THE National Basketball Training Center (NBTC) goes bigger even during this time of the pandemic, setting the stage for its Global Games.
Speaking in an online press conference on Monday, NBTC program director Eric Altamirano said that while the ongoing health crisis has affected their push as an organization, their commitment is still firm and they continue to look for ways to promote and grow the sport of basketball especially among the youth.
“It has always been NBTC’s aim to identify, develop, and hone the best Filipino talents both here and abroad. For the last 13 years, we’ve seen the growth of the program from three cities to more than 100 cities and still growing,” said Mr. Altamirano, who was joined in the press conference by other members of the NBTC family from different parts of the world.
One of the programs the NBTC is lining up is the formation of the Global Games which will take place in 2022 and is geared towards showcasing the talents of young players and help them pursue their basketball dreams .
“We’re hoping that the NBTC Global Games will open the door for hundreds of players overseas to showcase their talents and widen the pool for our national youth team,” said Mr. Altamirano.
In the Global Games, seven tournaments, involving players 18 years old and below, will be held across six countries, namely the United States (West and East Coast), Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Italy, and the United Arab Emirates. These will serve as international qualifiers.
The winners in these qualifiers earn a ticket to the NBTC League National Finals, which is targeted for a return in March 2023 at the Mall of Asia Arena. There, the best from overseas will take on the top high school teams here in the Philippines.
Mr. Altamirano said an idea such as the Global Games is timely for them even during this time of the pandemic.
“In the last six years, we have gotten numerous requests from international teams to play in the NBTC national finals. We couldn’t entertain all of them since we have limited slots,” he said.
“We saw in the pandemic an opportunity to even widen our network in terms of talent identification,” the NBTC official added.
Throughout the years, the NBTC has become a springboard for young players to grow their basketball careers.
Among the notable alumni of the NBTC are Filipino-American Jalen Green, who was drafted second overall by the Houston Rockets in the recent National Basketball Association Rookie Draft, and homegrown talent Kai Sotto, who is set to play in the Australian Basketball League.
Others went on to play in local collegiate leagues as well as for the national team. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo