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WASHINGTON, DC – OCTOBER 28: Lead assistant coach Lloyd Pierce reacts to a play against the Washington Wizards during the first half at Capital One Arena on October 28, 2022 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Scott Taetsch\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n
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As the basketball world continues its outreach into Africa, Indiana Pacers assistant coach Lloyd Pierce wants to be a part of it. Over the last few days, the NBA and FIBA teamed up to host a Basketball Without Borders Africa (BWB) camp in Kigali, Rwanda<\/a>, and Pierce was one of six coaches who led campers throughout the four-day event.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s important for the connectivity to be there. It\u2019s important that we continue to stay over here in the summer and throughout the year and help grow the game. And that\u2019s not just on the court,\u201d Pierce said of planting NBA and basketball roots in Africa. \u201cThat\u2019s with the officials that are here that are learning, and that\u2019s with the coaches and how they teach the game. They\u2019re here and they\u2019re in their respective home countries, teaching the game at all age levels.\u201d<\/p>\n This is the fourth time that Pierce has been involved in a BWB camp. This year, he and Charlotte Hornets head coach Charles Lee are in charge of the men\u2019s portion of the event. They run participants through skill development drills, then some practice sessions followed by games. Afterward, there\u2019s a coaches clinic with roughly 300 coaches.<\/p>\n Pierce\u2019s first BWB was in Tokyo back in 2012. This time, it\u2019s in Rwanda \u2013 a significant decision. It\u2019s the first time the camp has reached Eastern Africa after previous stops in Senegal, Angola, South Africa, and Egypt.<\/p>\n \u201cA lot of these guys are playing in arenas for the first time. A lot of these guys are getting passports for the first time. They\u2019re not just from Rwanda. I think we have 21 different countries on the continent represented here throughout the week on both the men\u2019s and women\u2019s side,\u201d Pierce said. \u201cSo we\u2019re seeing people that are experiencing a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and we get to coach them.\u201d<\/p>\n The camp is about more than just basketball \u2013 though the sport is the central focus. Players and coaches took part in social responsibility programming as basketball development and community outreach collided.<\/p>\n Camps like these can be significant for young players who need the resources. In Africa specifically, BWB has hosted 14 different players who were at one point drafted into the NBA or WNBA \u2013 including former MVP Joel Embiid, Pacers star Pascal Siakam<\/a>, and 2025 lottery pick Khaman Maluach. Others include Luc Mbah a Moute, Nathan Mensah, Gorgui Dieng, Kostas Antetokounmpo, and Christian Koloko.<\/p>\n Other non-BWB events have been significant for African talents. Congolese center Oscar Tshiebwe<\/a> of the Utah Jazz, who didn\u2019t like basketball as a kid but was significantly taller than his peers at a young age, was encouraged to attend a camp held by Congolese big man Bismack Biyombo.<\/p>\n