Ghana - Ghana football is king, but basketball is catching up

From www.thestatesmanonline.com
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In Ghana, most, if not all athletes play football. Like in many other countries football is the national pastime. The style of the game is fast paced and chaotic.

Players are always running and the focus is solely on the ball. Despite the hectic nature of the game it is also very cerebral. Getting your opponent to play your style is an important key to victory. Similar in many ways to football, the game of basketball is gaining momentum in Ghana.

Basketball was invented in the United States by Dr. James Naismith, but it is starting to gain popularity worldwide. Until the year 2002 the United States won virtually all international competitions because of the superior talent of its National Basketball Association superstars.

At the 2002 Goodwill Games the US lost its first game in an international tournament since it started using professional players after the 1988 games in Seoul, South Korea. The United States finished sixth in that tournament and has not won an Olympic Gold Medal or a Goodwill Games tournament since then.

European nations are starting to take over as the pre-eminent basketball powers in the world. Countries like Spain, Germany, France and Italy have all faired extremely well in international competition in the last five years. Each of these countries has also produced a top tier NBA player.

Spain has Pau Gasol, Germany has 2007 NBA Most Valuable Player Dirk Nowitizki, France has the 2007 NBA Finals MVP Tony Parker and Italy produced the number one overall pick in the 2007 NBA Draft in Andrea Bargnani. Countries outside of Europe continue to win internationally. Argentina has won several gold medals in various competitions led by San Antonio Spurs guard Manu Ginobili.

Several of the NBA's best players in the last twenty years came from Africa. Hakeem "The Dream" Olajuwon, who was born in Nigeria, won two championships, an MVP award and several Defensive Player of the Year awards with the Houston Rockets.

Olajuwon is considered one of the most dominant centers in NBA history and still holds the record for most shots blocked in a career. In second place on that list is Dikembe Mutumbo, a center from the Democratic Republic of Congo. He is the face of the NBA's charity program in Africa.

Basketball in Ghana is relatively new but the popularity is increasing. Several NBA players either come from or have roots going back to Ghana. Nazr Mohammed is a center for the San Antonio Spurs, and he won his second NBA Championship this spring. His father was born in Ghana, and his brother Alhaji is a sophomore at the University of Louisville.

Pops Mensa-Bonsu was born in Ghana but lived in London for most of his life. He came to the United States to play for George Washington University where he went to the NCAA tournament and was in contention for his conference’s player of the year.

Ghanaian basketball reminds me of a football game. Speed, athleticism and endurance rule the court. Where I come from the players are not especially athletic, and dunks are not a common event. In any decent group here about 65% of the players are capable of jaw-dropping dunks.

Players who can’t dunk dedicate their time to perfecting dribble moves, using tricks such as throwing the ball between the defender’s legs and passing the ball off players’ heads. "The And 1 Mixtape" popularised many of these moves in the urban areas of the United Staets. Since the first tape came out the group has went on worldwide tours, showing their moves on every continent.

Absent from a lot of the games is a degree of fundamental skills. Defense, which according to pretty much every coach in the United States "wins championships", is missing from the matches. Players would prefer to let their man dunk than look bad by trying to stop him and failing.

With so much emphasis put on dunking and faking opponents out there is very little demand for good shooting at these games. Most of the players do not feel confident shooting from outside 15 or 16 feet.

Europe’s improvement in basketball can be attributed to coaching and player commitment. Players spend time on their school teams while also playing for more intense touring club teams. Getting the kind of coaching available to these players is very expensive. Few can afford to be taught the game of basketball if advanced club teams like those in Europe are not available.

In the United States the best high school players play on AAU teams. These teams tour the country and often have several professional prospects. Much like the European teams, AAU players improve because they receive exceptional coaching. Another factor is that these players are always matched up against a high level of talent. In order to succeed players must bring their best game every day.

The key to Ghana becoming a dominant basketball force is to cultivate quality coaching and competition. The things that can’t be taught, athleticism and size, are already here. The country just needs capable basketball coaches to teach the nation’s young talent. Once this happens Ghana will be right up there with Nigeria and Senegal as the dominant basketball powers in Africa.