Junior NBA girls tournment in the offing

NBA Africa Director-Basketball Operations Kita Matungulu is optimistic an NBA Junior girl's tournament will tip off in the near future following a number of clinics and tournaments that will precede it this year.

Addressing a press conference at Serena Hotel in the company of the project manager Grace Kwizera, Matungulu said they would like to create role models in both the women and boys categories and will soon start clinics that will lead to the first Women Junior NBA tournament.

"The NBA league is a strong supporter of gender; and it is our objective to have the females as well and we shall build the females leading to that.  And the best way to do it, is to create a number of coaching clinics and a number of tournaments before we lock the teams to the number we want, starting this year," Matungulu said.

"We want to see the quality of the young people coming out of the program as far better than what we have here; a strong generation to play the U-16 and U-18. Our plan is to have multiple clinics for the coaches to capacitate the coaches during the course of the season so that they can help bring out skilled players,"

Two games that include the Kalinabiri Celtics against Emma High Raptors and the Gems Magic versus the KISU Bucks open this year's games at Lugogo on Saturday.

"We are extremely thrilled to have the second season on after a successful first and we are excited about this because many people in the program are now maligned into the program and see it as a way of life,"

He said the Junior NBA also has a robust curriculum that creates team work, leadership for many of the young people on the program beyond giving them access to the NBA.

Thirty teams (450 players) will take part in this year's edition, including Aga Khan, GEMS Cambridge, Watoto School, St Mark Namagoma and Seeta high who have replaced Namilyango, Lubiri SS, Standard View, Ntinda view and Kisubi High.

The tournament will run from eight weeks, with 15 teams apiece being grouped into what is called the eastern and western conference. Following the regular season, the playoffs climax with the two conference winners meeting in the finals.