Editor’s note: Nuggets center Marcus Camby will write a diary for The Denver Post while in Johannesburg, South Africa, this weekend with the NBA’s Basketball Without Borders group. The program is designed not only to identify young basketball talent in Africa but features community outreach initiatives that include building reading centers and organizing forums to discuss issues such as the impact of poverty and HIV/AIDS prevention.
It was the start of the camp today. We were introduced to the campers, like 106 campers from the continent – 28 countries. There are definitely some good athletes here. The majority of the day was just teaching kids fundamentals, shooting, ball- handling.
Afterward, we went to Soweto and met with a lot of the youth there. It was definitely an eye-opening experience, seeing the living conditions and the kids’ spirits despite the conditions. Their spirits are so high.
It’s really deplorable living. There was one area of, like, 40,000 (people) with, like, 50 water hoses for all those people. A lot of these kids are raped at a young age by their parents.
The program today was more like a theatrical program, where they were able to get out their emotions. They were able to talk about their life, express themselves. It definitely brought tears to my eyes and to other players’.
There was a lot of interaction with the kids. We’re also opening a reading center – there were a lot of books donated to that – we signed autographs, exchanged addresses.
I’m looking forward to all the events we have, going into towns where there is really nothing. Most of the children have no shoes, it’s tough to bathe, the sanitation system is poor. I want to help these kids, whether it’s monetary or just lifting their spirits. Every NBA player should experience this. You see Africa on TV and you can’t get the feel of it until you’re here.
