GOLD COAST (Australia) - Not only players are creating ripples in the rising Pacific basketball, as promising coaches, Brent Tipton of Guam and William Peter of Fiji have also carved their paths in the coaching ranks.

Tipton and Peter have been selected to be part of the Emerging Coaches Initiative (ECI) of Basketball Australia (BA), a program aimed to further hone young mentors (23-35 years of age) with professional development, training, and opportunities to coach.

And like their proud Pacific players making big strides in different international tournaments, Tipton and Peter are pleasured and honored to represent the Pacific in the program that would only benefit their fellows back at home in the long haul.

“It has been a really good experience. I’m learning a lot and putting a lot of concepts to paper. I’m thankful that they let me into the program since I’m from Guam so I’m very grateful to learn and grow,” said Tipton.

“It’s a real eye-opening experience to be a part of this initiative as I’ve been learning new and creative ways to improve myself as a coach. It’s also to help improve the players that I coach,” added Peter.

BA’s ECI is a year-long pipeline that started last August through online and remote learning for now due to the quarantine restrictions of the pandemic.

Photo: William Peter coaching the Fiji U15 youth national team

Included in the program are monthly online webinars, individual meetings with ECI coordinators for Individual Development Plan (IDP), attendance, and participation in Basketball Australia Development Camps and junior national team camps.

Back home, ECI coaches are required to hold mentoring sessions in-home cities and reviewing of team practices and games for application of learnings thus far from the innovative project that will run until next year.

At the end of the program, program graduates will receive Basketball Australia Performance Coach and Basketball Australia Coach Developer accreditations with certification for Sports Code Hudl Level Two.

But more than those recognitions, Tipton and Peter have put premium in the things they will and have acquired so far – for those are the intangibles more than papers that they would pass to their players and many generations to come.

“These topics have given me a different take on the game. These also broadened my knowledge of what is taught around the world. I was familiar with these concepts and teachings but this initiative has given me a deeper understanding of them,” he added.

“I've already started using some of these concepts with my club team back here and it’s not only improved the understanding of the players but also improved how we play as well.”

FIBA