Alaska’s Jr NBA and Jr WNBA Holds Regional Selection in Davao

Alaska continues its search for promising basketball players with their Regional Selection Camps at Davao last February 27 – 28, 2015.  At the end of the camp, 4 girls and 7 boys are moving up to the National Training Camp of the Jr. NBA and Jr. WNBA in Manila on April 22-24, 2016.

Jr. NBA and Jr. WNBA

Jr. NBA and Jr. WNBA Aspirants in the Regional Selection Camp in Davao

Basketball has been the most popular sport in the country for decades. Alaska has stepped up in developing the grassroots development of the Sport through their Jr. NBA and Jr. WNBA Program, which is now on its 9th year.  The Jr. NBA and Jr. WNBA program started this year last January 23-24, 2016 at Don Bosco Technical Center in Makati.   The Jr. NBA & Jr. WNBA presented by Alaska, is just one of Alaska’s Sports Development Program that inspires children realize their dreams through teaching them skills to play the game while incorporating the values of determination, hard work, team work, discipline and sportsmanship.

Jr. WNBA Aspirant in Davao do some of the drills.

The Regional Selection Camps kicked off last February 20-21, 2016 in Benguet State University in Baguio and now has moved on to Davao, where the brightest prospects in the region gets a chance to show their skills and talent as well as learn from the top Coaches in the country. The best of the best players in Davao will undergo series of skills stations such as Lay-ups, Shooting, Passing, Footwork and Dribbling with the top participants qualifying in the 9th annual Jr. NBA/Jr. WNBA National Training Camp in Manila from April 22-24, 2016.

Aside from a chance to qualify, participants also get a chance to train with the top coaches in the Country.

Hundreds of boys and girls joined the regional selection camp in Davao.  The participants took some Vital Test and skill stations and awarded the top participants and Day 2 qualifiers on the first day. The next day top participants joined a basketball clinic and scrimmage as well as awarding of the qualifiers for the national camp.   From the various drills, training and workout with the coaches, the following players were selected as qualifier for the National Training Camp.

• GIRLS
  • Kate Buenaventura – 14 years old-
  • Aloha Marie Betanio- 12 yrs old
  • Marcilla Grace Dellosa – 13 yrs old
  • Rozie Amatong – 11 yrs old
• BOYS
  • Tryon Limar Langala – 14 yrs old
  • Alfonso Candari- 13 yrs old
  • Rysan Villasenda – 13 yrs old
  • Anscar Mamac – 13 yrs old
  • Lance Centeno – 13 yrs old
  • Jacen Neil Deligero – 12 years old
  • Louise Andre Joring

Participant getting tested on his Vertical Reach.

The National Training Camp is the high point of the Jr. NBA/Jr. WNBA program where ten Jr. NBA and five Jr. WNBA standouts will be named as the 2016 Jr. NBA/Jr. WNBA All-Stars and a Coach of the Year will be chosen. The National Training Camp will be held at the Don Bosco Technical Institute Makati on April 22 and 23 and at the SM Mall of Asia on April 24.  All the best players from each region will pit skills and the ways in which they express the STAR values during the three-day boot camp that will prepare them to be exceptional athletes and total persons on and off the court. The 10 best male performers selected in the National Training Camp will be this year’s Jr. NBA Philippines All Star Team, while the 5 best female performers will be the first-ever Jr. WNBA All-Star Team. The male and female All-Stars will be rewarded with an authentic NBA experience and the chance to play with a counterpart youth team abroad.

They got first hand training from the top coaches in the country.

The Jr. NBA and Jr. WNBA Presented by Alaska is one of Alaska Milk’s programs that shape, train, challenge and inspire children to achieve their dreams and aspirations in life.  The Jr.NBA and Jr.WNBA presented by Alaska is under Alaska Milk’s Nutrition.Action.Champion program. It helps address the issue of overweight and undernourished Filipino children with the promotion of proper nutrition and active lifestyle through sports and outdoor play.

The 2011 National Nutrition Survey conducted by the Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI) revealed that three out of ten children aged 5-10 years were underweight while eight out of one hundred children of the same age were overweight, making malnutrition and obesity two of the most pressing nutritional problems in the Philippines today.

“These holistic programs train children to be confident, disciplined and hardworking because Alaska Milk Corporation aims to prepare them to be winners in life in the future. This year’s program includes new locations such as Batangas, Catanduanes and Cavite to reach more children and coaches and discover the best basketball players across the country,” said Blen Fernando, Marketing Director.

Participant doing a lay up

Other than Davao and Baguio, there will also be Regional Selection Camps in Cebu (March 5-6) and Metro Manila (April 9-10). The top 50 boys and 24 girls from the Regional Selection Camps will advance to the final selection stage in the National Training Camp in Manila on April 22-24. NBA and WNBA players or legends will attend the National Training Camp to help train and inspire the finalists. The program will culminate with the selection of ten Jr. NBA and five Jr. WNBA All-Stars.

Qualifiers

More than 36,000 players and 2,700 coaches have participated in the program since it started in the Philippines in 2007. During the 2015-16 season, the Jr. NBA and Jr. WNBA program will reach more than 6.5 million youth in 32 countries. The Jr. NBA and Jr. WNBA is the league’s global youth basketball participation program for boys and girls which teaches the fundamental skills as well as the core values of the game at the grassroots level in an effort to help grow and improve the youth basketball experience for players, coaches and parents.

Boys and girls may join the search for the ten best boy and five best girl basketball players who will become members of the Jr.NBA and Jr.WNBA All-Star team. There is also a search for the boys and girls coaches who will handle the two teams.  The All-Star Team will travel overseas for their NBA experience trip together with fellow Jr. NBA All-Stars from Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam and Indonesia. The 2015 Jr. NBA All-Stars traveled to China to watch the NBA Global Games in Shenzhen featuring the Charlotte Hornets and the L.A. Clippers. The Jr. NBA and Jr. WNBA Presented by Alaska is free and open to boys and girls ages 10 to 14 years old (born 2002 to 2006). Interested parties may register at the venue in Ateneo de Davao University or online through www.jrnba.asia/philippines.

For general information about Jr. NBA and Jr. WNBA Philippines presented by Alaska please visit www.jrnba.asia/philippines, www.alaskamilk.com, and   www.alaskapowercamp.com/basketball. For live updates log on to www.playph.com follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter @playph #jrnba #jrwnba.