ABA League: 24 Academies Begin Quest For Basketball Glory In Abuja

The President and Founder of Amateur Basketball Academies (ABA), Lucky Aliyu Abubakar, has declared the Abuja League, the pilot edition of the ABA League, open with a pledge to create a sustainable development pathway for Nigeria’s young basketball talents.

The U-18 competition, which tipped off at the Mo Arena in Abuja on Saturday, features 24 basketball academies drawn from across the Federal Capital Territory.

Declaring the league open, Abubakar said the initiative was established to keep the dreams of young basketball players alive by providing them with the structure, discipline and competitive opportunities required to develop their talents.

“We are giving dream on this platform. Today we are keeping the dream of these young ones alive. This is why our message is simple but powerful: dream alive,” he said.

According to him, Nigeria has enormous basketball talent, but talent alone cannot guarantee success without deliberate investment in development.

He said ABA was created out of the conviction that young talents must be “discovered, nurtured, disciplined, educated, developed and given opportunity to compete”.

Abubakar noted that while some of the players could go on to become professional basketballers and represent Nigeria internationally, others could build careers as coaches, referees, administrators, sports scientists, journalists, philanthropists, sociologists and sports entrepreneurs.

“For all these possibilities to become a reality, we must build a structure of development pathway. This is what ABA is committed to doing,” he said.

He described the Abuja League as a pilot project for a much bigger national vision, stressing that the initiative would be expanded beyond the Federal Capital Territory.

“The Amateur Basketball Academy Abuja League is there for a pilot test, but it represents a much bigger vision. Today we are starting the dream for these young basketballers. This is a pilot test we are going to do in the entire cities of Nigeria,” Abubakar declared.

He also urged coaches, players and referees to maintain mutual respect throughout the competition as the young athletes embark on their basketball journey.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, Chairman of the FCT Basketball Association, Igwe Ifeanyi Eke, commended Abubakar for bringing the initiative to fruition, describing him as a man capable of achieving “glorious things”.

Eke also praised the coaches for assembling the young talents and challenged the players to seize the opportunity to showcase their abilities.

“My prayer today is that, from all these talents here, by next year I will see so many of you up there, like Michael Jordan and Al-Farouq Aminu,” he said.

He expressed confidence that the presence of coaches, sponsors and scouts would provide the players with an important platform to attract opportunities.

“The coaches are here, the players are here, the sponsors are already here, and I’m 100 per cent sure that the scouts are here,” Eke added.

He commended Abubakar, the ABA team led by Coach Emmanuel Oda, the media team, supporters and executives of the association for their roles in making the pilot league possible.