Jr. NBA infects Davao City; invites local coaches to taste the NBA experience

Jr. NBA infects Davao City; invites local coaches to taste the NBA experience





Calling all basketball coaches in Davao City and nearby environs.



The 2009-10 Jr. NBA Philippines Program presented by Hi-Smart Multivitamins has come to Davao City for the very first time. Local coaches can experience the NBA way to build basketball programs and motivate, coach and mentor young players from a US Jr. NBA Coach, Frank Lopez, Jr., a veteran clinician who has conducted camps for the Orlando Magic, the Dallas Mavericks, the NBA All Stars, the WNBA All Stars and Jr. NBA, WNBA Summer Basketball Camps.



The coaches clinics start at 9 am and end at 5 p.m. at the Montaῆa Gym on January 21, Thursday. It consists of lectures, open discussions and application of theories and drills in the afternoon. Event presenter Hi-Smart Multivitamins will give a lecture on the role that nutrition plays in building good cagers. Gatorade will have a session on the importance of proper hydration to player preparation and performance.



All that coaches have to do is show up at the seminar venue to register. Coaches will learn NBA-style basketball philosophies, principles, drills and motivational techniques. Clinic participants will receive a set of coaches and players guides, registration forms for their students or players and a certificate of completion from the NBA at the end of the course. Admission to the clinics and all aspects of the event is for free.



The Jr. NBA is the National Basketball Association’s youth basketball development program, that was introduced into the country in early 2007 to 16 Metro Manila private and public schools initially. It has expanded its reach from 200 schools and 20,000 participants in 2008-09 to 300 schools and approximately 30,000 students in 2009-10. This is the first time that the program will be staged in Davao. It brought the program to Cebu also for the first time last year.



Coaches clinics trigger off the three-month long program that will train and identify talents among 12 to 14 year olds across the country in a series of tryouts, regional selection camps and a national training camp in April. The clinics will be followed by tryouts in Cebu, Davao and Manila schools and Metro Manila malls. The tryouts will precede the regional training camps in the three regions where the best players will qualify for the national training camp. The best eight young cagers will be chosen at the end of the program and be named the 2009-10 Jr. NBA Philippines All-Star Team. The two previous Jr. NBA events chose the six best campers and



Tomorrow, tryouts for 12-14 year old kids will be held at the Holy Child Academy in Jacinto, Davao City from 2-4 p.m. All interested Davao players in the prescribed age group are encouraged to attend.

Program presenter Dr. Francis Z. Gomez, M.D., Chief Operating Officer of new Marketlink Pharmaceutical Corporation, said youth grassroots basketball used to just be associated with school or barangay leagues. “But with the Jr. NBA, basketball has been elevated to an international level that allows kids to dream bigger. This program imparts all the right skills and values to kids so they can excel in basketball and out of it.”



The Jr. NBA Philippines effort is presented by Hi-Smart Multivatiamins with the support of Official Sports Drink Gatorade, Official Broadcast Partner Basketball TV, Official Automobile Partner Mitsubishi Motors, Official Mall Partner SM Supermalls, Official Supplier Spalding, and the Department of Education.



About Hi-Smart Multivitamins and New Marketlink

Hi-Smart Multivitamins is marketed by New Marketlink Pharmaceutical Corporation, one of the leading national pharmaceutical companies in the Philippines. New Marketlink seeks to become the preferred marketing partner of a variety of international healthcare companies in providing Filipinos with specialized, high quality and value-for-money medicines and health products.



New Marketlink Pharmaceutical Corporation, fueled and propelled by the holding company, TAO Corporation, is poised to undertake bold moves to further establish the new company as a respected leader in the pharmaceutical industry and become a valuable component of TAO Corporation’s mission of building communities and people.



New Marketlink supports the Jr. NBA program by providing Hi-Smart Multivitamins products which assist in the physical and mental development of kids and teenagers who want to achieve their basketball dreams and to help them become a Jr. NBA S.T.A.R. on and off the court.



About the NBA

The NBA, founded in 1946, is a professional sports league and global business that features 30 teams in the United States and Canada. During the 2009-10 season, NBA games will reach 215 countries and territories in 41 languages. The league’s worldwide reach is also displayed in the 83 international players from 36 countries and territories on NBA rosters. NBA merchandise is sold in more than 100,000 stores in 100 countries on six continents. NBA.com averages more than 26 million page views per day, with more than 50 percent of the site’s visitors coming from outside of North America. Through NBA Cares, the league, its teams and players have donated more than $115 million to charity, provided more than one million hours of hands-on service to communities around the world, and created more than 440 places where kids and families can live, learn, or play.



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Issued by NBA Asia, Limited. For more information, please contact:

NBA

Ip Kam Hung Phone: 852-2843 9628 E-mail: khip@nba.com

Larc&Asset PR

Tessa Jazmines Phone: 63-917 526 1369 E-mail: tessa@larcandasset.com