The NBA will base its global academy at the Basketball Australia Centre of Excellence in Canberra, according to Roy Ward of THE AGE. The COE has developed "almost all of Australia's elite stars" including NBA or WNBA players Andrew Bogut, Patty Mills, Penny Taylor, Matthew Dellavedova and Lauren Jackson and it was "previously known as the Australian Institute of Sport basketball program." Some of the world's elite teenage male players, aged between 14 and 18, will undergo a "360 degree" course of elite training with NBA-caliber coaches, int'l tours and tournaments "plus complete their high school studies" before choosing between U.S. college basketball or becoming professional with the academy "to aid them in their decision." The NBA plans to introduce female players to the program "at some stage" but has not confirmed when. It is understood the Canberra academy will start with 12 teenage scholarship players, seven from overseas and five from Australia, while one int'l coach will be appointed along with two Australian coaches. The NBA has looked to base its academies "at existing facilities with a record of excellence which is why the COE was chosen" (THE AGE, 11/10).
