NBA Deputy Commissioner and COO Mark Tatum lauds the opportunity provided to young Filipino basketball player Andy Gemao, who was invited to the eighth annual Basketball Without Borders (BWB) global camp during the 2024 NBA All-Star Weekend.
The 6-foot-1 cager has received his second invite to the camp after participating in the 2023 edition.
"I think it's incredible. You having a player like Andy there is gonna give him that exposure to the best players in the world," Tatum said in an interview with the international media.
"Our experience is the way you get better is that you measure up and play against the best in the world... You may be really good in your particular country, but you go up against the best French players, the best Serbian players, the best Brazilian players, and all of a sudden, you pick up something new and, 'wow, that guy did something I've never seen before.'"
"I think that's a great opportunity for a player like Andy to really get exposure," Tatum added.
The NCAA Season 98 Juniors Finals MVP for Letran, who has also suited up for the Gilas Pilipinas Youth, and is now training with the Veritas Academy National Prep in Malibu, California.
He even got a workout with Golden State Warriors' Klay Thompson and his skills coach Charlie Max Torres.
Tatum then recalled how NBA stars like Lauri Markkanen and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander also started in the BWB camp.
"I remember how [Markkanen] participated in hat camp and look at the performance he's having now as an NBA player. This global camp really is for the top 40 players that we've seen high school age around the world, and I think it's a fantastic opportunity for Andy," he said.
Other NBA players who have participated in the camp include Deandre Ayton, RJ Barrett, Rui Hachimura, Bennedict Mathurin, and Jamal Murray. The camp, which will be open to NBA team personnel, will bring together 40 of the top high-school-age prospects from Africa, the Americas, Asia and Europe to participate in athletic testing, movement efficiency, skill development stations, shooting and skills competitions, life skills seminars and 5-on-5 games under the guidance of current and former NBA and WNBA players, legends and coaches, including Joakim Noah and Detlef Schrempf.
Several members of the NBA Coaching Development Program (CDP), which assists former players who are looking to transition into the coaching ranks and further deepen the pipeline of coaching talent across leagues, will also serve as BWB Global 2024 coaches, including four-time WNBA champion Cynthia Cooper, former NBA players Joey Dorsey and Flip Murray, former NBA G League player Wayne Blackshear, and Seattle Storm assistant coach and former WNBA player Ebony Hoffman.
