"It's just fun. It kind of keeps my life a little bit on the lighter side." Wochit

Ryan "NEON" Citro was in his fifth season with the Milwaukee Bucks' Rim Rockers when the 2019-2020 NBA season came to a haltover the coronavirus.

Citro is part of a team of ten whofly off of trampolines and dunk basketballs to hype up the crowdduringhome games and community events.

While the remainder of the season is inlimbo and the gym whereCitro works as a personal trainer is temporarily closed, he'scontinuing to do trick shots from his home in Oak Creek.

"It's just fun," he said. "It kind ofkeeps my life a little bit on the lighter-side when everybody is in a state of panic."

About a year ago, Citro started filming and uploading videos ofhimself doing trick shots online.

He aims to shoot one a day, and usually films them at his gym,Bridgewater Performance in Franklin.

When he thinks of an idea for a trick shot, he adds it to a running list on his phone, and always tries it out at least once.

Milwaukee Bucks' Rim Rocker Ryan "NEON" Citro met his fiance, Mariah Nigl, when she was a Bucks dancer.(Photo: Submitted)

"I always have to turn my camera on because I've tried some stuff just to see what would happen, and it's gone in," he laughed.

Since Citro has been home, he's shotfrom theroof of his house, backwards from his car, and with ashovel while doing yard work.

Behind the camera is Citro's fiance and former Bucks dancer Mariah Nigl.

Not only does she film the videos, she also chases down basketballs wherever they may fly and contributes ideas for shots.

"He loves to do it, and ultimately, I want to see him happy," Nigl said.

An athlete isn't somethingCitrobecame, it was always a part of who he was.

"I first climbed up on the top of the refrigerator by myself when I was 3," he said.

That was the year his mom signed him up for gymnastics, which he did through age 16. His dad got him intoT-ballas soon he was old enough to join.

"Before I could walk, I was throwing stuff around," Citro said.

He went onto play baseball forUpper Iowa University, where he studiedexercise and sports science, and taught classes and personally trained clients at the school's Recreation Center.

He also played basketball until starting high school inCudahy, then was a diver his junior and senior years. He is currentlythe head diving coach for Oak Creek High School.

"Gymnastics gave me a very different skill set than most teenagers have, to where I could go and probably be competitive in any sport I tried," he said."I liked being the guy that stood out."

Ryan "NEON" Citro is a Milwaukee Bucks' Rim Rocker, a personal trainer at Bridgewater Performance, and the head diving coach at Oak Creek High School.(Photo: Hannah Kirby/ Now News Group)

While Citro was visiting home during college, his friend who was aRim Rockerinvited Citroto one of the team'spractices.

"After I hit it one time, it was kind of like, 'I can do this,' " Citro said.

He was invited to be on the team that night.

"I've always been more-so a team guy than an individual guy throughout my life," he said. "From what I saw, how much they brought me into their circle that quick, it just seemed like something I wanted to be a part of."

But with only a year and a half left of school, he decided to headback to Iowa to finish up his degree.

As soon as he returned to the area after graduation, he reached back out to the team.

But, the first night of try-outs didn't go as planned. On his way down from a dunk, he broke his ankle.

He underwent surgery a couple days later three pins were placed in his ankle followed by eight months of physical therapy.

"Then, I got right back to dunking," he said.

If it wasn't for his injury, he wouldn't have gotten his Rim Rockers' nickname, "NEON."

When he started trainingwith the team, he worelong neon compression socks that helped to keep his ankle warm and mobile.Then he added neon shirts to his practice ensemble.

"I like to feel like I brighten people's days," he said.

Hesaid his dad, who passed away in 2013 from lung cancer, inspires him to bring joy to others.

Now, Citro sports neon leggings and sleeves atevery game, and has an exclusiveglow-in-the-dark ball for his trick shot videosthrough a partnership with Maximum Versatile Performance.

Ryan "NEON" Citro usually films basketball trick shot videos at Bridgewater Performance in Franklin, where he's a personal trainer.(Photo: Hannah Kirby/ Now News Group)

"We really never stop moving during games," Citro said.

In the first half, the Rim Rockers throwT-shirts and mini balls into the stands "to get people fired up."

They start warming up at halftimeand typically perform right after the third quarter or during the first time-out of the fourth quarter.

Routines are usually a minute and a half full of individual dunks, two teammates dunking together and the wholeteam passing to each other and dunking, Citro said.

"The possibilities are endless," he said.

Citro has performed atthree of the last four NBA All-Star Game weekends, including this year's in Chicago, and last year'sJr. NBA Global Championship.

"It sounds cliche, but it's one big family," he said. "We hang out outside of it, talk to each other daily. It's the closest thing to brothers."

Citro's videos can be found on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.

Contact Hannah Kirby at hannah.kirby@jrn.com. Follow her on Twitter at @HannahHopeKirby.

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While the NBA season is on hold, this Bucks' Rim Rocker continues shooting trick shots from his Oak Creek home - Milwaukee Journal Sentinel