A few weeks into their long summer break, 120 young men signed up to participate in a basketball camp. Now, after a month of daily workout and practice, that number has been whittled down to en elite 40. Barely into their teenage years, these young men are being called the future of basketball in Belize. We found out that the basketballs they dribble, are more like crystal balls that give a great glimpse into the future.
Keith Swift Reporting,
14-year-old Sherwin Garcia wants to be like Mike.
Sherwin Garcia, Participant
"I want to be an NBA player. I want to play on the Laker's Team in the NBA."
Keith Swift,
You think you'll could do that?
Sherwin Garcia,
"Yes if I try my best and keep up the good work."
While BJ Michael Kelly, who is also 14, wants to be the next Milton Palacio.
BJ Michael Kelly, Participant
"How much I love basketball? I love it a lot because it can take me higher and higher."
Keith Swift,
What do you want to be when you grow up?
BJ Michael Kelly,
"I want to be a basketball player just like Milton Palacio, going to the States and being a player for the Raptors. I want to go and do the same thing."
Sherwin and BJ's road to the NBA is beginning right here on the basketball court inside the City Center. They are two of the forty boys between ages 10 and 14 who made it to the elite round of a summer long basketball camp. The boys are learning everything from left and right handed maneuvers to fast breaks.
Sherwin Garcia,
"It has helped me with my skills. I learned to lay up with left hand good."
BJ Michael Kelly,
"I learnt a lot by doing right hand and left hand lay-up, running plays. They taught me a lot about basketball."
They are learning from one of the best: basketball legend Clinton "Pulu" Lightburn. Pulu is assisted by U.S. talent scout Michael Acheanpong. He says boys like Sherwin and BJ are the future of Belizean basketball and the best time to harness their talent is now.
Clinton "Pulu" Lightburn,
"We have like the top forty kids. We picked them from a pool of about 200 plus kids. What we are trying to do is start a program where we can keep them together all year 'round. So right now we are going to work with them for like about three weeks, Monday to Friday for like three to four hours a day. And when school resumes, we are going to work with them on the weekends. So this is going to be like a pool from which we can pick a standing national selection that can represent the country of Belize in the next eight or ten years."
Keith Swift,
What does the future look like for Belizean basketball?
Michael Acheanpong U.S. Talent Scout
"So much upside. There is so much talent here and they just need refining and thing so the talent here is so so fast, so so fast. It is just unbelievable."
Clinton "Pulu" Lightburn,
"We have like a generation gap in basketball because of semi-pro because we were so focused on semi-pro league in that last ten years that we kind of neglected development programs. So there is a gap. Now we are trying to bridge that gap with this new generation. We think that generation before these kids is a lost generation and we don't want to see that happen again."
