Wednesday, July 15, 2020

Tacara Moxey

#By BRENT STUBBS

#Senior Sports Reporter

#bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

#The rich legacy of Bahamian student-athletes and coaches continued at Saint Augustine’s University (SAU) in Raleigh, North Carolina with Tacara Moxey being named the head coach of the Falcons’ women’s volleyball team.

#The former track and field star, who excelled in volleyball for the Rattlers at CI Gibson, has been elevated from assistant coach to the head coaching job with immediate effect.

#“It feels great. It feels great,” were the first words echoed by Moxey in her interview with The Tribune. “The love and support and people just believing in me is awesome. “I’ve been coaching for a while and when the opportunity presented itself, I just spoke it into existence. A lot of people felt like I was the right person suited for the job and that they needed more people like me, so I’m very humbled to have been given this opportunity to carry on the Bahamian tradition here.”

#Moxey, who graduated from St Aug in 2003, helped the Lady Falcons pad their conference championship total. As a standout player, she helped the volleyball team win three consecutive CIAA championships.

#The Lady Falcons also claimed a conference crown during her first stint as assistant coach. Last year was her second tenure on the Lady Falcons’ staff. She was an assistant coach at then Saint Augustine’s College in the mid-2000s.

#Last year was her second tenure on the Lady Falcons’ staff.

#Moxey is well known on the international and club levels as well. She was captain of the junior national team and played on the senior national team in the Bahamas, her home country.

#She follows in the footsteps of her former coach Edrick ‘Drip’ Poitier, the last Bahamian coach to head the Falcons’ programme.

#Among the others who coached at St Aug were the late Tom ‘the Bird’ Grant, Cynthia ‘Mother’ Pratt and Leslie ‘Russia’ Cartwright.

#“I know I have some big shoes to fill,” said Moxey, who thanked her high school volleyball coach Michelle Bailey, Margaret Albury, Edrick Poitier, Leslie Cartwright, Raymond Wilson and Mother Pratt for the role they all played in pushing her in volleyball career. “This is not something that I am going to take lightly. I’m going to put my all into it and just develop the girls as I give back to the programme that has helped to develop me to where I am today.”

#With one player currently on the Falcons roster in senior Chandra Mackey, a native of Abaco, Moxey said she will definitely be returning home to recruit some potential players to join St Aug’s.

#“We’ve always had a volleyball legacy here at St Aug and so I want to get it back to where it used to be,” she said.

#“I want to be able to give some more Bahamian ladies a chance to get a higher education and to display their volleyball talent at the next level.”

#She has coached several club teams and currently coaches N.C. Academy, which captured the City of Oaks Challenge 16-and-under division crown this year.

#All in all, Moxey has logged some 13 years of coaching on her résumé. After graduating from CI Gibson in 1997, Moxey went to Oklahoma. Then in 2000, she enrolled at St Aug. After graduating from St Aug, she stayed on as an assistant coach and has also coached in the club system in Raleigh.

#“I love it. Volleyball has done so much for me. I’ve been around the world and I’ve met people from different cultures, so it has afforded me a wealth of experience,” she stated.

#“I would love to be able to be a blessing to somebody because of what it did for me and my family. So I will definitely be looking at helping out as many Bahamians as I can.”

#Due to the coronavirus, the Falcons’ season has been suspended for the fall and will be pushed back to spring of 2021. Classes at St Aug, however, will commence on campus August 5.

#Moxey, 40, now joins Grand Bahamian Yolett McPhee-McCuin as a Bahamian female head coach of a sports athletic programme in the United States. McPhee-McCuin is in her third season as the head coach of the Ole Miss Running Rebels women’s basketball team.

#There are a number of men serving as head coaches on various athletic programmes throughout the United States, including Rolando ‘Lonnie’ Greene, Norbert Elliott, Derrick Atkins and Chris ‘Fireman’ Brown.

Sacramento Kings guard Buddy Hield.

Tuesday, July 14, 2020

#By RENALDO DORSETT

#Tribune Sports Reporter

#rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

#Chavano “Buddy” Hield cleared the initial COVID-19 protocol and joined the remainder of the Sacramento Kings in Orlando, Florida, for the NBA 2020 season restart.

