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Meet Nash and co. |
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Written by Ted Clarke, Citizen staff
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Wednesday, 28 October 2009 |
Prince George Minor Basketball players had an audience of 19,700 watching their every move last week at GM Pace in Vancouver, where they played at halftime at the NBA preseason game. The team members were: Malcolm MacDonald, Erica Cole, Ryan Hampe, Carly Frenkel, Manni Dhemi, Josh Rockwell, Danny Rockwell, Tanner Williams, Ben McMillan, Justin Bennett and Dorion Van Caeseele.
City basketball players rub elbows with Canada’s top hoops export during pre-season game in Vancouver
Justin Bennett missed the dunk, and who could blame him.
With 19,700 sets of eyes watching him try to jam a basketball through the hoop at a sold-out General Motors Place, the pressure was on the 13-year-old to perform in the last play of the game.
Bennett was part of an 11-member team of Prince George players from the Steve Nash Youth Basketball League selected to provide five minutes of halftime entertainment during last week’s Phoenix Suns-Portland Trail Blazers NBA exhibition game in Vancouver.
“When you were on the court you didn’t really notice the crowd much, but after it was like, ‘Whoa,’” said the six-foot-three Bennett, now in his seventh season of basketball. “I told my buddy Tanner (Williams) to pass me the ball, I was going to go for the dunk, and I tried but I missed.”
Bennett’s air-mail delivery ended with a hard landing and he was left with a sore knee, but it was worth it for the response he got in return from the crowd.
“It’s amazing we were the lucky ones who had a chance to do that,” said Bennett.
Dorion Van Caeseele, 13, said it was her best basketball experience in five years of playing and “the fastest five minutes she’s ever lived through.
“I wish we could have played longer,” she said. “We all got to play and the older kids got to pass to the younger kids, so they all had a chance to be the centre of attention for the fans. The fans loved Justin’s dunk.”
Both are Grade 8 students at D.P. Todd secondary school and they intend to try out for the Trojans junior basketball team.
Stage fright was pervasive before the kids, aged 8-13, took to the floor for their intrasquad game. However, it didn’t take long for their basketball instincts to take over.
“The kids were deer in headlights in the tunnel when they were walking out on the court, but as soon as the ball went up, they just played, and that was the great thing about it,” said John MacDonald, who co-coached the team with Keith Hampe. “Everybody got to touch the ball and everybody took a shot or at least bounced the ball on the court. They disregarded all the people and just went out and had fun.
“We were incredibly fortunate to have been picked for that.”
The once-in-a-lifetime event was made possible by team mom/coach Rhonda McMillan, who made the application to Basketball B.C. Prince George Minor Basketball Association director Louise Holmes took care of some of the arrangements for the
trip after Lawrie Johns of Basketball B.C., picked the Prince George team over a multitude of applications.
“Because they had to travel for 10 hours they gave it to the Prince George kids -- for once it pays to live 10 hours from Vancouver,” said McMillan, whose 12-year-old son Ben played in the game.
“Those kids really shone, they really made the best of it. It was all-out offence, no defence, and almost all of them got a shot off.”
Other members of the Prince George team were Danny Rockwell, Josh Rockwell, Manni Dhemi, Carly Frenkel, Erica Cole, Ryan Hampe, and Malcolm MacDonald.
An added thrill for the players was seeing Vancouver Canucks players with courtside seats. The hockey players high-fived the kids as they left the court.
After the game, Steve Nash of the Suns met with the group of about 500 Steve Nash League players and gave a 15-minute talk that focused on the how he got to the NBA and importance of pursuing goals. Nash tossed his basketball shoes to the crowd and Warren Cullem of Vanderhoof emerged from the dogpile holding one of them.
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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 28 October 2009 )
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