The NBA will hold a "four-day men's and women's basketball clinic in Havana" April 23-26, according to Harvey Araton of the N.Y. TIMES. The league will be the "first American professional sports organization to visit Cuba since the White House announced in December that it would restore diplomatic relations between the countries." FIBA will coordinate the event, but the NBA "will be well represented on the executive and basketball sides under its Basketball Without Borders program." Basketball HOFer-elect Dikembe Mutombo, former NBAer Steve Nash and former WNBAer Ticha Penicheiro were picked to make the trip "in part, because they all speak Spanish." NBA Deputy Commissioner Mark Tatum and Jazz coach Quin Snyder "will also make the trip" to Havana (N.Y. TIMES, 4/7). USA TODAY's Jeff Zillgitt reported once relations between the U.S. and Cuba were restored, the NBA "moved quickly to arrange a visit, calling FIBA, the Cuban basketball federation and INDER, the Cuban sports ministry." Tatum: "We got our team together and discussed the possibility of hosting a basketball camp in Cuba. ... Everyone was excited about the possibility of going down there and trying to do something." Zillgitt noted the NBA and FIBA will "refurbish three basketball courts in Havana and hold clinics for coaches and referees." Two Cuban players "will participate in ... Basketball Without Borders later this year" (USATODAY.com, 4/6).
SONIC YOUTH: In DC, Roberto Ferdman wrote while MLB is struggling to connect with millennials, basketball "looks particularly poised for success" with that demographic. Football is still the most popular sport in the U.S., but the "average age of people who are watching football is rising, whereas the age of basketball viewers has remained remarkably stable, suggesting that even as basketball fans age, new younger viewers keep turning in." Basketball also has "proved to be popular on newer platforms like Vine and Snapchat, where short clips and highlights are shared, in a way other sports have not." People at least seem "more eager to post basketball videos and view them" on these platforms. Meanwhile, the NBA and its players "tend to be active users of social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, often showing off their style" (WASHINGTONPOST.com, 4/6).