#Hield will now be required to quarantine at the Kings’ designated hotel at the Walt Disney World – the Yacht Club Resort. To return to participation in team activities, Hield has to test negative for COVID-19 twice at least 24 hours apart.

#Hield was one of three players and an additional undisclosed member of the Kings organisation to test positive in June as leaguewide testing began in preparation for its return to the court.

#The league’s protocol mandates that players with a positive test were required to quarantine and produce two negative tests in order to receive clearance to join the team in Orlando.

#Players were also unable to train or exercise during the two-week period from the date of the positive test.

#Hield and forward Jabari Parker have joined the team in Orlando, while centre Alex Len has not been cleared.

#The Kings will scrimmage three times, with the first occurring on July 22. They begin the official seeding games and NBA restart on July 31, when they will face the San Antonio Spurs.

#The remainder of the Kings’ schedule includes matchups against the Orlando Magic (August 2), Dallas Mavericks (August 4), New Orleans Pelicans (August 6), Brooklyn Nets (August 7), Houston Rockets (August 9), Pelicans (August 11), and Los Angeles Lakers (August 13).

#Hield returned to the court on June 10 for competitive play for the first time since March when the pandemic sidelined the NBA.

#The Kings sharpshooter participated in the Skinz League Tournament at the Hive Sports Complex in Edmond, Oklahoma and scored 45 points, including 13 made three pointers.

#Through 64 games this season, Hield is averaging 19.8 points per game and is shooting 40 per cent from beyond the arc, making 3.8 three-point field goals in about 10 attempts per game. Hield also added 4.8 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game.

Tuesday, July 14, 2020

Tureano ‘Reno’ Johnson

#By RENALDO DORSETT

#Tribune Sports Reporter

#rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

#TUREANO Johnson has been added to a list of potential opponents for middleweight champion and super middleweight titleist Canelo Alvarez.

#Golden Boy Promotions President, Eric Gomez, said Johnson – the current WBC North American Boxing Federation champion – has been added to a list of prospective contenders that includes John Ryder Sergiy Derevyanchenko, Callum Smith, Anthony Dirrell and Jason Quigley.

#Alvarez’s next fight is scheduled on DAZN on September 12.

#Gomez said the fight was as much about navigating the economy of the sport through the pandemic as it is about matching styles to make an appealing fight.

#“We’re not going to close the door, we’re not going to handicap ourselves, especially right now during the pandemic. You need all the help you can get,” he told ESPN. “Some do, and then there’s other fighters who need to wake up and don’t understand it’s a different world we’re living in now.”

#Gomez reiterated the the organisations stance on Canelo’s direction with Sky Sports.

#“Canelo’s always available to fight the best, he always wants to fight the best. The problem right now is fighters have to be reasonable — everyone has to be reasonable. So the first guy to step up and is reasonable, and understands we’re in a pandemic, that’s probably the guy who’s going to get the fight,” he said.

#“Because it’s not like [where] we were a year ago when everything was normal and fine, and everything was business as usual. It’s not business as usual, right now. We’re in a pandemic.”

#Johnson was scheduled to fight on April 4 in Moscow, Russia, against Magomed Madiev, but that was called off due to the pandemic.

#Now sporting a 21-2-1 win-loss-draw record, Johnson is coming off a victory over the previously undefeated Quigley on July 18 for the NABF middleweight title at the Fantasy Springs Casino in Indio, California.

#Just after his win over Quigley, Johnson was ranked No.8 in the World Boxing Council and No.15 in the International Boxing Federation. Prior to that, Johnson ended up with a draw against Fernando Castaneda on February 9 at the same venue. Those two matches came after Johnson got back into the ring after he suffered the second loss of his career on August 25, 2017, to Serhiy Derevianchenko at the Buffalo Run Casino in Miami, Florida.

#Johnson has won three minor titles. His first came on July 11, 2004 when he pulled off a 10-round unanimous decision over Mike Gavronski for the vacant WBC Continental of Americas middleweight crown at the Little Creek Casino Resort in Shelton, Washington.

#He went on to claim the WBC Silver and WBA international middleweight title in Madison Square Gardens, New York City, New York over Alex Theran on January 9, 2015.

