Basketball in Georgetown got a major boost from overseas-based Paul and Patrick Haynes when the ex-Pacesetters brothers donated several items to the Georgetown Amateur Basketball Association (GA-BA) last week.
The Haynes brothers operate the website: Twin-killas.com, which is a “US-based charity organization devoted to the development of quality basketball and increasing its fan base through fan participation.”
The organisation committed itself on the website to providing the GABA League Championship trophy, GABA League finals Most Valuable Player (MVP) trophy and GABA League Defensive Player of the Year trophy.
“As an important stakeholder and part of the development of the super league basketball, we want to assure you (the GABA) of our continued commitment towards yearly sponsorship,” the website stated.
The organisation came good on its commitment and the GABA is now in possession of the promised items. The trophies will be handed out this weekend when the curtain comes down on the GABA League tournament.
“They (the Haynes brothers) are not only talking the talk but walking the walk and that is what basketball in Georgetown needs at this moment,” President of GABA Chris Bowman told Stabroek Sport yesterday.
A quantity of International Basketball Federation (FIBA) scorebooks, professional uniforms for referees, professional basketball clipboards for coaches, whistles for referees and coaches were also among the items donated to GABA.
The association responsible for basketball in Georgetown also received six pairs of sneakers, a quantity of practice plans for all Georgetown clubs and 16 (10 male, six female) basketballs.
“They are committed to the development of the sport in Georgetown,” Bowman said, adding that Twinkillas.com will give Guyana’s 2007 Inter-Guiana Games team a set of professional uniforms.
According to GABA president, the organisation will be operating at the national and association levels. He said that the organisation was currently gearing to contribute basketballs to schools in Guyana. Twinkillas.com was a major sponsor of the 2006 annual inter-ward basketball tournament and had donated four sets of different uniforms to be used by the teams throughout the competition.
Bowman said that the association was grateful for the assistance, as the items would be used to promote the sport in Georgetown. He indicated that the association was maintaining “talks with Twinkillas.com” on many different levels.
“We are pleased to have these important items,” the GABA president noted. “I have had discussion with the organisation on a number of different levels where we talked about further collaborative efforts.”
Bowman pointed out that the association’s treasurer Merle Jordan had met with the organisation while in the US recently. The items donated are expected to give basketball in Georgetown a professional appearance.