MONROVIA, Montserrado – Several youth advocates of basketball are calling for better support of the game in the country, including the construction of more courts.

At the Sports Commission on Broad Street, which has the country’s only court capable of holding international matches, the youths voiced their frustrations.

“I have passion for the game, but we have not been encouraged at all,” Eugene Bettie said.

For Bettie, he attributed the lack of facilities to poor leadership from the Liberia Basketball Association, the organization responsible for promoting and developing the sport in the country.

“What we need also is good leadership to take us somewhere better,” he said. “[I’m] playing basketball to be [a] professional in [the] future.”

Others, like Michael Tsiko and Learnard Fienagha, said in order to elevate basketball and draw more attention to the game, there must be a construction of basketball courts across the country.

“I live as far [as] Duport Road community which is far from the [Sports Commission] basketball court,” Tsiko explained, illustrating the scarcity of facilities across the country.

Similar complaints have been made in the past of poor leadership within the LBA serving as a hindrance for the development of the game. After the Ebola epidemic, the LBA’s national league failed to resume as team owners accused the leadership of mismanaging funds and not doing enough to promote basketball within the country.

League play has still yet to resume even though a court passed a judgment clearing the LBA leadership. Phone calls made to Rufus Anderson, president of LBA, were not answered. Additionally, visits to LBA’s office showed that there were no employees on site during business hours.

LBA received US$50,000 from the national budget in the last fiscal year. Additionally, sponsors contribute undisclosed amounts every year.

Featured photo by Mohammed Bility