#“We knew that the virus has hampered us for a while, but like Bahamians, boxers are resilient and so we knew it was just a matter of time that it would return,” Johnson previously told the Tribune.

#“We are looking for another world champion Jamie Munguia, who is also a part of Golden Boys Promotions. Both of us are in the same club, so that fight should be easily made. Right now we are in deep talks to make that fight happen.”

#Having returned home, Johnson was hoping to stay physically fit and in shape as his promoters from the Golden Boy Promotions DAZN continue to negotiate for the mandatory fight for a shot at the World Boxing Association (WBA) world middleweight title.

#“I’m training as hard as I could. I want to become the next Bahamian world champion and so I’m in dire need of getting in the best shape that I can without any interruptions.

Tuesday, July 14, 2020

Anthonique Strachan

#By BRENT STUBBS

#Senior Sports Reporter

#bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

#BAHAMIAN Olympic sprinter Anthonique Strachan had to settle for a third place finish in the women’s 100 metres on Saturday at the Velocity Fest 2020 All Comers Meet at the Ashenheim Stadium.

#The privately ran one-day meet was held four months after sports started to return to some sense of normalcy from the spread of the coronavirus pandemic that halted all activities worldwide in March.

#In windy conditions throughout the afternoon, Strachan was featured in one of the marquee events of the meet in the women’s 100m where Olympic and world champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce sped to victory in the meet that was closed to the general public and the media.

#Fraser-Pryce, a mother now representing Nike, outclassed the field to easily win in a world-leading time of 11.00 seconds in a negative wind reading of 2.2 metres per second.

#Shashalee Forbes of Sprintec Track Club’s was second in 11.49.

#Also competing for the MVP Track Club, Strachan followed in third in 11.84 in the straightaway race. The Bahamian CARIFTA Games’ 2011 and 2012 Austin Sealy most outstanding award winner is working towards her prominence on the senior stage after she completed her junior career in 2012 as the World Junior champion in both the 100 and 200m.

#Although she had to battle through a series of injuries over the past few years, Strachan went on to represent the Bahamas at the 2012 Olympics in London, England and in 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil as well as the World Championships in 2017 in London, England and last year in Doha, Qatar. She also ran the third leg of the Bahamas’ 4 x 400m mixed relay team, consisting of Steven Gardiner, Shaunae Miller-Uibo and Michael Mathieu that claimed the gold as the curtain came down on the third version of the World Relays held at the Thomas A Robinson Stadium in 2017.

#With her 27th birthday coming up on August 22, the St Augustine’s College graduate has her name inked personal best times of 11.20 in the century in 2012 and 22.32 in the half-lap race in 2013. She has also produced a lifetime best of 52.42 in the 400m in 2016 and 7.47 in the 60m indoors in 2018. Among the other events in the meet on Saturday in Jamaica, 2019 World Championship 400m bronze medallist Shericka Jackson, also of MVP, took the 200m in 22.89 over fellow team-mate Elaine Thompson-Herah.

#Thompson-Herah, the 2016 Olympic double sprint champion, placed second in 22.98 with Forbes coming in third in 23.45.

#Nesta Carter, also from MVP who is making his return to action after a doping suspension, took the men’s 100m crown in 10.38 with two-time World Championships’ bronze medallist Asafa Powell finishing sixth in 10.51.

Shaunae Miller-Uibo at the Weltklasse Zurich Virtual Inspirational Games on Thursday.

Monday, July 13, 2020

#By BRENT STUBBS

#Senior Sports Reporter

#bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

#In what could become a norm for some future track and field meets, Shaunae Miller-Uibo lost out to Allyson Felix in their first rematch at the Weltklasse Zurich Virtual Inspirational Games on Thursday.

#The dup hooked up in a 150 metre race that was held simultaneously in three different locations with Switzerland’s Mujinga Kambundji as a part of the new format that saw six other events contested.

#Felix, the 34-year-old mother, competing against Miller-Uibo, 26, for the first time since they clashed at the 2017 World Championships in London, England, posted the fastest time of the trio in 16.81 seconds in Walnut, California.

#Miller-Uibo, competing out of Bradenton, Florida, was second in 17.15 as she contested her second race for the year since her defeat at the 2019 World Championships in Doha, Qatar, while Kambundji, the 28-year-old World Championships’ 200m bronze medallist, was third in 17.38 as she competed in Zurich.

