Aug 4, 2015 Moving away from the football scene, in the build up to the first National Basketball Association (NBA) game on the African continent, several international professional basketball players hosted a workshop for a group of South African youngsters.
The workshop, held at the American school in Johannesburg as part of the Basketball without Borders (BWB) programme. It was organized by the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) and the NBA, as part of a global outreach programme.
While speaking about the prospects of the game in the continent, the NBA Vice-President for Africa Amadou Gallo said:
“We could have the whole team made of Africans play against the rest of the world, I think it speaks of the tremendous talent that the continent has, and I’m excited for the opportunity to continue to work towards really making the game really accessible to the millions of young boys and girls across the continent.”
Although football is the nation’s number one sport, the South African sports minister, Fikile Mbalula, also expressed hope that events like this can inspire young South Africans.
“We are giving young people a choice that, basketball for them is not just playing, it’s a lifestyle issue and that is where they meet their friends, they actually mix up with the popular culture and, over and above that, enjoy the game of basketball, and in this instance we are able to really really give young people options“