Rwandan-American point guard Adonis Filer has rooted for a winning attitude as he and his teammates hope to lead APR to the Basketball Africa League (BAL) for the first time.
The Rwandan champions are already in Dakar, Senegal, where they will embark on BAL 2024 Sahara Conference journey which runs from May 4-12 at the Dakar Arena.
The team’s first game will be against Tunisian giants US Monastir on Saturday, May 4 and Filer believes winning mentality will be key for them to get important results in Dakar.
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"We are just playing basketball, everything is just basketball. No matter what, just come with the mindset of working hard, playing together as a team and just having a winning attitude,” he said.
Talking about APR’s opening game against US Monastir, a team he beat during the 2023 Sahara Conference games with Rwanda Energy Group (REG), Filer said he respects every team, noting that the Tunisian giants are always "a tough, a tough opponent, every time we play.”
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"So, we are just going to go out and follow the coaches’ game plan so that we can come out victorious,” he noted.
The star point guard heaped praise on APR’s new signings Odadiah Noel and Abdullah Ahmed who both signed from Westchester Knicks of the NBA G-League, describing them as "good additions who bring good energy.”
"Obadiah is smart and strong. He's a good player, a great player. Abdullah, the same thing, smart and strong, can help us, at the five position. So, just looking for big things from those two guys,” he noted.
Filer pointed out that APR are in Dakar with a target to win all their Conference games.
"The target was always the same: to win,” he confidently said.
"The first year I played in this [Sahara Conference], we came out in first place and we lost in the playoffs in the first round. And, in the second year, we tied for first place and we came here and lost again in the first round. So the goal is the same...just to win.”
"So we want to win in Senegal and carry that momentum over to Kigali and, you know, make our fans proud and win here. I think it's no problem,” he noted.
APR are among four teams pooled in the Sahara Conference where they will be joined by US-Monastir of Tunisia, Nigeria’s Rivers Hoopers and BAL 2023 runners-up and home side AS Douanes (Senegal).
APR roster in Dakar
Adonis Filer, Dario Hunt, Ntore Habimana, William Robeyns, Jean Jacques Wilson Nshobozwabyosenumukiza, Axel Mpoyo, Obadiah Noel, Abdullah Ahmed Mohamed, Dan Kimasa, Christophe Ruta, Larson Shema Niyibizi and Bush Wamukota.