TT get NBA-like basketball body

TRINIDAD and Tobago-born certified NBA agent Nixon Dyal has begun a drive to take basketball in this country to the next level with the inception of the Trinidad and Tobago Basketball Association (TTBA) “We have to view sport as a business rather than just recreational therapy” Dyal says, and it is with this in mind that he outlined his idea for the TTBA, a league supported by the business sector, featuring the country’s best talent alongside that of foreign countries.

To achieve these goals the former Division One college-level player sees the need for improvement of the facilities which are currently available and hopes that government will lend a hand to that end. Dyal also revealed plans for NBA coaches and players to visit the country and share their expertise with local teams and to increase interest in the league on a national scale. Already the proposal has been presented to Minister of Sport Roger Boynes, who will present it to the corporate community today at the VIP Lounge at the Hasely Crawford Stadium, in an effort to involve local industry in the project. Dyal has already recieved offers from foreign companies but has expressed an interest in more local businesses taking hold of the league to make this a totally local venture.

On the business side the league proves to be a very good investment to both player and team. There is a $252,000 salary cap per team with exceptions for one foreign player and two franchise players. Team sponsors will benefit from free in-arena advertising and supplemented revenues from radio and television rights, concessions, promotion, game-day proceeds and league marketing. The sponsors will be on a three-year $3.6 million or a yearly $1.2 million contract with the league, and will have a hand in team and coach selection, form part of an owners association and in charge of their individual marketing campaigns to capture target audiences.

Beside being a social and economical tool, the TTBA will be an avenue to implementing similar programs in other Caribbean islands and will open more tourism opportunities for the region as a result, enhancing the micro business sector and aiding the ambitions of achieving developed country status. Having played for Lower Merion High in the United States, Belgium, Germany, Poland and Venezuela, the 6’ 8” visionary who now operates NDS Sport Management, agents for Ben Wallace, the  Detroit Pistons NBA “Defensive Player of the Year 2003,” can by his resume, be trusted to take Trinidad and Tobago basketball to the next level. Basketball enthusiasts needing more information can contact Dyal at 754-1459 or Omingston Rodriguez at 752-4824.