Jama Mahlalela’s Warriors reach NBA Finals
IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIlllIIllll
M– Eswatini is once again in the spotlight thanks, to basketball top Coach Jama Mahlalela.
He saw his team make it to the NBA finals on Thursday as his Golden State Warriors closed out the Dallas Mavericks with a 120110 win in Game 5 of the Western Conference finals.
Golden State will play Boston or Miami in the two-legged NBA Finals, the biggest final in the game well renowned in the United States of America (USA). Game 1 is on June 2 in San Francisco as the Warriors will have home-court advantage against either opponent. The Celtics currently lead the Eastern Conference finals with 3-2.
“For our team, especially the core group, to be part of that competition six times in eight years, I don’t even know what to say,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. “It just takes an enormous amount of skill and determination and hard work.”
Successful
The successful basketball side has Mahlalela as its head of development and assistant coach. Mahlalela is a liSwati-born basketball coach, currently an assistant coach for Warriors of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Previously, he has served as the head coach of Raptors 905 of the NBA G League and an assistant coach for the Toronto Raptors.
On August 13, 2021, Warriors hired the former Knicks player as an assistant coach and director of player development.
BASE Vice-President Bonginkhosi ‘Dee’ Shabangu (L) and Sandile Ndlovu, Mbabane Knicks Executive posing for a photo after the interview. (INSET) Golden State Warriors assistant Coach Jama Mahlalela.
Reached for comment, Basketball Association of Eswatini (BASE) Vice President Bonginkhosi ‘Dee’ Shabangu said they were proud of Mahlalela.
“He is our product, and we are proud to have produced such a talented player and coach. I am also proud to have played a role in developing him to what he is today. We used to host Concrete Hoops with him near the court, by the Times of Eswatini (Youth Centre). He was one teachable person and was passionate about the sport,” Shabangu said.
He said they were hoping that they did well in the finals and hoist the country’s flag even higher.
He also urged other young ballers never to give up, but to follow their passion because one day they could be like Mahlalela. The coach could not be immediately reached for comment on such big achievement in his first season with the organisation. This news come when Eswatini is still celebrating Pwearly Muir for her International Boxing Association (IBA) historic election as a Board of Directors while boxer Thabiso Dlamini was this week also elected into the IBA Athletes Committee.