Face of Nation : U.S. Central (girls) and U.S. West (boys) won the 2019 Jr. NBA (Jr.NBA.com) Global Championship today at ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Walt Disney World Resort. The two Global Championship finals, televised on FOX, featured U.S. Central defeating Canada 72-35 in the girls division and U.S. West defeating Africa 70-61 in the boy’s division.
Jr. NBA Global Championship Ambassador Dwyane Wade and New Orleans Pelicans Vice President of Basketball Operations/Team Development and former WNBA All-Star Swin Cash presented the winning teams with trophies in postgame ceremonies.
The global youth basketball tournament took place from Aug. 6-11 and featured 32 of the top 13- and 14-year-old boys and girls teams from around the world. Overall, 15,000 players from 75 countries participated across Jr. NBA Global Championship regional competitions.
The Central girl’s team, from Kansas City, Mo., finished the week with a 7-0 record, marking the second consecutive year that the Central Region won the Jr. NBA Global Championship. The team, which defeated the Midwest, Mid-Atlantic, and West to advance to the Global Championship final, was led by returning champion S’ mya Nichols and guards Chloe Clardy, Jada Williams and Kiara Smith, who scored a combined 43 points in the win over Canada.
Prior to the championship games, seven-time NBA All-Star and 2018 Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductee Grant Hill hosted an awards ceremony and was joined by Silver and other presenters including Wade, Cash, Utah Jazz guard, and 2018-19 NBA Sportsmanship and Twyman–Stokes Teammate of the Year Award recipient Mike Conley, Miami Heat forward Udonis Haslem and former Orlando Magic player Nick Anderson. Four awards representing the Jr. NBA’s four core values – Determination, Respect, Teamwork, and Community – were each presented to the boy and girl players who best exemplified the associated characteristics throughout the tournament.
Recognizes the players who consistently dedicated the time and energy and showed the work ethic needed to excel as people and players. These winners were supportive of teammates, demonstrated a willingness to learn, exhibited strong leadership skills and always hustled on the court.
