The National Basketball Arena in Tallaght was taken over by more than 350 primary school pupils yesterday for the second annual Irish Jr. NBA festival of basketball, proudly supported by DeCare Dental.

More than 25 teams from ten different counties flocked to the arena for a day of games, skills and fun, and also got to meet NBA ambassador, Fransico Elson, who was on hand to show talk all things NBA and of course, show them some basketball tricks.

This really is the kind of fun player development event that creates lifetime memories and is not just all about winning.
Many of the schools are in their first year of playing basketball, and there was huge excitement as they got to experience the big court at the National Basketball Arena alongside their friends, classmates and teachers.

“We are thrilled to have hosted another Irish Jr NBA festival of basketball at the arena today along with DeCare Dental,” said Basketball Ireland’s Conor Meany.

“Seeing so many kids getting involved in basketball for the first time was brilliant, and we hope that they will now go on to link up with the clubs in their area to keep learning more about the game.”

“The Jr NBA is all about fun, respect and teamwork and the teams here today certainly showed just that. We were honoured to have Francisco Elson as our ambassador for the event, and there was great excitement for all the kids who got to meet him and chat to him.”

The Jr NBA is a global programme run in over 70 countries and is built on the principles of fun, teamwork and respect.

The pupils also got to take part in a healthy living workshop with DeCare Dental.

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Image credit: Michelle La Grue