(from left) SDF's general manager Denzil Wilks; Urban Knights player Leslie Cassell; Alexier Archer-Clarke of Phoenix Health complex & Vision Centre; Omar Palmer, Lasco's food & beverage brand manager; Lasco's category manager, powdered beverages & cereals, Renee Rose; Karonna Atkins of Gatorade, St George's Slayers player Adeeb Vernon; Matthew-Dane Henry of Upper Room Eagles and JABA president Paulton Gordon, share a photo opportunity with the SDF's symbolic $4 million cheque during the NBL's launch at SDF on Wednesday.
contributed
Having yearned for the return of the National Basketball League (NBL), a number of the country's top players are now raring to go, not merely to give of their best, but also to hopefully inspire youths in troubled communities to view the sport as a way out.
The ambitions of Adeeb Vernon, Leslie Cassell and Matthew-Dane Henry, coincide with Jamaica Basketball Association’s (JABA) objective, which is to use basketball as a way of influencing communities and schools to reduce incidence of violence, through partnership with the Ministry of National Security.
The upcoming season to target certain communities in Kingston, St James and Westmoreland for violence-intervention projects, marks the return of the nation’s top basketball league from a three-year COVID-induced break and will see 10 teams –down from 12 in 2020 –vying for supremacy over a four-month period, staring June 17.
Vernon, a member of defending champions St George’s Slayers, said the league’s objective hits close to home as he revealed that basketball saved him from his disruptive ways.
"I think this game can help Jamaica in the sense that it can get kids on the right track, and I should know because I was one of those teenagers who gave a lot of trouble growing up and it wasn’t until I got involved in basketball that my behaviour and overall attitude changed,” Vernon said during the League’s launch at the Sports Development Foundation (SDF) Phoenix Avenue base on Wednesday.
The power forward, who is now gearing up to represent Jamaica at the Central American and Caribbean (CAC) Games next month, is hoping to continue his rich vein of form from a previous tournament.
“I was one of the top power forwards in the Phase 1 Caribbean League and so I now hope to be one of the best players in the NBL. I am working towards that goal and so I am looking forward to giving my all and entertaining the spectators,” Vernon declared.
Urban Knights representative Cassell, pointed out that his recent return to basketball came with a higher calling.
"I am one of those players that have been away from the sport since COVID, but I found my wait back through a community league which my team won. But my bigger approach to that game was to be a role model for the younger players on the team,” he explained.
“My vision for basketball in Jamaica is to give the aspiring players something to look forward to. Yes, it would be good to get to the NBA or Europe, but if we are to be honest, we know chances of getting there are slim.
“So, my goal for Jamaica is to have a league that our younger players can look forward to, a league from which they can make a living, it seems far-fetched, but not impossible. So for me it starts with the NBL and so I plan to bring entertainment and professionalism to the league,” Cassell added.
Matthew-Dane Henry, of Upper Room Eagles, shared similar sentiments.
"Upper Room is aiming for a championship and in doing so, we plan to bring a certain level of professionalism, tenacity and energy to ensure that the entertainment value for the fans is at optimum. That three-year break was like torture, so thanks to the sponsors for coming on board and like you, we are looking forward to healthy competition and intensity,” he said.
Meanwhile, JABA president Paulton Gordon, expressed delight that the league is back on the basketball calendar to showcase the best local-based basketball talent and aspiring national payers who will display their skills in the presence of national coaches.
The other confirmed teams are, UWI Running Rebels, Rae Town Raptors, Tivoli Wizards, Falmouth Saints, Central Celtics, Spanish Town Spartans, and Portmore Flames.
An all-star NBL team will be selected mid-season to play against the visiting University of Missouri NCAA team during the summer.
“We are looking forward to a good four months of solid basketball and not only that but the partnership with the Ministry of National Security will help us take basketball into some of the communities and to use it as a tool for behaviour modification, so we are excited about that,” Gordon stated.
To achieve that goal, Gordon explained that though games will be played primarily at the National Stadium courts, they will move away at some point to select venues in Montego Bay, Ocho Rios and possibly St Mary.
