A ‘clinic’ with a difference

[1]

From 10-year-old Nikhil to senior nationals Jeena P.S. and Poojamol K.S., every boy and girl from the State had a new lesson to learn in basketball on Saturday.

The occasion was a ‘clinic’ hosted by Troy Justice, operations manager of NBA India as a lead up to the Mahindra NBA Challenge at the Regional Sports Centre in Kochi.

The American, who is quite familiar in the State since last year’s NBA Challenge held in Thiruvananthapuram, yet again grabbed the attention of the 500-plus crowd present at the venue.

“My name is Troy and I have been living in India for the last three years. Mumbai is my home now. Let us learn something,” was how he introduced himself.

“Today, we will learn about footwork. It’s very important in basketball. You need to get your footwork right to improve your game,” said Troy, looking around the occupied balconies as six players lined-up for the demo.

It was a new experience for the spectators and most of the kids who hadn’t been to last year’s clinic, as Troy made the volunteers spin-up, turn, dribble and explode to the basket in various steps.

Over the brief duration of the clinic before the official launch of the Challenge, Troy kept on emphasising the must-dos and must-not-dos like always, going for over-hand shots and always hitting the backboard.

“These things are important to learn and execute here in the tournament. There is no exception for shorter or taller players. So keep practising,” Troy said, his idea being to instil discipline in the learning system.

Just after the information-packed clinic, the kids were raring to get started. Two courts had been arranged for the seven-week league system that will be participated by nearly 120 teams.

It is the second initiative of NBA India in the state after Thiruvananthapuram last year. This time around, the challenge is being held in five cities such as Mumbai, Delhi, Ludhiana, Bangalore and Kochi.
It was fascinating to notice the curiosity on each kid's face and certainly such systematic training methods are alien to our coaching manuals.

It was no surprise to hear a few yesteryear players watching from the sidelines say, “Wish learning basketball was such fun and informative during our days.”