Former NBA player and now FIBA coach Bruno Sundov said he was happy with what he’s seen after spending his first visit to Malta coaching local youth basketball players during a three-day marathon last week, hosted by local organisation Pro Sports Academy.
Sundov, who is part of the NBA Basketball without Borders project, told the Times of Malta his aim for the sessions was to see the level of basketball, especially that of youth players.
“I was interested right away because I’ve never been here before, and of course as a coach you always want to see on a different country level, their level of basketball.”
This fits in perfectly with the scope of the event, as the Croatian managed to coordinate sessions in both Malta and Gozo which catered for the Under-16 and Under-21 age groups as well as Under-10 and Under-15 (in Gozo).
Petra Ellul Mercer, from Pro Sports Academy, said these kinds of events boost the efforts that young players make towards being better at what they do.
“The response was good, especially in Gozo and I’m very happy with the support we received.” Ellul Mercer explained.
“Our objective is always to give our Maltese athletes further development, international exposure and create opportunities for the players abroad and locally.”
The event saw a considerable amount of attending youngsters who benefited from Sundov’s experience. In his playing days, the 39-year-old played for five different NBA teams as well as numerous European sides while also having been the first European export to play in the Philippines.
Ellul Mercer also highlighted how the Ministry for Gozo, in particular, was attaining a very active role in promoting local sports through its Sports Board and was also one of the collaborators for the events together with the Malta Basketball Association and Gozitan club Shamrock Stars SC.
With international venture being a must for sporting success, the sessions proved to also be a build up for players like Starlites player Mikela Riolo who will be trying her luck in the US in the coming months.
Sundov admitted that while the NBA is ‘the dream’, Europeans have caught up with Americans in terms of basketball and so he puts a lot of faith in the European leagues.
Sundov shifted his focus from the NBA to European basketball at 25-years-old, leaving his final US team, the New York Knicks, to join CB Lucentum Alicante in 2005.
After having tasted both sides of Basketball, he believes Europe should be the target for emerging basketball players.
“Yes (NBA) is fun to watch but as a coach, I prefer to take Panathinaikos, Barcelona, Real Madrid or Olympiakos as targets. I tell my players to watch those games because realistically, it is our top,” he admitted.
“I tell my players ‘If you love basketball, don’t watch only the NBA’ because they will then try to be the same. In Europe it is a different game, different level of quality. You have to be realistic.”
Ellul Mercer identified their next workshop in Gozo on the January 25. This will feature a Spanish coach and an ex-professional female player.
Following that, she also mentioned another event which will take place in August where they are already working on getting another NBA-affiliated person to Malta.