#“I’m very happy with it (results),” Miller-Uibo said. “I will give God thanks for me coming here and competing again.

#“It was a fun race. The 150m is obviously not as taxing as the 400, but it was really fun.”

#Miller-Uibo and Felix last competed head-to-head at the 2017 World Championships in London, England, where Miller-Uibo faded down the stretch for fourth place as her legs buckled in a bizarre finish.

#Felix went on to secure the bronze medal behind American gold medallist Phyllis Francis and Bahrain’s silver medallist Salwa Eid Naser. In the meeting before that, Miller-Uibo won the gold at the 2018 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

#This year, Miller-Uibo and Felix were hoping for another clash at the Olympics in Tokyo, Japan, but the games were postponed until July, 2021 because of the spread of the coronavirus.

#Coming off her defeat to Naser at the 2019 World Championships in Doha, Qatar, Miller-Uibo said she just wanted to get a chance to compete before she prepares for next year.

#“It’s good just to get some meets and get to compete, but the main focus is going to be next year,” she said. “I’m using (this year) as a building year.”

#Felix, the most decorated American female athlete of all time, said the race was a strange one, considering that she didn’t have any teammates as she normally does in practice.

#“It’s hard to challenge yourself, so I think the big thing was just running solo,” she said.

#But Felix said she was just glad that she was able to inspire people through her performance. “It was really important (to inspire people through the Inspiration Games),” she said.

#“I think we see the hardship everyone is going through and we just wanted to bring a little bit of joy, pause a moment and appreciate the support.”

#In competing in her first race of the year, Kambundji said her start was okay, but at the end it got a little harder.

#“Maybe later in the season, I could do better,” she stated

#The Virtual Inspiration Games were streamed live where 30 athletes competed simultaneously at seven different venues as the Diamond League International circuit took social distancing to another level.

#With the 2020 Olympic Games postponed until 2021 in Tokyo, Japan due to the rapid spread of the coronavirus, World Athletics used the meet as a way of getting in some competition under the health restrictions imposed for sporting activities that are still trying to find a way to exist under the new measures.

#Competition was held between athletes from Team North America, Team Europe and Team World in the women’s 300m hurdles, women’s 3 x 100m, women’s pole vault and men’s 100 yards, men’s 200m, men’s triple jump and men’s pole vault.

#“This is fun. I can’t wait to see when we do it in person,” Felix said.

#Miller-Uibo, the reigning 400m champion from the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. said she was looking forward to competing against her rivals in Japan. But after she found out that no one was going to the Olympics, she was devastated.

#“It was something that is a lot bigger than sports and we understand why they had to postpone it,” she stated.

#As she prepares for the delayed games, Miller-Uibo said she’s still not certain which event she will compete in, although, according to a report, she is leaning more toward the 200m so that she can add to her Olympic 400m title.

#“It’s good to get some meets in and compete,” said Miller-Uibo, who had to settle for the bronze in the 200m in Brazil after her disappointment in the 400m where she led going down the home stretch, only to buckle her legs and slipped all the way to fourth.

#“The main focus is going to be next year,” Miller-Uibo said. “I’m using this year as a building year.”

#Last year, she requested that World Athletics modify the Olympic track and field schedule to better accommodate a 200m-400m double.

#However, a World Athletics spokesperson confirmed Tuesday that it reviewed the request, could not change the schedule and that decision was final.

#Olympic schedules have been changed in the past for 200m-400m double attempts, including for Felix and Michael Johnson. But the debut of the mixed-gender 4x400m relay to the Olympic program in Tokyo “added to the complexities of developing the timetable,” World Athletics said in a statement it said it first released last September.

#The revised Olympic schedule for 2021 has not been announced, but a change in the lineup of track and field events would be a surprise, especially given World Athletics’ statement on Miller-Uibo’s request.

Deandre Ayton.July 16, 2020Sheldon Longley0222Views

With just eight regular season games to go in the NBA’s restart to the season, it would be a tall order for DeAndre Ayton and the Phoenix Suns to creep into the playoffs.

