The 2015 South Sudanese Australian National Classic welcomed special guests, Luol Deng of the Miami Heat, Joe Mantegna of Blair Academy, and CEO of the Luol Deng Foundation, Steve Vear. Deng, an NBA player of South Sudanese heritage, hosted a free basketball clinic on Thursday, July 9 for selected National Classic players and other invited guests. Heading up the clinic was Mantegna, who coached Deng previously in high school, and still works closely with his Foundation. Deng and Mantegna were eager to see the local talent on offer and help coaches by sharing resources, expertise and other relevant information.
Deng says, “I first attended the SSANBA Tournament in July 2013 and was amazed by the talent at the tournament as well as how the community all comes together in one place. I left knowing that I had to get more involved with the project where this year I am excited to bring my High School Coach, Joe Mantegna, with me to run a basketball clinic to help the kids and coaches grow and develop their skills.”
The day was also used as an opportunity to present the latest signing for Melbourne United, Majok Majok. Majok joined Deng in a jersey presentation and answered questions from the media. This was a fantastic opportunity to highlight the talent on offer from the South Sudanese Australian community and help spread the word on the work of the South Sudanese Australian National Basketball Association.
Helping Hoops was proud to support the clinic, which featured many children from Helping Hoops programs amongst the 70-plus participants. The work that Deng and his team do with their community all over the world is truly admirable, and we look forward to working with Luol, Joe and Steve in the future to open up even more opportunities for children.
