Sixteen Jr. NBA All-Stars of Jr. NBA Philippines 2017 presented by Alaska, eight boys and eight girls, flew to Shanghai, China from Oct. 6-9 to enjoy a fun, enriching NBA basketball experience. The young ballers, ages 12-14 watched the live NBA China Game between 2017 NBA Champions Golden State Warriors and the Minnesota Timberwolves at the Mercedes Benz Arena.
The Jr. NBA All-Stars cherished the opportunity to witness Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, and Kevin Durant combine for 90 points to lead the Warriors in a 142-110 win against the Timberwolves.
Jr. NBA All-Stars also had the chance to meet NBA Legend and defense specialist Jerome “Junkyard Dog” Williams. “Making it to the NBA starts with training and conditioning. If you love to do those things, then you will be a great basketball player. It’s the stuff that you do prior to the game that makes you great,” Williams shared the All-Stars in a brief training session with them.
Displaying their hardcourt prowess on the trip, the young Filipino athletes bested their fellow Jr. NBA All-Stars from Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam to win the Jr. NBA 3-on-3 tournament. The all-girls team representing Jr. NBA Philippines went head-to-head against various opponents before bowing out to Thailand in the semifinals.
In addition to friendly peer competitions, the Jr. NBA 2017 All-Stars experienced intense basketball training from Jr. NBA Coaches Chris Sumner and Natalia Andre, implementing rigorous skills exercises in shooting, passing, footwork, post-up, and under-the-basket drills. Jr. NBA All-Stars also tried the local cuisine and toured famous landmarks in Shanghai.
The Jr. NBA is the league’s global youth basketball participation program that promotes basketball participation and an active lifestyle among children. Participants are trained in the fundamentals of basketball and learn about the importance of proper nutrition, as well as the Jr. NBA’s core values of sportsmanship, teamwork, a positive attitude and respect (S.T.A.R).
Fans can follow Jr. NBA at the official website www.jrnba.asia and Facebook at www.facebook.com/JrNBAAsia to learn more about the program as well as how to join and become a Jr. NBA All-Star in 2018.
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