They find themselves six games back of a playoff spot in the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association (NBA) – sitting in the 13th spot with a 26-39 win/loss record. The eighth place Memphis Grizzlies are 32-33.

However, Ayton is looking at this as an opportunity to finish strong and to show his development through two seasons in the league, showing the potential that led to him being drafted number one overall by the Suns in 2018. It’s been a tumultuous year for the Bahamian big man, suspended for the first portion of the season for violating the league’s anti-drug program before coming into his own. However, right before the league suspended play in March due to the COVID-19 pandemic, he sat out three games with an ankle injury. In total, he missed 10 games due to injuries this season.

Ayton said not only is he healthy and ready to go, he is ready to put on a show for the fans. The NBA’s restart gets underway on July 30. A total of 22 teams will engage in play at a single venue – the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando, Florida – following very strict guidelines and protocols due to COVID-19.

The Suns will play their first game against the Washington Wizards (24-40) on July 31.

“His body looks unbelievable,” said Suns Head Coach Monty Williams to the Arizona Republic – an American daily newspaper published in Phoenix, Arizona. “He’s a gifted young man in that way. I wish I had that, you know what I mean. He looks great. He’s done a really good job of taking care of himself.”

When on the court this season, Ayton has been extremely productive and promises an even larger output when the games resume in two weeks’ time. The Bahamian big man is averaging 19 points and 12 rebounds per game this season, up from the 16.3 and 10.3 he recorded a year ago as a rookie. He is shooting 54.8 percent from the field.

“I feel like I’m in my, damn, I don’t know, third or fourth year, and I know what I’m doing now,” Ayton said to the Arizona Republic. “It’s not really me being told what to do. It’s me understanding and finding what’s available and being a playmaker. Book (Suns guard Devin Booker) and coach seen it, so we just collaborate our differences and make things happen. Whatever is best for the team.”

Ayton said he feels like he’s in a position to be more of an offensive threat. He and his teammates arrived in the “bubble” in Orlando last week, and had a series of team practices over the weekend. The starting center for the Suns, who said he intends to spend a lot of his free time playing NBA2K video games and fishing, is looking forward to the opportunity to show his progression in these final eight regular season games.

“It’s a real training camp over here to be honest,” he said. “We really compete. Although we’ve been going three days in a row, today felt like we really went after it because I’m really tired,” he said on Saturday. “I’m really sore now. We definitely went after it today. We competed. We went over our new offense. It’s fun to really get back to this stuff and be ready to be coachable.”

Williams mentioned after Friday’s practice how the players, particularly Booker and Ayton, are communicating more than he noticed at training camp last year in Flagstaff, Arizona.

“[Suns’ strength and conditioning Coach Cory Schlesinger] sent a ton of workouts to all our guys,” Williams said. “Maybe because we’re so young, and genetically gifted, a lot of our guys look really, really, good, and DA (Ayton) is certainly at the top of that list.”

Williams said he is confident Ayton’s conditioning will get better after putting the endurance of the team to the test Saturday.

The Bahamian professional basketball player said he and the Suns are young and hungry and are ready to play. The Suns is the youngest team in the league, with an average age of 24.

The Suns will continue their training, then play a few scrimmage games before preparing to take on the Wizards on July 31. They will conclude their eight regular season games against the Dallas Mavericks on August 13.

Drumeco Archer.

July 15, 2020

Sheldon Longley

0246. Views

Hundreds of Bahamian student-athletes won’t have to worry about being sent home to The Bahamas following a reversal of policy consideration that was surfacing in the United States (U.S.).

Facing immense pressure from the universities themselves and school boards across the nation, the U.S. Government rescinded a rule on Tuesday that would have required international students, including Bahamians, to either transfer or leave the country altogether if their respective schools held classes entirely online because of the presence of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The U.S. is the most impacted nation in the world for the coronavirus with over 3.5 million total cases and about 140,000 total deaths. The closest state to The Bahamas, Florida, is a hotbed for the virus right now, recording tens of thousands of new cases daily.

A number of Bahamian student-athletes, in Florida and throughout the U.S., chose to remain on their respective school campuses this summer. According to reports, hundreds of universities opposed the stance to send international students home, with some threatening federal lawsuits.

