CAN Rawle Marshall and company capture gold at the CBC Championship? This is one of the biggest questions being asked by local pundits as Guyana begin their journey tonight at the tournament against the British Virgin Islands.
The 3 000-capacity seating Multi-purpose Sports Complex is expected to be filled when the Guyanese square off against the hosts from 21:00 hrs.
Four games are billed for today, starting at 12:00hrs with last year’s runners-up Bahamas coming up against St Vincent and the Grenadines followed by 2009 third-placed team Cuba versus Antigua and Barbuda.
In the penultimate game of the night, defending champions US Virgin Islands will begin their quest to repeat against the men from the Land of the Flying Fish.
All eyes will be on Marshall, the Guyana captain, who is the country’s high-profile player, having participated in the NBA and some of the biggest clubs in Europe.
Marshall arrived in Guyana on June 15 for the first time since leaving when he was just four years old. The now 32-year-old shooting guard said that leading Guyana to their first male title (women won in 1997) would be something he would cherish for the rest of his life.
Marshall played with the Dallas Mavericks and the Indiana Pacers, after going undrafted in 2005 despite having an illustrious career at the Oakland University during his four years in college.
Along with Marshall is 6’8” forward Gordon Klaiber, who is making his second trip to the CBC tournament after featuring in 2007.
Klaiber plays his basketball with Aomori Watts in the Japanese Professional Basketball League. He also has played in Greece and other top flight European clubs.
Even though Guyana finished at the bottom of the table in 2007 when the CBC was hosted in Puerto Rico, Klaiber finished the tournament as one of the highest scorers, averaging 25 points per game.
In the back court, Guyana will be led by Andre DeFlorimonte from New York, Ray Victor of the BVI and Ravens’ pair of Ryan Stephney and Akeem Kanhai.
Kanhai, the 22-year-old wonder kid, who many believe will be the next ‘big thing’ for Guyana in the sport, is playing in his second CBC tournament after leading the team in rebounds at the 2011 tournament that was held in the Bahamas.
Retrieve Raiders big-man Dwayne ‘Brown Sugar’ Roberts, who had already stated his readiness to ‘sweeten’ the CBC tournament, is one of the most-talked-about local player to make the team this year; playing in his second championship as well.
The championship will be broadcast in its entirety on youtube.com/fiba and features the participation of Antigua, Bahamas, Barbados, Cuba, Guyana, St Vincent & Grenadines, Virgin Islands and hosts British Virgin Islands.
FIBA Americas president Usie Richards describes this year’s championships as a historic moment for the Caribbean, stating a” worldwide streaming broadcast of the CBC Championship means our sport is now in a true globalised stage.
The exposure it allows for everyone involved is important for the ultimate development goal that we have in FIBA when it comes to the future of basketball and its growth throughout the world.
Having started in 1981, the 2014 edition marks the 22nd hosting of the tournament that awards three spots to the 2014 Centrobasket Championship which in turn awards four spots to the 2015 FIBA Americas Championship.
(By Rawle Toney)
