International Basketball Players arrive Nigeria For ABL Debut Season

All is set for the debut of the African Basketball League as top International Basketballers who will be featured throughout the season have arrived Nigeria for the league which tips off on 5^th of March 2016 at the Landmark event centre.

African Basketball League

Four cities in West Africa will play host to a hundred and twenty games in the first season; Lagos, Abijan, Dakar and Libreville. Lagos Islanders, Lagos Warriors and Stallions are the participating Nigerian teams.

The other Africa clubs that will participate in the league are Dakar Rapids from Senegal, Abidjan Ramblers from the Cote d’Ivoire and Izobe Basketball Club from Libreville.

The first game will see the Stallions playing at home against Dakar Rapids of Senegal on Saturday March 5th , the game will commence by 6.30pm at Landmark Event Centre.

Some key players to look out for during the season are Mark Hill, Kelechi Anuna, Melvin Baker, Akintunde Moses, amongst others.

Mark Hill: At 5’11, Mark Hill is a quick silver point guard who has the ability to lead his team, while being able to score at will anytime. He has an excellent foot speed and agility which makes a very good penetrator who can finish in traffic. Mark was most notedly the league’s MVP in Finland for the 2014/2015 season before he joined the Lagos Islanders.

 Kelechi Anuna: Kelechi is a point guard for the Stallions, having also played for the Nigerian National Team in the past and more recently for the Slovakia League. Born and bred in the USA, Kelechi played basketball for his college Middle Tennessee State University before he played professionally. He has played in Top leagues in Tunisia, Slovakia, Dominican Republic, Egypt and Venezula.

 Melvin Baker: At an outstanding 6’7’ and 215 pounds, Melvin Baker is more than an able power forward, adept at blocking shooters who might be aiming for his team’s basket. He has played basketball across Europe, most noteably wining the championship in Helsinki Finland and winning the championship while averaging 17ppg and 8rpg.Melvin represents the Lagos Islanders.

Akintunde Moses: Akin is a versatile, physical and athletic player with tremendous athleticism and strength which make him a powerful lead on the court. He is an excellent mid-range and 3-point shooter. Akin represents the Stallions.

As more professional basketball players arrive in Nigeria for what can be described as one of the greatest and most remarkable events in Africa, we hold on to our seats in anticipation of The African Basketball League Season premier.

Tickets are available on www.ablafrica.com, Wakanow offices and Select Union Bank branches.

The ABL is proudly supported by TRACE, Union Bank, Wakanow, Cornerstone Insurance, Landmark, THE BEAT 99.9FM and ASKY Airline.

International Basketball Players arrive Nigeria For ABL Debut Season

African Basketball League: Stallions Sign Three International Players

In preparations for the 2016 ABL season scheduled to tip off on Friday, March 4 2016, The Stallions have signed on three players who have played in different leagues across the globe.

African Basketball League

The players are Kelechi Anuna, Hassan Adams and Akintunde Moses.

Kelechi has played for the Nigeria National team and with clubs in top leagues in Tunisia, Slovakia, Egypt, Venezuela and most recently Dominican Republic.

Kelechi is happy to be back in the country and excited about the opportunity to be a part of the league.

Hassan was drafted in the NBA in 2006 after playing his college basketball as an Arizona Wildcat in University of Arizona.

He has played with NBA clubs including New Jersey Nets (Now Brooklyn Nets) and Toronto Raptors. He has also played in Philippine (Rain or Shine Elasto Painters) and Singapore (Singapore Slingers).

He plans to bring this experience to bear as he joins Stallions.

US-based Akintunde Moses played with the El Shams Basketball Club. He played college basketball with the Three Rivers Community College and was at Mullen All-Star Basketball Camp.

He is a tenacious rebounder and finishes around the basket with authority. We should expect this from him as he joins the ABL.

The maiden season of the African Basketball League which was earlier scheduled for Sunday 31 January 2016 was postponed to allow the league management finalize agreement with all players and to ensure that all game centers are fully ready.

The first game will be held on March 4^th,2016 at Landmark Event Center in Lagos.

The ABL is proudly supported by Cornerstone Insurance, Wakanow, Radisson Blu and Union Bank.

African Basketball League: Stallions Sign Three International Players

African Basketball League Kicks Off With Grand Launch

Set in the breezy, cozy and relaxing environs of the Lagos Motorboat Club and just adjacent the Atlantic Ocean, the launch of the African basketball league (ABL) was a glamorous event in every sense of the word. The idyllic event, which was attended by many captains of industry from different sectors of the Nigerian economy was held on 17th December, 2015.

