Consisting of 8 boys and 8 girls, these Jr. NBA All-Stars of Jr. NBA Philippines 2017 which was presented by Alaska, flew to Shanghai, China from last October 6-9 and had a fun, enriching NBA basketball experience. The young ballers, ages 12-14 watched the live NBA Game held in China between 2017 NBA Champions Golden State Warriors and the Minnesota Timberwolves at the Mercedes Benz Arena.
The Jr. NBA All-Stars got the opportunity to witness Warriors Big Three -- Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, and Kevin Durant which had a combined 90-point baskeyt to lead the Warriors in a 142-110 win against the Timberwolves during their pre-season match.
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Jr. NBA All-Stars also had the chance to meet NBA Legend and defense specialist Jerome “Junkyard Dog” Williams. “Making it to the NBA starts with training and conditioning. If you love to do those things, then you will be a great basketball player. It’s the stuff that you do prior to the game that makes you great,” Williams shared the All-Stars in a brief training session with them.
Displaying their hardcourt prowess on the trip, the young Filipino athletes bested their fellow Jr. NBA All-Stars from Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam to win the Jr. NBA 3-on-3 tournament. The all-girls team representing Jr. NBA Philippines went head-to-head against various opponents before bowing out to Thailand in the semifinals.
In addition to friendly peer competitions, the Jr. NBA 2017 All-Stars experienced intense basketball training from Jr. NBA Coaches Chris Sumner and Natalia Andre, implementing rigorous skills exercises in shooting, passing, footwork, post-up, and under-the-basket drills. They also tried the local cuisine and toured famous landmarks in Shanghai along the way.
The Jr. NBA is the league’s global youth basketball participation program that promotes basketball participation and an active lifestyle among children. Participants are trained in the fundamentals of basketball and learn about the importance of proper nutrition, as well as the Jr. NBA’s core values of sportsmanship, teamwork, a positive attitude and respect (S.T.A.R).
Fans can follow Jr. NBA at the official website www.jrnba.asia and Facebook at www.facebook.com/JrNBAAsia to learn more about the program as well as how to join and become a Jr. NBA All-Star in 2018.
To learn more about Alaska Milk Corporation, visit www.alaskamilk.com and www.playph.com.