How to Progress in Basketball (from the Grass Roots to International Level):
Stage 1.
Within a borough there are basketball clubs for the youth eg in Haringey there are - The Haringey Warriors (boys/men), The White Heat (boys/men), Greig City Academy in Hornsey is where Haringey's only girl/women's basketball team is based. Haringey has six of these basketball clubs for boys and one of these for girls and anyone can turn up for the regular club 'try-outs'. Furthermore, Club players participate in borough tournaments eg Haringey has its own basketball league called 'The Haringey League' which caters for both boy's and girl's teams - all the schools in Haringey but one participate in this league. In addition, boys who live in Haringey and who are under 16 are also able to participate in the Middlesex cup. The most talented of these girls and boys are often 'scouted' or introduced to someone from the Junior British Basketball League (JBBL).
Stage 2.
From borough-wide tournaments players can progress to regional tournaments, such as the London Youth Games, The National Basketball Competition (under 14s and under19s) and The Inter-area Basketball League (Under15s), where an even wider range of talent scouts attend.
Stage 3.
Britain has a two tier basketball league - JBBL and British Basketball League (BBL). Gifted under 16s and gifted under 19s can become part of the JBBL, which includes both male and female teams, reckoned to be the best in the country.
Stage 4.
From the JBBL players can progress to the BBL - the top level in the UK. There are 10 BBL teams including the London Towers, the Birmingham Bullets and the Newcastle Eagles.
Stage 5.
BBL players often advance to national level and play for the national teams of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Stage 6.
British players who are good enough often go to an American university and play in the 'Division 1 League' eg Britain's top player Luol Deng began there, so that they can participate in the American university league - second only to America's top tournament the National Basketball Association (NBA). If they don't make it to an NBA team then they will probably go and play for a team in Europe or else go back to 'Stage 5.'
How the EBBA is trying to Improve Levels of Achievement in the Sport:
Founded in 1936, the EBBA is the governing body for all basketball in England. It runs the national teams and organises all of the national basketball competitions, it seeks to develop excellence in trainers and coaches and helps clubs to find funding. It produces a wide range of books and journals, including a bi-monthly newspaper 'Zone Press', as well as manuals on coaching and refereeing. The Association also employs a team of regional field officers and has 900 affiliated basketball clubs throughout the UK.
In addition there are independent, but affiliated, bodies such as the ESBBA, MBE and the Great Britain Wheelchair Basketball Association (GBWBA) who also work to try and get funding to develop facilities and training opportunities. For example, the ESBBA has established the '£10 million Outdoor Basketball Initiative' funded by the English Sports Council, the Lottery Sports Fund and sponsorship from "Adidas"; as a result the Association has installed 9,150 robust basketball goals in 320 schools throughout England.
These affiliated bodies operate at different levels to help develop basketball nationally. The ESBBA undertakes the organisation and management of the England Teams at under 16 (Cadet) level for both boys and girls. MBE is concerned with the development of the sport of basketball for children up to 12 years of age, in particular the promotion of Mini and Micro Basketball. The GBWBA is responsible for the organisation and development of wheelchair basketball and is affiliated to the International Stoke Mandeville Games Federation (ISMGF) and the International Wheelchair Basketball Federation (IWBF).
Access and Provision for People with Disabilities:
Disability Sport England is an organisation that provides opportunities to participate in sport for people with a disability. It claims to be the leading disability events organisation in the country Wheelchair basketball is a popular sport for disabled people and is organised by the GBWBA which runs 12 National and 200 regional events every year. Their programmes have assisted thousands of disabled people (including those in Haringey) in developing their sporting prowess to become regional, national, and in some case- paralympic champions. They cater for all forms of disability- wheelchair, sensory, amputee, learning disabilities etc.
Programmes Affecting Age and Gender:
Basketball programmes for men and women are run all over the country and for all ages - from toddlers to veterans. However, there are more opportunities for men - for example in Haringey there are six clubs for boys and men and only one for girls and women.
Is Basketball Being Developed Well?
Despite the best efforts of the various UK basketball associations - and they are indeed impressive - it has to be concluded that in terms of national impact they have not, as yet, succeeded. Perhaps the key to becoming a major national sport is securing prime-time television coverage (as it is what attracts the youth), as for example in the United States, and this so far the UK associations have failed to do. There is also a question about the generally poor state of public sports facilities and opportunities in this country (which can only be improved through financial assistance), compared certainly to Europe, and this too has had an adverse effect on the development of British basketball. Despite these problems, the real reason that British basketball is not excelling to the extent that it should be is because the EBBA is being run by incompetent people exemplified by the fact that Britain presently has no international team, and until the EBBA becomes a well run organisation there is no real chance for facilities and standards to improve.
