said.