Nairobi City Thunder charged after picking lessons from maiden BAL appearance

Nairobi City Thunder head coach Bradley Ibs says his team has integrated all the lessons picked up in the last 12 months to now stand up and “truly show Thunder basketball” during this year’s Basketball Africa League (BAL), set to tip off on Friday, 27 March.

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Ibs, speaking during the team’s media day ahead of BAL Season 6 in Pretoria, South Africa, said Thunder’s return to the competition after their debut last year is meant to scale new heights, given the experience they can now rely on.

“Last year, being our first year, we learned a lot about what it means to play in the BAL,” Ibs said. “We’re excited to represent ourselves and truly show Thunder basketball.”

Thunder, during their maiden BAL appearance last year, bounced out of the group phases of the Nile Conference in Kigali, Rwanda, after picking up just one win and suffering five losses.

This year, they return to Africa’s premier competition in the Kalahari Conference, where they will come up against hosts Johannesburg Giants, Angola’s Petro de Luanda, Al Ahly Ly of Libya, Tanzania’s Dar City, and the RSSB Tigers from Rwanda.

A second bite at the cherry is one Ibs is all hyped about.

'We have more to prove' - Nairobi City Thunder skipper rallies team ahead of BAL return

“In a tournament like this, being prepared is a lot about the basics, being great at the simple things that win basketball games,” the American Ibs, who was in charge of the team last year, said.

“Learning to win in different ways has benefited us, and I hope those lessons translate to the competition here.”

One of the subtle differences to the previous edition has been Thunder’s trust in the bulk of its local players, going with nine familiar faces, and only adding three international players - Lance Thomas, Josh Nzeakor and Shaheed Davis.

“Our team strength is our cohesiveness that is built on our foundation of local core players,” Ibs added.

“We want to highlight their strengths and chemistry together. Watching more BAL games, you realise how much chemistry really matters, especially in the ability of players to play fast and aggressively.”

Team skipper Tylor Ongwae is definitely a fan of that.

“It’s about engaging with each other,” Ongwae, a veteran in regards to BAL, said. “If I see something going wrong, I speak up. If they see something, they talk to me. It’s open communication and just enjoying playing together.”

A first chance to witness the transformation comes on Saturday, 28 March, when Thunder open their account against Dar City in an intriguing East African derby at the iconic SunBet Arena.

“At the end of the day, we want to win,” Ongwae said. “Winning solves a lot of problems.”

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