U.S. District Judge Allison Burroughs said federal immigration authorities agreed to pull the July 6 directive and “return to the status quo”, according to NBC News.

“I believe it’s a good idea because, ultimately, it affects the commercial environment allowing our student-athletes to realize their full potential and fulfill their collegiate dreams,” said Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations’ (BAAA) President Drumeco Archer. “This is an opportunity to reshape the mindset of a new educational regime where viruses such as COVID-19 will become the new norm. I commend the U.S. Government for showing the resolve that allows them to adapt to change.”

The announcement is said to bring relief to thousands of foreign students who had been at risk of being deported from the U.S., along with hundreds of universities that were scrambling to reassess their plans for the fall. Understandably, a number of schools were concerned with the risks of losing out financially as well. Many schools rely on tuition from international students, and some stood to lose millions of dollars in revenue. Not to mention, returning to the United States for a number of student-athletes would have been increasingly difficult because of the related costs of doing so and the red tape in place.

Under the policy, it is understood that international students in the U.S. would have been forbidden from taking all their courses online this fall, and new visas would not have been issued to students at schools planning to provide all classes online, although federal officials stated otherwise.

A number of university leaders believed the rule was part of U.S. President Donald Trump’s effort to pressure schools to reopen this fall, of which a number of them have still not stated their intentions.

Monday, July 13, 202

Jazz Chisholm

#By RENALDO DORSETT

#Tribune Sports Reporter

#rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

#AS the Major League Baseball season nears the start to its 2020 season, Jazz Chisholm made his debut in camp for the Miami Marlins.

#Chisholm missed the first week of summer camp workouts at the Marlins’ complex in Jupiter, Florida, but joined the team Saturday at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium.

#“It’s good to have Jazz back.The good thing about Jupiter is there’s lots of reps, so there’s lots of at-bats there,” said Marlins manager Don Mattingly. “The guys in Jupiter are real guys. These aren’t just guys you threw there so they could take BP.”

#The Marlins begin the regular season July 24 on the road against the Philadelphia Phillies.

#Without Minor League Baseball in 2020, Chisholm, the Marlins’ No.3 prospect, like the organisations’ other top prospects included in the player pool of up to 60 players that can be used throughout the season, will use the time to train with the franchise even if they are not called up to the majors.

#“I think the real tragedy this year, and we don’t get to talk about it that much is, the Minor League guys and development, because there are no games,” Mattingly said. “That’s tough, especially for an organisation like ours, where you’re starting to fill up your system.”

#Chisholm made nine spring training appearances and hit .308 with three RBI, one home run, scored four runs, with a 1.115 OPS and two stolen bases.

#The 60 players in camp will be reduced to an active roster of 30 players. After two weeks the roster will be reduced to 28 and after a period of two weeks, a final cut of 26 players.

#The Marlins’ pool are currently participating in workouts both at Marlins Park in Miami and the alternate training site at the Miami Marlins Player Development Complex in Jupiter.

#The 2020 MLB season will feature a shortened 60-game season played over 66 days. The regular season is expected to conclude by late September and the playoffs will begin in October.

#Chisholm, the 22-year-old shortstop, was set to make his 2020 debut in AAA baseball with the Wichita Wind Surge of the Pacific Coast League. He was listed at No.66 overall among the top 100 Prospects by MLB Pipeline. Last season, Chisholm was named the top defensive shortstop in the Double-A Southwest League and his advancement to Double-A baseball produced a Southern League All-Star selection after he led all the league’s shortstops with 21 home runs and 173 total bases.

#Chisholm has continued to make strides for the organisation this season as he progresses toward the major leagues. He was among the top prospects from each organisation represented at the Rookie Career Development Program in Miami, Florida.

#Each organisation sends their top prospects expected to reach the big leagues in the near future to sit through sessions aimed at easing their transition.

#Sessions included ones on media training, clubhouse relationships, drugs in baseball, inclusion and financial planning, and others. He was also present at the Marlins’ annual Fanfest which gave fans their first opportunity to interact with the 2020 roster.