African Basketball League

The programme, which was ably anchored by the prominent On-Air-Personality(OAP),Olisa Adibua, involved photo -shoot sessions and interviews of the organiser of the league Ugo Udezue ,CEO of the African Sports Entertainment.. The launch was also spiced up with dance sessions from 2 prominent indigenous musical groups and a documentary involving brief interviews of the major masterminds of the league.

In his welcome address, Ugo emphasized that the ABL was set up primarily for the purpose of improving socio-economic development in the African continent via Tourism and Sports.

He said,’’ Yes, we are the investors in ABL but the credit does not belong to us,Yes we are a private entity but profits are not our motivation. If it was just about profits I won’t be standing here this moment. If it was profit we don’t have to pay players the way we are going to because the market value doesn’t dictate we do. Yes we have worked hard to put together this opportunity but the credit goes to the cities that we will represent like Lagos state, like Abidjan, like Libreville, like Dakar. Our purpose is larger than ourselves, our purpose is not for today but to lay the groundwork in sports for our future generations. ‘’

Ugo added that the goal of the ABL is to create jobs and build an ecosystem that benefits the African environment.

He gave accolades to those who have invested private money in sports before, amongst them includes ex-National Basketball Association (NBA) player Obinna Ekezie,Sam Ahmedu, Damoye Oyesiku, Ayo Bakari, Toyin Sonoiki, Musa Adamu, Lamine Savane, Sound Sultan and Babs Ogunade.

The ABL will officially get underway in the tail end of January, 2016.It is a private league that will adopt a round-robin format and the teams that will be involved in the inaugural edition of the league are Lagos Islanders ,Stallions, Lagos City Chiefs and Lagos Warriors Basket Club (all Nigerian clubs), Dakar Rapids (Senegal) Abidjan Ramblers (Ivory Coast or Cote D’Ivoire) and Izobe Basketball Club from Libreville, Gabon.

One major point of note that bodes well for the league is that a good number of its management board have extensive experience in managing basketball both within Nigeria nay Africa and abroad.

Some top brands that have already built strategic partnerships with this noble initiative, in the capacity of sponsors of the tournament, are Union Bank, Wakanow, Cornerstone Insurance, and Radisson Blu.

ABL is the brainchild of Africa Sports Entertainment Limited in collaboration with Wakanow Sports.

African Basketball League Kicks Off With Grand Launch

African Basketball League Set For Launch In Lagos

African Sports Entertainment in partnership with Wakanow Sports is set to launch the African Basketball League ABL on Wednesday December 16th at the Boat Club in Ikoyi, Lagos.

African Basketball League

The highly anticipated corporate launch will introduce the Lagos Islanders, Stallions and Lagos City Chiefs as the Nigerian Clubs in the league. Other Clubs include the Dakar Rapids from Senegal, Abidjan Ramblers from the Ivory Coast and Izobe Basketball Club from Libreville, Gabon.

In a Statement released by the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Wakanow, Obinna Ekezie, Basketball offers significant opportunities for job creation and socio-economic development in Africa. Ekezie stated that, “Sports entertainment is a business

that will create more jobs in Africa and especially Nigeria with the fall of oil prices and the opportunity for the Sports industry to contribute immensely in this area since it is an industry mainly targeted at the youth’’.

Ekezie, who played professional Basketball in the NBA for Dallas Mavericks and Chicago Bulls noted that a new perspective is needed if Africa is to take advantage of these value opportunities. “The challenge we have had is the way we have viewed sports and the ABL’s value proposition turns the current Basketball model in Africa on its head. We want people to travel across Africa, spend their money in Africa and enjoy the game of Basketball,” he noted.

The ABL will be managed by seasoned experts who have experienced in professional Basketball management at the highest level. The Chief Executive Officer of the league Ugo Udezue, added that “The value proposition of the ABL is largely built around professionalism. We will run a very professional league with franchises that are managed very professionally. The value of a league is in the strength of its franchises and ABL will largely manage the franchises to optimize their commercial and technical value.”

He also noted that one of the reasons the ABL has been established was to productively channel the talent and passion Africans have for the game. He noted, “The ABL’s management of the Professional League and the Junior League will provide a structure for harnessing Basketball talents in Africa. A great Basketball team is built on technical and commercial successes and this is what the ABL intends to build in all its franchisees.”

African Basketball League Set For Launch In Lagos