“We want to move the games outside of the urban hubs that are quite familiar with basketball so we will be playing some of the games in Montego Bay and we also think there is huge potential in St Ann and St Mary. So we want to carry high level basketball into that space so that more persons can become more familiar and interested in participating in the game,” he noted.
Sherdon Cowan is a five-time award-winning journalist with 10 years' experience covering sports.
Knicks star Brunson fractures hand in Game 7 loss to Pacers
Jalen Brunson's Game 7 ended with a fractured left hand.
Shortly later, the New York Knicks' season ended.
Brunson sustained a broken left hand and sat out the fourth quarter in the Knicks' 130-109 loss to the Indiana Pacers on Sunday.
With the win, the Pacers reached the Eastern Conference finals, where they'll face the top-seeded Boston Celtics.
Brunson, who had averaged 31.8 points and 5.7 assists in the first six games of the series against Indiana, had 17 points on 6-of-17 shooting and nine assists before exiting.
Instrumental to New York's success in 2023-24, Brunson finished fifth in NBA MVP voting during the regular season after averaging 28.7 points, 6.7 assists and 3.6 rebounds.
Doncic 'one of best in the world' - Kidd praises star man after Mavericks win
Mavericks coach Jason Kidd hails Luka Doncic as “one of the best players in the world” after the Dallas Mavericks made it to the Western Conference finals.
P.J. Washington Jr. sank two free throws with 2.5 seconds remaining to seal a 117-116 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Saturday to send them to the finals with a 4-2 series win.
Doncic finished with 29 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists for his third-straight triple-double to help Dallas on their way, with Kyrie Irving and Derrick Jones Jr. each adding 22 points as they rallied from a 17-point deficit in the third quarter.
Kidd praised Doncic for another inspired performance after the game, saying: "He's one of the best players in the world, but sometimes we lose sight that it's not just built [around Doncic].
"One guy can't get you there. You need a team. Right now, he's got a team that he believes in."
Doncic is just the fifth player to have three straight playoff triple-doubles in history, and he wants to soak in what he describes as a tough win.
"We won the series. That's what matters in the end," Doncic said.
"We won 4-2, [even though] we didn't have home advantage. It's great that we won, but just struggles are going to come. You got to stay positive and keep hooping.
"Today is about today's game, and tomorrow we'll think about the conference finals.
"I think we should all enjoy this, because this, I would say, was a really hard series."
Kyrie Irving matches his scoring high for the series with his 22 points, but was quick to admire Washington’s late impact.
"I think he [Washington] was just waiting for his moment.
"He's played well the majority of the series, so we had some confidence in him that eventually he would make some big-time shots and grateful that he knocked them down. Man, that's just pure confidence and belief."
NBA: Washington's late free throws send Mavericks to Western Conference finals
P.J. Washington Jr. sank two free throws with 2.5 seconds remaining and the Dallas Mavericks rallied for a 117-116 victory over the top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder on Saturday to reach the Western Conference finals for the second time in three seasons.
With the Thunder ahead 116-115 after Chet Holmgren’s dunk, Washington pump-faked to get Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in the air and the whistle blew as his shot fell short.
After the Thunder’s challenge was unsuccessful, Washington made the first two free throws before intentionally missing the third. Jalen Williams’ desperation heave at the buzzer wasn’t close.
Luka Dončić had 29 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists for his third straight triple-double and Kyrie Irving and Derrick Jones Jr. each added 22 points for Dallas, which rallied from a 17-point deficit in the third quarter.
The Mavericks will face the winner of the Minnesota-Denver series with that headed to Game 7 on Sunday.
Gilgeous-Alexander had 36 points and Williams finished with 22, nine rebounds and eight assists. The Thunder lost four of five games following a 5-0 start to the playoffs.
Holmgren’s dunk with 8:26 left in the third extended the Thunder’s lead to 77-60, but Doncic and Irving combined for the next 13 points to make it 77-73.
The final sequence capped a fourth quarter that had five lead changes and two ties in the final five minutes.
Irving improved to 14-0 in closeout games in his career and had a 3-pointer to get Dallas within two midway through the fourth, the closest it had been since the second quarter.
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