Most of the NBA players that are in Johannesburg, South Africa for the league’s Basketball Without Borders (BWB) Africa development camp have had a chance to spend some time with the campers and are impressed with the potential they have witnessed.
The camp was officially launched on Wednesday when the campers had a chance to have their first interactions with the NBA players, coaches, legends and other technical staff and continued with their training Thursday.
Team Africa co-captain Thabo Sefolosha, whose father hails from South Africa, who missed the first Africa Game in 2015 but was in the country for the start of last year’s camp said he is excited about the days leading up to the Africa Game.
He said that there is a great level of talent at the camp and the young players can only get better with more practice and as the game grows on the continent, the skills levels will be remarkable.
“I am humbled to be selected as the captain of Team Africa this Saturday. It’s a great feeling to be here with these players that I will be playing alongside and against. It will be exciting to play against a player like Dirk (Nowitzki) because he is literally a legend and it’s great that he decided to come over for the game. I am looking forward to being on the court with him,” he said.
Sefolosha is confident that as the sport continues to grow on the continent, the number of African-born players in the NBA league will increase too.
Team World center Andre Drummond of the Detroit Pistons, echoed Sefolosha’s sentiments and said that he had been intrigued by the skills level and athleticism of the BWB campers and he had already spotted some youngsters that had potential to take the game to the “next level”.
“It’s great to be here and to have the opportunity to share my experience and insights with these campers and give them some different tips to make them better players. Being part of this experience is an honour,” he said.
Drummond added that Luc Mbah a Moute, Gorgui Dieng and Jeoel Embiid, BWB Africa alumni, are prime examples that programs such as BWB do actually work.
“When campers came in and pay attention to the tips we give them as well as what the coaching staff tell them, they are able to achieve more not only on the court but in life in general,” he commented.
Sefolosha and Drummond will come up against each other this Saturday during the NBA Africa Game which will be broadcast live on Kwesé’s television and digital platforms as well as through its affiliate partner stations in more than 40 countries.
By Kaunda Chama