Nestle Basketball Camp Excites Coaches

Basketball coaches who featured in the three-day Nestle Milo Top 50 Giants of Africa Camp, which ended on Tuesday in Lagos, have described the camp as the ‘heartbeat of basketball development in the country.’
The camp, put together by Nestle Nigeria Plc, was a follow up to the just-concluded Nestle Milo Secondary School Basketball championships in Lagos.
Fifty male participants from ages 14 to 20, drawn from various basketball academies in the country and also from the just-ended Nestle Milo championships, featured in the camp.
The camp, now in its 10th edition, was dubbed a success by the coaches of top basketball clubs who featured in the three-day event, because of its grassroots source.
The coaches noted that more of such camps were needed across the country in order to spread the grassroots base of the Camp nationwide.
Coach Peter Ahmedu of Dodan Warriors of Lagos said that the event was all about development, catching them young and impacting the necessary basic knowledge of the game.
“Basketball is a great tool of developing the youths; we know most youths that play the game don’t have the fundamentals, so we use the Top 50 Camp to train them.
“The Top 50 Camp creates an opportunity for the participants to be recognised, based on their talents and they have the opportunity to be recognised by national and international clubs.
“It also gave the youths the opportunity to be picked for overseas scholarships, for exceptional players that excel during the camp,’’ Ahmedu said.
Dodan Warriors Assistant Coach, Chris Nomigo, said that the camp can be seen as an opportunity for young players to learn some rudiments of the game.
“We have trained a lot of players in the rudiments of the game over the years and players got picked from this camp and gained scholarships to high schools and colleges abroad.
“Through the camp, we have also produced a lot of players for the domestic league, such as Mohammed Buka of Dodan Warriors Club.
“The youths have a stepping stone to reach the greatest heights through the Camp; this is why the national team coaches, university team Coaches and club coaches were brought in,’’ Nomigo said.
Coach Joe Tomo of Mark Mentors Club of Abuja said that it was a great thing for the youths and hopes many other corporate oganisations would also come around to help.
“We need more camps of this nature organised in other states of the country because young players in Nigeria need this to develop.
“It is unfortunate that only 50 youths can attend, I think if people at the top can put politics aside and focus on the youths, basketball will go a long way,’’ Tomo said.
A highlight of the three-day event was a match between the players.