Thirteen under-14 hoopers from the Greater Shepparton region have been selected to attend Basketball Victoria’s Gold Nugget Camp in Bendigo on November 13-14, when each will be out to impress during an elite skills session designed to showcase the best of what country Victoria has to offer.
Greater Shepparton Basketball Association domestic manager Tony Long has overseen the group recently and branded the opportunity as monumental for those selected.
“Gold Nugget is the pinnacle for the under-14 skills sessions, it’s all key to their learning pathway,” he said.
“The more things they get selected in, the more they learn. The more they learn, the more they develop and hopefully become great basketballers down the track.
“Many Australian representative basketballers have come through the country system, and in particular this pathway — from there, the world is their oyster.”
In Bendigo, Shepparton’s crop will be out to emulate country stars such as Lavington’s own Opal Lauren Jackson and Horsham NBL talent Mitch Creek, who earned starts at this level.
The 13 youngsters began their journey to the Gold Nugget stage by impressing at an initial camp at the year’s beginning.
Diving into a 20-week program, they worked tirelessly throughout the season before passing through a final selection process where successful entrants were reserved a spot for Bendigo.
This year’s Gold Nugget Camp will work slightly different to year’s past, however.
Usually, those to make a splash at the camp would go on to play at either the Southern Cross Challenge or the Australian Country Junior Basketball Cup, but with both cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Shepparton’s prospects will instead seek a spot in the 2022 Country Metro Challenge squad.
Regardless, Long identified the upcoming opportunity as the first step in the pathway for professional development in basketball.
“They’ll hopefully be putting on their best efforts and playing their best basketball – there are certainly some good kids out there,” Long said.
“As coaches we’re teaching the Australian methodology and things which have been brought to us by Australian head coaches.
“We’re trying to develop them to an understanding where they can one day put on the green and gold – that’s the end goal.”
Long thanked Darren Burn, who has led the group all year, for his dedication to helping upskill the 13 up-and-comers from Greater Shepparton.
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