Four Filipinos – three boys and one girl – will represent Asia Pacific in the Jr. NBA Global Championship on Aug. 6-11 at ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Walt Disney World near Orlando, Florida.
The event is for the top 13- and 14-year-old boys and girls teams from around the world.
Camille Nolasco, Heinz Gabriel Demisana, Sebastian Reyes, and Lionel Matthew Rubico were recognized as part of the top performing players of the first-ever Jr. NBA Asia Pacific Selection Camp staged June 15-16 at the Universitas Pelita Harapan (UPH) in Jakarta, Indonesia.
Nolasco credited her big fighting heart for her feat, saying: “When I first saw my opponents, I didn’t expect to be here since they’re so tall, but I brought the Filipino mentality ‘puso’ which helped achieve my goal.”
Led by Jr. NBA coaches Carlos Barroca, Rob Newson and Natalia Andre, the two-day camp engaged participants to execute technical and tactical skills and develop teamwork among players of varying languages and cultural backgrounds.
In addition, Jr. NBA athletes participated in the skills challenge during the Jr. NBA All-Star Saturday Night event that featured Jr. NBA Indonesia alumni and Indonesian personalities including professional basketball player Daniel Wenas, actress and singer Mikha Tambayong, and social media influencers Hadi al Ghifary and Reynal Abipraya.
