Adrian Frater, News Editor
Miami Heat's Dwyane Wade and Shaquille O'Neal (right) celebrate after winning Game Six of the NBA Finals against the Dallas Mavericks to clinch the championship. - Reuters
Western Bureau:
The Miami Heat, the reigning National Basket-ball Association (NBA) champions, will be making a four-day visit to Jamaica, starting today, as part of its 'Shoot for the Stars' book, and Basketball Clinic, at the Montego Bay Community College, in St. James.
According to DeAndré Phillips, the business media relations coordinator for the Miami Heat, the best basketball team in the United States, following its historic come-from-behind win over the Dallas Mavericks in the 2006 NBA Finals, will definitely be in Montego Bay with their popular summer programme.
"We will be visiting Montego Bay from Thursday to Sunday," said Phillips, in outlining the team's itinerary.
"In addition to conducting a books and basketball clinic, Wayne Simien, the Heat Dancers, Xtreme Team and other Heat personnel, will be holding a press conference at the community college and will also visit the Cornwall Regional Hospital to lift the spirits of ailing children there."
Outreach Programme
The 'Shoot for the Stars' tour, which is an integral part of the Heat outreach programme, is geared towards teaching basketball fundamentals alongside stressing the importance of reading via the NBA's Read to Achieve programme.
The 'Shoot for the Stars' tour, which conducts camps throughout South Florida, Latin America and the Caribbean annually, is covering four destinations this year.
It started with a visit to Santo Domingo, followed by visits to the Dominican Republic and the Bahamas. Jamaica is the last stop on the tour.
While it could not be confirmed which members of the Heat superstar line-up - which includes perennial All-Star centre Shaquille O'Neal, Most Valuable Player for the 2006 final, Dwayne Wade and other stalwarts such as Antoine Walker, Gary Payton, and Jason Williams, will be making the trip to Jamaica - the basketball fraternity in western Jamaica welcomes their visit.
"This is great news for western Jamaica's basketball because it is not every day that one gets a chance to see some of the world's greatest players in your own backyard," said Septon Lawrence, a top official of the Western Basketball Association.
"We will most certainly be encouraging all our young basketball players to go out and be a part of what should be a positive experience."
