PODGORICA (FIBA U16 European Championship 2017) - The FIBA U16 European Championship 2017 is about more than just the competition on the court as the players took part in the FIBA Players' Educational Workshop about balancing basketball and education both during and after basketball.

The workshop was part of a new project started by FIBA to help youngsters become better players and professionals on and off the court for all stages of their careers. The teams in Podgorica received education-based life lessons from former Montenegro international Goran Jeretin as well as former Spanish international and current FIBA European development projects coordinator, Elisabeth Cebrian.

"The topic was education and you can talk hours and hours about it and its importance. But with our experience we thought it was more important to send one or two messages but very clear ones," Cebrian said.

"We thought it was important to put this education box in their brains so that somehow it is there and they can open this box at any time. They don't need to do it with 16-years-old, but we need to send this message and it must be somewhere."

The interactive workshop was held in English with eight teams at a time. It was a group participation setup with the players asked to think about correct time management, goal-setting, and how to properly manage the people in the players' lives, from family, friends, agents and coaches.

"It was great seeing these guys, especially comparing myself at this age. They have a really good opportunity if they have somebody to push them and give some direction," Jeretin said. "For me that did not happen. This meeting is very, very important for these players, especially since the average professional career is just four or five years."

The players were appreciative of the event.

"I learned how to be a professional player and someone who needs to take care of their life in basketball, how to behave and how to manage your 24 hours correctly," Israel captain Raziel Hayun said. "I think it's a great event, and you can really learn a lot."

And Montenegro captain Jovan Kljajic added: "It's important that we think about education. I think it's a great idea and I am thankful that they will do it every year. It's a good thing."

FIBA held a similar workshop at the FIBA U18 Women’s European Championship in Sopron, Hungary earlier this summer. The workshops are also organized at global events such as the FIBA U17 Basketball World Cup and FIBA U19 Basketball World Cup, men and women. 

For further photos from the workshop, please click here.

FIBA