BRITISH BASKETBALL

British Basketball is the company set up to manage the Great Britain elite basketball programme.

BB has had unprecedented progress in last 5 years:

• Men and Women now ranked in top 25 in world and top 12 in Europe, compared to 75+ in 2008
• Only 2 EuroBasket final appearances in 50 years to 2009; now 5 EuroBasket appearances between 2009 and 2013
• Two GB FIBA Europe Player of the Year nominations in 2013
• Eight age group players nominated for all European Championship teams and one MVP
• GB Men were just one basket away from achieving their London 2012 Quarter Final target (lost 78-79 to Spain in group stage – eventual silver medallist)
• GB Women were the youngest team of any in London 2012 basketball tournament – yet, 3 of their 5 games had margins of 8 points or less, and were only beaten in overtime by the eventual silver medallists France.

There is a golden generation of young players now emerging in the UK, which gives confidence for Tokyo 2020:

• Before 2009, no age group teams had competed in FIBA Europe A Division Championships. Every age group for men and women has now appeared at that level.
• In 2014 BOTH U20 and U18 Men will compete in A Division – unprecedented.
• No age group European medals before 2009; 6 since 2009.
• No all tournament age group nominations before 2009; 8 nominations plus 1 MVP since 2009.
• 55 young players (34 men and 21 women) from GB are now competing in NCAA Division 1 colleges (the breeding ground for the NBA). 23 players (15 men and 8 women) are competing in NCAA Division 2 colleges.
• British players now represent the 3rd highest group from one country (outside the USA) in NCAA Division 1.
• All this is creating an unprecedented pool of talent for GB to draw on so that it can realise its aspiration of being consistently in the medal zone at major championships within 10 years.
• The blend of experienced players and this golden generation provides an exciting foundation for GB to become a genuine force in world basketball and qualify for Tokyo 2020.

Continued funding by UK Sports makes GB Basketball’s breakthrough onto world stage likely:

• The foundations are now in place for GB Men’s and Women’s teams to be in the medal zone consistently within the next 10 years. 
• Those foundations have been built over just the past 7 years.
• The journey of development and potential has only just started.
• The inclusion of 14 and 15 year olds in Sport England’s Active People Survey now shows that basketball is clearly the second biggest team sport after football.
• The Active People Survey shows that over 50% of participants in basketball in England are from BME communities. The sport widens opportunities for many more athletes from those communities to realise their potential in their chosen sport and have a path to Olympic participation and medals.
• Continued investment is crucial if our progress is to be sustained and world class potential delivered.

On the road to Tokyo, GB can qualify for Rio 2016:

• NBA players Lu Deng and Joel Freeland are committed to take GB to EuroBasket 2015 (the Rio 2016 qualification route). 
• Joe Prunty, assistant coach to NBA’s Brooklyn Nets, is confirmed as the GB men’s coach and recruitment is underway for the head coach of the GB women.
• The GB programme is focussed on building on the momentum gained from both EuroBaskets in 2013 by qualifying for EuroBasket 2015 and from there, Rio 2016
• Basketball is the no 1 team sport in the Olympic Games; our progress amongst GB teams stands out; GB has realistic medal chances in 2020.