NBL teams worried about break

Dickson Asiku (R) of Falcons drives to the hoop as UCU Canons’ Aisaiah Mabeny chases after him during a recent National Basketball League fixture at UCU Mukono. Falcons lost the match 65-55. PHOTOS/ ISMAIL KEZAALA

What you need to know:

  • The break is not one teams had planned for in what was expected to be a short season and the hope is that it does not take longer than anticipated.

The National Basketball League (NBL) will not return until, earliest, next weekend.

Talks between National Council of Sports (NCS) and Fuba pointed to next weekend being a more realistic time to have teams back in action after a window of two weeks.

The break is not one teams had planned for in what was expected to be a short season and the hope is that it does not take longer than anticipated.

“We are hoping they open up soon,” City Oilers’ head coach Mandy Juruni told Daily Monitor.

Juruni believes the teams will have to regain momentum whenever the green light is given and that it will be hard to get the best out of the players. However, while the teams are not playing games, most have remained active by carrying on with their training sessions or advising their players to remain active and ready.

“We have kept playing. Not training but playing pick up to stay in touch with the game,” Juruni said.

Betway Power, the team that raised the alarm, are also training after their players were vaccinated.

For Namuwongo Blazers, training is going on as before as the team keeps in shape for action whenever they are called upon.
Head coach Steven Nyeko believes the break will have effects on every team but it was something inevitable and every stakeholder should understand.

“We can’t ignore the fact that cases were rising and something had to be done,” he said before admitting his side will feel the effect.

“We are all affected and for us we are trying to observe Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) while training,”
What is clear for now is the fact that while the league is off, players are training and largely interacting openly with the wider public.

Power captain Isaac Afidra believes the season should have adopted a bubble format to ensure there is no interaction between those involved and the outside.

“We mix up with the public as we travel to and from practice and games so it’s hard to avoid contact,” he said.
For now, Fuba are encouraging teams to observe the SOPs, test and ensure the players all stay safe before action resumes.
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