In this file photo, Team Bahamas player Jaraun “Keno” Burrows dunks the ball against the U.S. Virgin Islands (USVI) in their FIBA World Cup qualifying game last year

.July 8, 2020

Simba French

0345 Views

One of the more popular names on The Bahamas’ senior men’s national basketball team, a former team captain Jaraun ‘Kino’ Burrows, has retired from national team play. After 15 years of service to his country, he said he felt it was the right decision to make.

“It wasn’t easy but I feel it is the right time for me. It has been a long 15 years,” said Burrows. “A lot has gone into it, going back from when the program definitely wasn’t what it is today. I had a chance to see it grow and the program is headed in the right direction. One reason is that the corporate world is coming in and good things are happening.”

Burrows has been playing professionally in Europe. He said it was getting tough, leaving in the middle of the season at times to come to this side of the world and play.

“It was tough for me these last rounds, coming across to this side of the world and adjusting. There was also the jetlag. I struggled a lot with my sleeping and my eating, and it affected my game.”

Burrows said that it would have been tough for him to commit to the next few rounds because he wants to focus on his last few years of his professional career. According to him, it was time to let the young players continue what he and the ones before him started.

Burrows, a proud Bahamian, said it was always a sense of pride for him when he donned the jersey with The Bahamas on his chest. He said it was emotional for him to step away from the team because he had goals of playing in the Olympics and the FIBA (International Basketball Federation) World Cup. He still believes that The Bahamas has a chance to get there some day.

For Burrows, one of the biggest rivals for The Bahamas over the years has been the U.S. Virgin Islands. He said there are a few other teams that he enjoyed playing against.

“Defeating Mexico at home this year was my favorite,” Burrows said. “Our biggest rival has always been the (U.S.) Virgin Islands starting back to 2011, when they beat us at home for the gold medal. A lot of these guys I’ve known since junior nationals, so I have a great relationship with them. I like to play Puerto Rico. I was there the first time we beat Cuba. There was also the time we beat the Dominican Republic on their home floor.”

The 6’6” forward/center said he has many stories with the national team but Team Bahamas’ 76-59 home victory against Mexico in February in the FIBA AmeriCup 2021 Qualifiers was his favorite experience. He finished that game shooting a perfect 3-for-3 from the field and 2-for-2 from the charity stripe to finish with eight points, and added two rebounds, two assists and one block in 17 minutes of play.

“That last game against Mexico, in front of my family, coaches and the country was one of the best experiences of my career. Mexico is an Olympic team with 126 million people and we The Bahamas had an opportunity to play them at home and we definitely took care of business,” Burrows said.

The tall and lanky player said he was happy to see young players such as Dominick Bridgewater blossom. The youngster was a part of Burrows’ Raw Talent program whom he took under his wings in France.

“That is a wonderful foundation,” Burrows said. “I believe fully in Travis (Munnings), Mike (Carey), Dominick (Bridgewater), Jaron Cornish and the other young talent because with the system that FIBA has now, leaving in the middle of the season leaves out the NBA (National Basketball Association) guys. The teams are consistent with the local guys and the professional guys – not the NBA and top EuroLeague players. I think we have a great core to fight. The whole goal to put together that team with (Chavano) ‘Buddy’ Hield, DeAndre (Ayton), Kai Jones, Sammy Hunter, Dominick and Travis, they will be OK. These young guys with the high-level talent that we have, I think that everybody would agree that we have top five talent in the world.”

As for what’s next for him in the realm of Bahamian basketball, Burrows was very cryptic but said that it will be in the realm of youth development. He will still be running his Raw Talent program and helping to create opportunities for other young players.

The 35-year-old just signed a contract to return to FOS Providence Basket in Fos-sur-Mer, France, after playing for Aix-Maurienne in Aix-les-Bains, Savoie, France. Both teams play in France’s Pro-B League. His goal at FOS Providence Basket is to take the team back to the Pro-A League. He is comfortable playing for the coach and management of the club.

Burrows spent the early COVID-19 pandemic in France around a lot of speculations that included questions around salaries, and when the season was going to resume. Before those answers came, the borders were closed and he was stuck in France.

“The confinement was rough because in France there was a 24-hour confinement but you were allowed to leave for groceries and essential business. We did about two months of quarantine. After that, things got a little better and the country opened up slowly,” Burrows said.

