APR Basketball Club’s loss to rivals Patriots on Wednesday, March 20 was painful for the army side but provided invaluable insights into how ready APR is for the Basketball Africa League (BAL) 2024, a continental showpiece where it will represent Rwanda in May. Since the BAL’s inaugural season in 2021, Rwandan teams have participated but put up rather modest performances. The Patriots are the best Rwandan performer at the showpiece, having reached the semi-finals in 2021. ALSO READ: Basketball: Perry drops 24 as Patriots stun APR In 2022, Rwanda Energy Group (REG) was the representative of the country but it did not go beyond the quarterfinals. The following year, the team suffered the same fate when it returned to the competition. With all that in mind, when APR won the 2022/2023 league title, the team’s administrators pledged to put up the best preparations possible to compete as best as they can at the BAL 2024. So far, it seems like they have done a lot in terms of signing many players, playing friendly games and holding regular training sessions. ALSO READ: BAL 2024: A look at APR’s Sahara Conference opponents However, Wednesday’s defeat to the Patriots can make one wonder whether APR is really ready for the BAL where it will rub shoulders with the best clubs on the continent like Egypt’s Al Ahly, Tunisia’s US Monastir and Angola’s Petro de Luanda. The BAL features some of the best African players, with the icing of foreign ones who are imported to make the teams even more competitive. So far, the showpiece has had the participation of big African names like Nuni Omot, Solo Diabate, Radhouane Slimane and so on. If you want to have a chance against such players and their teams, you must make sure that you recruit players that match their standards or even better. Having said that, APR has made good business in recruiting players. For instance, they have in their ranks Michael Dixon Jr, the Most Valuable Player of the 2022 season of the BAL, and Wilson Nshobozwabyosenumukiza, arguably the best Rwandan point guard. In addition, more international players have been recruited. These include Dario Hunt, an American center with experience garnered from the US and Australian clubs. However, the loss against the Patriots was an eye opener regarding whether APR has done enough. ALSO READ: BAL 2024: APR, US Monastir drawn in Sahara Conference For instance, though many players have been signed, how balanced is the team? One of the glaring imbalances in APR’s transfer business is that many players that the team recruited are guards. Michael Dixon Jr, Adonis Filer, Zion Styles are all guards. This is in addition to the guards the team already had like Nshobozwa and Ntore Habimana. With that, rotations become a key issue affecting APR’s game. The team has many guards but is understaffed in other departments. For instance, many fans who watched the game Vs Patriots can agree that APR does not have an able center. As things look, APR will need to go to the market afresh and make at least three to four trades. On such a note, the team should also consider hiring some more local talents, since the BAL roster requires teams to have eight local players on the 12-man final list. Many people with knowledge of the local game may agree that some of the best local players are still plying their trade with other clubs, especially Patriots. Names like Steven Hagumintwari and Dieudonne Ndizeye shouldn’t miss out on any Rwandan team’s roster going for the BAL, because they are clearly the best in their positions currently. ALSO READ: “I have no words” – Mwinuka salutes Patriots’ players after beating APR Is APR going to wake up and approach them to play for it in the BAL? That’s a key question. Another important element of BAL APR’s preparations should be scouting its opponents or other teams that are already playing in the tournament. The Kalahari Conference has already been concluded, and up next will be the Nile Conference in Cairo in April. If APR’s technical bench travels to Egypt to watch the games and check out on the opponent’s strengths and weaknesses, it would be great for the team to know how it rates against them and do the needful in preparations.
