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Claire Lamunu has earned the right to make the team and will make the Gazelles better in the finals.
Many are wondering how Claire Lamunu has made it to the Uganda Gazelles final team to the FIBA Women’s Afrobasket without a single training session.
Valid concern. Players should be exposed to the same level of training and have a levelled ground to compete for slots.
Lamunu is still in the US and will find the team in camp before they travel for the tournament in Kigali, Rwanda.
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21:15 - 15.07.2023
BASKETBALL Uganda Gazelles final team for Afrobasket named
The team is headlined by US-based Claire Lamunu, who is yet to arrive for training.
Lamunu’s inclusion meant players like Sarah Ageno and Bridget Aber could not make it to the final 12.
Ageno is dominating the National Basketball League, averaging 14 points and 12 rebounds. She has picked up multiple Player of the Game accolades but will either travel to Kigali as a fan or watch the games on television.
Aber, on the other hand, barely trained with the team due to her involvement with the U23 3X3 team.
All that said, Claire Lamunu is one of the best players of her generation and needs no introduction to Ugandan basketball.
She has earned the right to make the team and will make the Gazelles better in the finals.
Her experience will also come in handy. Having featured for the Gazelles and played at a much higher level compared to the rest of the players on the team, the forward adds quality and exposure.
Lamunu played in College and went on to feature for teams in Portugal and Finland before the Covid-19 pandemic hit the world.
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12:06 - 13.07.2023
BASKETBALL Uganda Gazelles camp boosted by head coach Alberto Antuna’s arrival
Afrobasket is slated for July 28 to August 6, giving Antuna about two weeks with the team before its first game on July 28.
She then returned to KCCA for the 2021 season, which was eventually cancelled.
Clips of the former KCCA Leopards player going through her paces in the US show that she still has her mid-range shot. Couple that with her size and rebounding prowess, and head coach Alberto Antuna has a gem to work with.
Throughout the qualifiers, Antuna’s rotation did not go beyond eight players. And in the final against Egypt, he only used seven players.
So, it might not be a surprise that Ageno, who was one of the players that barely played, is left out for the finals after reinforcement.
Lamunu’s inclusion will draw even more attention if she eventually shows up and fails to deliver the goods on the floor. But there have not been many times Lamunu has played and not delivered.
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07:53 - 12.06.2023
BASKETBALL To be the best, you have to beat the best -Uganda Gazelles captain Flavia Oketcho confident
Record champions Senegal and 2007 winners Mali will be Uganda’s opponents in the first phase of the competition.
The burden of explaining will then lie with the coach, but for now, the player’s quality and reputation suggest that she is good enough for selection to represent Uganda.
If the Gazelles were good without Lamunu yesterday, they are a much better team with her today.
Let’s go make some noise in Kigali!
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