GB CHIEFS SET FOR POW-WOW IN ORLANDO
British Basketball’s brains trust meets in Orlando on Saturday to plot Great Britain’s challenge at the Olympic Games – and beyond.
GB men’s coach Chris Finch and his assistants, along with the governing body’s performance staff, will gather at the NBA’s All Star Weekend to finalise their plans ahead of London.
It is understood that the team, which includes Chicago Bulls forward Luol Deng, will hold their training camp at the home of the Houston Rockets, where Finch is currently the assistant coach. They will then play a number of warm-up friendlies, including a glamour tie against the USA in Manchester, before their first Games appearance in over 60 years.
“The programme is almost complete,†revealed British Basketball vice-chairman Bill Mcinnes. “We’ve had to match up some of our pre-Olympic games with some of the team involved in EuroBasket qualifiers.
“It’s been a challenge to get the right opposition to test the men and women so that they’re ready for London. But being able to face the world champions in Manchester the week before the Olympics is great.â€
McInnes: programme drafted (wooller.com)
The group, which also includes performance chief Chris Spice and chairman Roger Moreland, are also scheduled to hold informal talks with representatives of USA Basketball, as well as FIBA secretary-general Patrick Baumann.
MVP has learnt that the head of the sport’s global governing body conducted a whistle stop tour of England, Scotland and Wales earlier this month in a bid to find a solution to plans to unify the three home nations into a single entity ahead of the Olympics.
And with the fact-finding mission over, Baumann may now reveal some of his thoughts on the options available.
“In terms of the long-term governance issues, we’re working towards that with the thee boards, even through June is the deadline,†said McInnes.
“It’s an opportunity to discuss some of the items and make sure we’ve got all the information we need.â€
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