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DESPITE
all the politics in Philippine basketball, there are a
lot of things to watch out for particularly when it
comes to the development of new basketball players for
the future.
The
first important step was made with the creation of the
National Basketball Training Center (NBTC), which
started in February and ended just this May. It was
geared toward raising the standards of Philippine
basketball.
The NBTC,
which is under the Basketball Association of the
Philippines-Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP),
picked 40 boys and 40 girls from a cast of 200 players
who tried out in December to undergo training for close
to four months.
It will
be a summer well-spent as these players, already armed
with the basic basketball skills needed, would still be
honed in their individual skills and team concepts. The
training is a valuable addition to the usual training
these players usually have with their mother teams in
the school leagues.
And they
were in for a treat as top coaches lent time and effort
to teach them what is needed to become great basketball
players.
Myself,
as NBTC program director, and NBTC-NCR Territory head
Alex Compton enlisted the help of Joey Guanio, Vic
Ycasiano, Dennis Madrid, Ralph Rivera, Joel Co, Henry
Subido and Daniel Bucher to train the boys.
International Basketball Academy president Xavier Nunag,
Mon Jose, Dominic Uy, Kim Gandarosa, Jod Penson and
Vicmel Epres along with trainee coaches Mariana Lopa and
Treena Limgenco were also there to help the girls.
Being a
part of the NBTC also allowed some select boys, already
some of the top high-school players in the land, to join
the Nike Elite Basketball Camp in March at the Brent
International School in Mamplasan, Laguna.
The six
days at the camp subjected the chosen students to
further training and lectures from distinguished
coaches, who also imparted valuable lessons on and off
the court.
It was
all camps and lectures for the NBTC players as summer
tournaments were there for the taking.
NBTC-NCR
invited outstanding players from other NBTC satellites
like Cebu and Davao to play for the NBTC team in the
Nike Summer League. Prior to the participation, these
players were prepared via tune-up games with STI
College, Emilio Aguinaldo College and University of the
Philippines for the boys and Miriam and Faith Academy
for the girls.
The
results were varied but the experience gained were even
more valuable. To note, the team composed of 14 to
15-year-olds compiled a 3-1 record in the Nike Summer
League, while the girls took the UA&P Dragon’s Cup 2008.
Apart
from the experience, it was unmistakable that these
players have bonded with each other, and this helped the
team as a whole.
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