He, along with a few other Bahamian players such as Bridgewater, are looking to be home in The Bahamas by the middle of July, after being in Europe during the pandemic, looking to reunite with family and friends. Burrows said he will be working out when he returns home, preparing for the season ahead.

Keithron Moss.

July 8, 2020

Simba French

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Although they are disappointed that their seasons were cancelled, Bahamian players in Minor League Baseball (MiLB) have remained upbeat and positive.

MiLB made the announcement just over a week ago, cancelling the 2020 regular seasons after months of speculation. This came into play because of the presence of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Guardian Sports caught up with Keithron Moss (Texas Rangers), D’Shawn Knowles (Los Angeles Angels) and Ian Lewis (Miami Marlins) as they shared their reaction to the news and their plans going forward.

Knowles was on the Top 30 prospects pre-season list for the Angels at number nine. The outfielder said he was devastated when he got the news.

“I tried to stay positive about the situation but I was devastated at first,” said Knowles. “Baseball is cancelled only in the minor leagues, so I’m still going to work out and stay in shape in case I get a call up to go to Anaheim to the majors.”

The Angels signed Knowles to a minor league contract back in 2017.

A shocked Moss said he is going to keep working and stay ready.

“It is shocking but something was expected. Now, I have nothing to do but I am not going to let that get to me, so I keep working like I am in season,” he said. “When they call us to come back, I will be ready to go. That is the biggest thing, being ready to go,” he added.

Lewis is the rookie in the group. He signed last year July and was ready to put his mark on the game.

“It was honestly overwhelming, knowing that this was going to be my first professional season and I felt as if I had so much to prove. My rookie season being cancelled was shocking due to the fact that we were so close to opening day,” he said.

Lewis said the Marlins has been in contact with him everyday, checking on his health status and progression with training and working out.

Last season, Knowles played in 64 games in the Pioneer League for the Orem Owlz. He finished the season with a batting average of .241, getting 61 hits in 253 at-bats. Knowles scored 38 runs and had 28 runs batted in (RBIs).

The Angels’ number nine prospect has been home in The Bahamas since March and said he has been training, trying to stay in shape. He said he has remained in contact with the Angels organization through Zoom and texting.

Moss said he is looking forward to playing in the fall – it was the latest news he received from the Rangers.

“We are still going to play baseball in the fall for two months. That is a good thing, so it is not all that bad. Obviously, I wanted to play in the season but at least I still get to play baseball,” Moss said.

Before he signed with the Rangers in December of 2017, the second baseman was a part of I-Elite Baseball Academy. He has been training intensely with the academy since professionals were allowed to train, according to the government’s Emergency Powers COVID-19 Orders. His batting average last season was .308 – a great improvement from the .196 the season before. He finished with 37 hits in 120 at-bats, scoring 27 runs while driving in 14.

The official announcement posted on the MiLB website last week stated: “Major League Baseball (MLB) has informed Minor League Baseball that it will not be providing its affiliated minor league teams with players for the 2020 season. As a result, there will not be a Minor League Baseball season in 2020.”

Other Bahamian players in the MiLB system include, but are not limited to: Kristian Robinson (Arizona Diamondbacks), Tahnaj Thomas (Pittsburgh Pirates), Trent Deveaux (Angels), Chavez Young (Toronto Blue Jays), Davonn Mackey (Oakland Athletics), James Rolle (Baltimore Orioles), Dax Stubbs (Orioles), Chavez Fernander (Detroit Tigers), Everette Cooper (Houston Astros) and D’Vaughn Knowles (New York Yankees).

Training camps for major league teams got underway last week. A couple of Bahamians made the 60-man taxi squad for the 2020 MLB season for their respective teams. They are Lucius Fox Jr. (Tampa Bay Rays) and Jasrado “Jazz” Chisholm (Marlins). They will be looking to get a chance to be called up to their respective active rosters in a limited season.

The 60-man taxi squad is a feeder system that provides call-up options, injury and illness replacements, with opportunities. Those players will work out and stay game ready, waiting for their names to be called. They are high-level prospects who will get in some developmental work.

Both Fox and Chisholm were in Spring Training for their respective teams before the presence of the pandemic ceased it.

MiLB, which began as the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues, was founded over a century ago, on September 5, 1901.