When the Vodafone Fiji Cup basketball competition starts at the FMF Gymnasium today, it will set into motion the process of finding the best players for national duties.
The competition which takes place after a three-year hiatus will be the key ground where players for the Pacific Mini Games and the Melanesian Cup.
Basketball Fiji’s interim chief operating officer William Peters said this during an interview with Times Sports yesterday.
“The (Vodafone) Fiji Cup is basically sort of a stepping stone towards those two important events,” Peters said.
“Our Mini Pacific Games training squad which is going to feature the 3×3 code has already been selected and so we’ve got our training squad together and those that are in that training squad will also be participating here at the Vodafone Fiji Cup.”
This tournament will also serve as an area where the players already selected can further improve on themselves ahead of their regional outings.
“This will sort of be a platform in terms of getting them back on track and in terms of also assessing their performance on the court for the Mini Pacific Games,” he said.
“The Vodafone Fiji Cup will also be a way where our national coaches and selectors can also have a preliminary list of players that are available to represent the country at the Melanesia Cup which is later on this year in October which will be hosted by the Solomon Islands.”
Meanwhile, Vodafone Fiji’s sponsorship manager Adriu Vakarau believes the competition serves as a clear pathway towards the development of formidable basketball players.
“That’s another step forward into exposing our players and getting a much-needed experience and also getting the world recognition and our players going to Australia and New Zealand or even to the NBA one day,” Vakarau said.
“We encourage companies and fans and athletes to get into the sport. Support it at the grassroots level.”
The competition will end this Saturday.
