RENOWNED basketball coach Ganon Baker will be in Manila in September for a four-day basketball camp sponsored by grassroots basketball league, Smart Breakdown Basketball Invitationals.
The camp will be held on September 2, 3, 9, and 10 at the Moro Lorenzo Sports Center inside the Ateneo de Manila University campus in Loyola Heights, Quezon City.
Incredibly, Coach Ganon—to borrow his own words—thought “I am not good enough to play in the NBA.” Yet, he trains and works with many National Basketball Association (NBA) stars from Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Amare Stoudemire and James Harden, to name but a few.
I had a chance to talk to Coach Ganon about his transition from a player into coaching and his thoughts about teaching in Manila.
The US has one of the best sports scenes in the world with five major sports (American Football, baseball, basketball, hockey, and soccer). Why did you choose basketball of all the sports?
I chose basketball because my dad played and coached the game. He thought I was good and I thought that he could teach me how to be good.
So you played at all levels?
Yes, I played the game at all levels—high school at Hampton High School in Virginia and in college—first at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh and the University of North Carolina-Wilmington where I finished. I played professional basketball in Iceland and tried out for the Denver Nuggets but got cut.
Why the transition into coaching?
I got hurt and injuries hurt any chances of playing professionally. So moving into coaching was a natural progression for me since I was a point guard.
While this September camp will not be your first time to go to the Philippines, what did you hear about Filipino basketball?
In the US, we heard of the Filipinos’ passion for basketball. Furthermore, I always wanted to go there. (Strength and conditioning coach) Eric Banes first invited me here and I fell in love with the passion and the community just through the basketball circles. Breakdown basketball reached out to me and I was glad to come again.
For my September camp at the Moro Lorenzo Sports Center, expect me to bring a lot of energy and passion. I will show coaches and players (who want to learn the game) the right way to train the right and to work on their moves.
Here are the details for the Ganon Baker Basketball Clinic.
For players 10 years old and up (boys and girls) and limited to 30 players only, the fee is 12,500 per player.
For coaches and trainers, the fee is P7,000 for the four sessions or P2,000 for one session. You may check out Smart Breakdown Basketball Invitationals’ Facebook page for more details and any inquiries.