Oilers’ Enabu keeps playing options open

BY ANDREW MWANGUHYA
National Basketball League (NBL) playoffs, regional and continental engagements, and the national team will remain focal in Jimmy Enabu’s game even as the guard slows down to focus on his flying.
His reduced availability first showed when he missed some games for City Oilers last year.
Then, it was widely reported that he had retired although it later turned out the player had just asked Oilers for some time off, and not necessarily retirement.
Jimmy, one of the six Enabu brothers and one basketball playing sister, had just reflected and taken to one of his other childhood dreams flying planes. But with injuries taking a toll on the Oilers as playoffs beckoned, and as Ndejje threw in a scare at the champions in the quarterfinals before they eventually pulled through 2-1, Jimmy made a comeback.
He had to urgently avail himself to rescue the Oilers, and boy did he do it well as the immovable force soared to their unprecedented seventh straight league title.But with Coronavirus forcing the 2020 season off, save for national team engagements in November, basketball fans have been left at sea whether they will see Jimmy dribbling them into excitement again next campaign.

Club supportive
“Like I said,” Jimmy, 31, explained, “I will do my best to be available for playoffs, regional tournaments (Zone V), Bal (Basketball Africa League) and the national team.
“I’m really focusing on my flying course and I want it done so we move into the next thing.
“With the above, I’ll be available, but for regular season, it’ll really depend. City Oilers management know the situation and they are supportive.”
The guard was, however, quick to add that whether he stays on longer than next year, “It’ll be the management of the club to decide at the time. It’ll also depend on how I’m feeling at the time.”
Jimmy revealed that his intention was not to feature in the playoffs last season but circumstances forced him out of his short break.
“If the boys were all healthy,” he said, “I trusted them 100 per cent but that wasn’t the case. So I came to help.”
Stephen Omony, Jonathan Egau and Francis Azolibe were injured, with the regurning Jimmy, Landry Ndikumana, Ben Komakech and James Okello literally taking matters into their hands in the series.

Impressive medal collection
Instrumental in the series, Jimmy dropped 16 points in that best-of-seven final decider for a 72-57 victory over the hard-fighting Canons as they won the club’s unprecedented seventh title last season. Jimmy, who clinched his first national league title with Power in 2011, has since added another seven with the Oilers from 2013 to 2019.
Also a two-time Zone V champion, he has played at two AfroBasket Championships and as many Africa Championship Cups.
Yet, even with his reduced availability because of his new obligations at Kajjansi Flying School, the guard has some unfinished with the Oilers.

Unfinished business
“Of course if we can win the Zone 5 again, that would be nice. But Bal is the focus now. Not just to qualify for it, but to try win it. Tough but it’s doable, for sure.”
The Oilers were unsuccessful on their first go at the inaugural Basketball Africa League (Bal) qualifiers in Tanzania in December.
Jimmy is efficient both as a point and shooting guard, allowing Silverbacks (national team) and Oilers coach Mandy Juruni to deploy him in different roles for club and country depending the teams needs. This supremely talented basketball player attributes his success to “Many people,” but his elder brother, “Ivan (Enabu) was really the closest to me in terms of playing basketball,” he said. “Then Ken (Balyejusa) was a big inspiration.” And this is what Enabu told Daily Monitor of Stephen Omony in 2018.
“For Steve Omony, man! For one year I’ve played with him at club and country, what a man! His approach, his mindset, the way he carries himself, he is a pure pro.”

Family affair
Jimmy says competing against and loving his brothers and sister has been both fulfilling and fun.
“My family has really been behind me, they follow and push me.” His basketball family reads Maurice, Denis, Mark, Ivan, Emmanuel and their sister Evelyn – all superstars on court.
But it is Ivan that Jimmy is fond of most on court. The two played together at UCU Canons before they later went separate ways. Ivan joined Warriors and Jimmy Power. “With my siblings, we push and support each other but we are also competitive.” That competitiveness was witnessed in full colour at the 2011 National Basketball League (NBL) finals.
The finals pitted Ivan’s Warriors against Jimmy’s Power – at the time heavily fuelled by the impeccable Isaac Afridra and Ben Komakech.
Warriors went on to surrender a 2-0 lead as they lost three games on the trot.
They did manage to level the seven-game series at 3-3 but Afidra took over the decisive Game Seven as Power literally powered home to the title 99-97.
By far the most entertaining player in the country at the time, a hurting Ivan sat at YMCA motionless and inconsolable, unsure of the next step.
“He had not won his first title, and it was my first. He was hurt but he was also happy for me,” narrated Jimmy.
He now personally counts eight of them, and even with the uncertainty of his guaranteed availability, it would be foolhardy to stake against his ninth and Oilers delayed eighth in 2021.
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