Although he did not discuss Tanzania’s basketball and Hasheem Thabeet’s role and progress in the NBA — world’s most popular basketball league — US President Barack Obama landed the country’s basketball and sports sector, in general, big mileage.
President Jakaya Kikwete and US President Barack Obama play ‘sOccket’ Ball, a soccer ball that captures and stores kinetic energy as you play that can then be used by plugging in any compatible plug into the DC outlet built into the ball.
His short stint in the country also proved that he is still a man of African tradition and he still treasures his roots. Traditional dancers welcomed the US president on his arrival at the Mwalimu Julius Nyerere International Airport in Tanzania two weeks ago, as the world’s most powerful statesman broke into dancing—traditional ngoma.
And, his vivid love for the ngomas once again signifies his deep African roots—a son of true Kenyan. To prove that he is a true sportsman, Obama and his host President Jakaya Kikwete also had time off their tight schedule to play football at Symbion Power Plant located at Ubungo suburb in Dar es Salaam albeit for few minutes, to the delight of some foreigners and local journalists.
In all, Obama’s arrival in the country meant a lot for Tanzania sports, especially basketball, which for the past decade or so, has received tremendous support from the US – world’s basketball powerhouse. Obama is well known for his love of sports. He has always been a loyal basketball fan, and later in his life, he became a fan of playing golf.
He revealed that he and his host President Jakaya Kikwete did not have time to talk about Tanzania’s professional basketball player Hasheem Thabeet when the two leaders met at the State House in Dar es Salaam but he was open for such discussions in the future.
“We didn’t have enough time to talk about Hasheem Thabeet during our discussion today (Monday July 1, 2013) but I hope we’ll have another opportunity to talk about him next time,” the US president said.
Apparently, his public recognition of Thabeet and hope for possible talks about the player in the future during such a high profile press conference landed the country’s basketball and sports sector, in general, big mileage.
It was even more fitting for Thabeet, who is the tallest active player in the NBA, given the mention came from the man who excelled in basketball and graduated with academic honours in 1979. Tanzania has few well recognised basketball players but in Thabeet, the country has made its name and having Tanzania-born player in NBA has helped to raise the level of the game.
Thabeet’s presences in the NBA has continued to inspire kids and many young basketball players throughout the country to play more basketball … which eventually raises the level of the sport. The 7-foot-3 centimeter Thabeet was drafted as the 2nd pick overall by the Memphis Grizzlies in the 2009 NBA Draft after playing with the Connecticut Huskies.
Thabeet was traded to the Houston Rockets along with a first round pick in exchange for Shane Battier on March 15, last year. The lanky big man signed on with Oklahoma City Thunder last offseason and served as the backup centre behind Serge Ibaka and Kendrick Perkins and has used his first season in a Thunder uniform to prove that he belongs in the NBA.
In this case, Obama’s recognition of Thabeet was worth mentioning. Obama’s visit in Tanzania should have also inspired young basketball players to progress and prosper in the sport and helped add much thrust to the Tanzania Basketball Federation (TBF) ambitions to reinvigorate the sport, which needs expertise and investments on youth development programmes to grow.
It is a fact that basketball in Tanzania is not doing very well, at the moment, and the TBF have no tangible answer for the downfall. They, TBF always run the leagues but certainly, there is always no funding and sponsorships.
However, after Obama visit, who came along with the delegation of at least 700 businesspeople, the TBF Acting Secretary General, Michael Maluwe, is expecting more support will now come flowing into the game. Maluwe sees tremendous potential for the sport to grow, but there are issues related to accessibility that they need to first find a way to address.
The federation wants to focus on the grassroots level to grow the sport. However, they should work with relevant stakeholders to build the infrastructure, because you need some basic infrastructure in order for children to have access to courts. And also train local coaches who can teach the game.
The development of basketball starts with coaches being able to teach kids the right way to play. Coaches’ skills and knowledge should always be enhanced because the two are key components to upgrade the game of basketball. Then the kids should be properly guided and shaped to become stars.
TBF should make use of the Obama’s visit in the country and Thabeet’s presence in the USA to find the way to partner with NBA for long term Development Programme, which the NBA has already initiated in South Africa.
The biggest partnership to date is the Royal Bafokeng NBA Development Programme in the North West province of South Africa. Since the launch of the programme in May 2011, more than 8,000 children have been introduced to the game; 18 refurbished and new courts have been built; three full-time coaches trained and appointed with 40 more in training; and it’s been introduced as a sixth sporting code at schools within the community.
They have also negotiated a television deal with South Africa’s public broadcaster, the SABC, to air NBA games as well as a basketball lifestyle show. A big part of the strategy is to increase television footprint. It is one thing for young people who want to play to have courts and the relevant equipment they need to master the sport, but at the same time it is important to allow fans in general to be able to view NBA games, just like the rest of the globe.
Like most sports these days, the NBA is big business. Its players are among the top paid sport stars in the world, while teams generate money from ticket sales, television contracts, merchandising and sponsorships. Few would argue that football is not the most popular sport in Tanzania; however, the beautiful game could still face some competition from basketball if the local basketball body steps up its efforts to grow the popularity of the sport and to make use of support from Thabeet.
Thabeets’ mission has always been to develop basketball in his home country. He has identified his priority, which is to conduct regular clinics to young basketball players in the country. The challenge for the TBF is to change its approach from entirely depending on government and instead, look for cor Hasheem porate sponsorship to help finance its programme, if there is any, anyway.
TBF leadership should also come up with a clear long term schools development programme that would help develop young players into good and responsible national team stars. If this is done Tanzania will produce more Thabeets.
By NASONGELYA KILYINGA, Tanzania Daily News