Jr. NBA World Championship set in 2018

Coming Soon.

A couple of weeks ago, the NBA officially announced the establishment of the Jr. NBA World Championship, which is the first global tournament of its kind for the top 14-and-under boys and girls.

Even with the competitive juices flowing, the Jr. NBA World Championship will remain true to its four core values: teamwork, respect, determination, and community. The end goal sees the tournament setting the standard with regards to youth basketball development worldwide. To do that, it has collaborated with both USA Basketball and FIBA with regards to promoting standards of safe play, as well as the proper training and licensing of coaches to enhance the experience of everyone involved. In addition, the Jr. NBA World Championship will be aligned to current NBA and USA Basketball Youth Guidelines, which promotes health and wellness in a variety of ways, including recommendations with regards to age-appropriate limits to the amount of games kids are to play.

To determine the 16-team field, there are two components, as eight will be culled from the United States, and the other eight from the rest of the world.

The United States contingent will be determined from regional tournaments (Central, Mid-Atlantic, Midwest, Northeast, Northwest, South, Southeast and West), while the international field will be represented by the champions from Africa & Middle East, Asia-Pacific, Canada, China, Europe, India, Mexico and South America.

Once the field has been filled, the sixteen teams will receive an all-expenses-paid trip to the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex inside the Walt Disney World Resort in Florida to compete in the initial finals on August 7-12. This portion of the tournament will feature round robin play, with the final day is reserved for the championship games of both the US and international brackets.

Aside from the basketball action, the teams will also receive off-court life skills education and participate in NBA Cares community service projects.

According to NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, "The Jr. NBA World Championship represents another significant step in our effort to promote youth basketball globally." He adds, "Participants will learn from NBA and WNBA veterans and coaches the values of the game and the most appropriate training techniques."

The league has enlisted a couple of players to serve the lead global ambassadors for this particular competition: Cleveland Cavaliers guard Dwyane Wade and Los Angeles Sparks forward Candace Parker.

According to Wade: "I am excited to serve as a global ambassador for the Jr. NBA World Championship. Basketball means so much to me and my family, and I look forward to helping the NBA improve the game at the youth level for the next generation of players from around the world."

According to Parker: "The Jr. NBA World Championship is a great initiative that will connect U.S. and international youth in a meaningful way. As a global ambassador, I'm looking forward to making a positive impact on the participants, both on and off the court."

Having this tournament illustrates the global reach of the NBA, in particular the Jr. NBA Program. The league is expected to reach 26 million youth in 71 countries this season, through camps, clinics, skills challenges, league play, and other outreach events.

For further details on the Jr. NBA World Championship, one can check out at jrnba.com/worldchampionship.