The Tribune

By RENALDO DORSETT

Tribune Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

THE Bahamas Basketball Federation named its Baha Mar senior men’s national team scheduled to compete in the next round of FIBA Americup 2022 Qualifiers.

Led by head coach Chris Demarco of the Golden State Warriors, the Bahamas will face fellow Group D teams, the United States (November 29) and Puerto Rico (November 30) at the Indiana Convention Center in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Games will be streamed on ESPN+, but no fans or outsiders will be allowed inside the bubble for the games.

The BBF faced several challenges in the selection process and team preparation with funding, COVID-19 restrictions and limited access to local facilities, but the final list comprises several veterans and others making their debut at the senior national team level.

Team Bahamas includes Mychel Thompson (Big 3), D’Shon Taylor (NPBA), David Nesbitt (Mina Belo Horizonte - Brazil), Willis Mackey (JSA Bordeaux - France), Nashad Mackey (Embry Riddle University), Jaron Cornish (Zornotza Saskibaloi Taldea - Spain), Kentwan Smith (Garonne ASPTT - France), Eugene Bain (NPBA), Tavario Miller (Boca Juniors - Argentina), Robert Nortmann (Romerstrom Gladiators Trier - Germany), Godfrey Rolle III (Southwest Baptist University) and Ahmad Pratt (Southwestern College).

Thompson, Taylor and Nesbitt were starters in the previous window of AmeriCup qualifiers for the men’s national team when they scored a 76-59 win over Mexico last February at the Atlantis resort. Cornish and Willis Mackey were also members of the team.

Rolle played under Demarco in an exhibition series in August 2019 when The Bahamas faced the University of Memphis Tigers on their foreign tour at the Baha Mar resort. He will make his senior national team debut official along with Pratt.

“We have marquee players that are there, we have three of the starters from the last window and we have a cohesive unit that I think will make life easier for us once we play these teams,” BBF President Mario Bowleg said.

The United States is the lone unbeaten team in the group qualifying standings. The Bahamas and Mexico are 1-1 and Puerto Rico is 0-2. “We expect this team to be competitive with the competition level we will face in the likes of the United States and Puerto Rico for the mere fact that it was not just us, but those two countries as well found themselves unable to bring some of their best players at this time because of the pandemic. With players coming in from around the world, persons coming from different countries were unable to enter the United States,” Bowleg said. “All in all I think we picked a team with good size, guys with an average height of 6’7 - 6’8” that can switch on defence, which is what we want to do and I think that offensively we will be fine. With who we have available I think we will be very competitive and it’s just a matter of getting these guys together in practice and putting in the necessary system we need. Once again we want to play small to try and make those two countries play small against us. Playing small and quick has been successful for us as we can see in the last two games against the Dominican Republic and Mexico so we want to keep that.”

The second window of the qualifiers will be played in a “bubble” format, the first of its kind for basketball’s international governing body. The top three teams from each group will qualify for the FIBA AmeriCup 2022. AmeriCup is the FIBA Americas championship.

The US won the last edition of the event in 2017.

Taking into account health protocols due to the COVID-19 pandemic, FIBA has decided to return to competition in a “bubble” format which allows for a more controlled and secured environment for teams to compete. This format will also facilitate the implementation of governmental Sanitary Protocol required by many countries across the America’s zone.

Players, coaches and staff will go through strict testing and other protocols before arriving in Indianapolis and during their time at the event.