Basketball
Shaq draws inspiration from Muhammad Ali’s generous spirit
Shaquille O’Neal hopes to carry on the legacy of late boxing great Muhammad Ali, the retired four-time NBA champion said, as he uses his extraordinary fame to advance his philanthropic work.
O’Neal will be honored on Saturday at the Muhammad Ali Center in Louisville for his work supporting underserved youth, a cause that reflects the ideals that “The Greatest” championed, Ali’s widow Lonnie Ali said.
“We don’t give this out lightly,” Ali told Reuters in a joint interview with O’Neal.
“We give it to people who emulate Muhammad’s example, who bring that Ali spirit and carry that torch forward to the next generation.”
She said she sees a lot of her husband, a global icon known as much for his political activism as his boxing brilliance, in Hall of Famer O’Neal.
“He has a compassionate and kind heart like Muhammad had,” she said.
O’Neal, 52, credits the Boys & Girls Club of America as being a safe haven for him when he was growing up in a rough part of Newark, New Jersey.
O’Neal’s foundation has long been a high-profile supporter of the philanthropic organization as part of his mission to create pathways to success for young people.
Muhammad and Lonnie first got to know O’Neal in the early 1990s when he was about to be drafted into the NBA, beginning what would become an enduring friendship.
“I can remember my father telling me one day, if you listen to me, you can be as big as Muhammad Ali,” O’Neal said.
“I didn’t believe it. But I had the opportunity to meet Mr. Ali and when he recognized me in a restaurant, I almost cried. I was like, oh my God, Muhammad Ali knows who I am.
“I don’t consider myself in the same stratosphere as Ali but to have had the opportunity to see him, try to mimic him and to be close to his family.
“Everything I’ve tried to do I’ve patterned after the great Muhammad Ali.”
GOOD DEEDS
O’Neal said another inspiration to perform good deeds comes from his mother, who he plans to bring as his date to Saturday’s awards dinner.
“When I do things, I don’t do them for recognition, I do them because I’ve seen other greats like Muhammad Ali do it,” he said.
“And I’m a mama’s boy, and she always told me to be kind and compassionate and help those in need.”
Since retiring from the NBA in 2011, the larger-than-life profile of “Shaq” has only grown.
He is an analyst for TNT’s beloved “Inside the NBA” and is involved in myriad business ventures, charitable causes and artistic endeavors.
Saturday’s annual awards dinner also serves as a fundraiser for the center, whose mission is to “foster respect, inspire generations of changemakers, and advance social justice”.
It welcomes over 100,000 visitors annually and will celebrate its 20th anniversary next year.
“The first 20 years was getting established and putting Muhammad’s legacy down,” Lonnie Ali said.
“We really wanted the center to be built and grounded while Muhammad was still with us,” she said of her husband, who she was married to for three decades before he passed away in 2016.
“The next 20 years will embody even more of Muhammad’s legacy, talking about his greatness and passing that greatness on.”
-Reuters
Musa Kida, the president of the Nigeria Basketball Federation (NBBF), has been appointed as a non-executive chairman of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC), the country’s apex oil company. His appointment is part of the sweeping overhaul that the Nigerian president, Bola Tinubu made in the first working day after the Sallah break.
The sacking of the board of the NNPC sees the appointment of Bashir Bayo Ojulari as the new Group Chief Executive Officer (CEO), replacing Mele Kolo Kyari. Prior to his current appointment, Kida was the Deputy Managing Director, Deep Water Services, of Total Nigeria.
Join the Sports Village Square channel on WhatsApp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029Vaz7mEIGk1FxU8YIXb0H
Basketball
NSC DG Bukola Olopade Congratulates NBBF Boss Musa Kida for new appointment as NNPC Chairman
The Director General of the National Sports Commission NSC, Bukola Olopade, has congratulated the President of the Nigeria Basketball Federation, NBBF, Musa Kida, for his appointment as the new Board Chairman of the Nigeria National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Olopade said Musa Kida has been one of Nigeria’s most efficient and Productive Sports administrators who has sacrificed a lot for the growth of Nigerian Basketball.
The DG maintained that his latest appointment is a testament to his years of passion, hard work, dedication and a very successful track record in the oil sector for more than two decades.
” Musa Kida is an accomplished administrator whose achievements cut across both the oil sector and Nigerian basketball. I have no doubt that the NNPC Limited will attain better efficiency and attract more investment under his watch”.
” Under his leadership as the President of the Nigeria Basketball Federation, we have seen the steady growth of the country’s basketball and how the National teams have continued to achieve new heights.
” At the last Olympic Games in France, the Nigeria Women’s Basketball team, D’Tigress was one of the shining stories for Team Nigeria, where they set a new record by making it to the knockout phase before losing to the United States”.
” I personally know the efforts behind the scenes that kida put in for Nigeria to achieve that feat with the girls in France and the Nigerian girls have been an unrivalled team on the continent for some time now”.
The DG added that he does not doubt that Musa Kida will use his new position to further earnest the development of Nigerian Sports especially basketball especially now that there is a new focus on growing a sustainable Sports Economy.
” Whilst the Oil sector will benefit immensely from the Expertise of Musa Kida as the new Board Chairman of the NNPC Limited, Mr President, has further helped to place Nigerian Sports in a better pedestal by putting one of us in a very strategic place like the NNPC”, he concluded.
Join the Sports Village Square channel on WhatsApp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029Vaz7mEIGk1FxU8YIXb0H
Basketball
FIBA names Nigeria’s Agada among those who starred the most on the last day of the 2025 AfroBasket Qualifiers
The 16 teams that will be competing at this year’s FIBA AfroBasket from 12-24 August have been confirmed, with some teams securing their places on the final day of qualifying.
A quintet of individuals put in stellar performances to send their teams to this year’s African championship in style.
Teams have 169 days to prepare for the 2025 edition of the AfroBasket set to be hosted by former champions Angola, who will be chasing a record-extending 12th title.
FIBA- Africa looked at the matches and the players and featured nine players who were the stars of the final day on Sunday.
Here is FIBA’s analysis: The return of the Tokyo Olympian has been a blessing for Abdulrahman Mohammed’s Nigeria.
For the second game in a row, Agada was a thorn in their side’s side, scoring 23 points in a convincing 77-62 win over 2021 AfroBasket semifinalists Cape Verde.
The 30-year-old played just over 30 minutes and finished two rebounds shy of a double-double while adding six assists and five steals for an efficiency rating of 29.
Nigeria entered the competition after an 0-3 start, but his disruptive presence on the floor helped them to a 3-0 run to qualify, averaging 19 points, 7.7 rebounds and 6.3 assists.
The other players highlighted are: Ousmane Drame of Guinea, Karim Maneof Senegal, Childe Dundao of Angola, Siriman Kanoute of Mali, as well as Ntore Habimana (Rwanda) Aliou Fadiala Diarra (Mali) Allan Dokossi (Central African Republic)and Nisre Zouzoua (Cote d’Ivoire)
Follow the Sports Village Square channel on WhatsApp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029Vaz7mEIGk1FxU8YIXb0H
Remo Stars are Nigeria’s 21st League Champions
AMAC Crowned Inaugural Champions of FCT FA Women’s Inter-Area Councils Football Tournament
Ayanwale, Aiyelabegan set to defend titles at 2025 National Table Tennis Championships in Osun
- WOMEN'S FOOTBALL1 week ago
Naira rain falls on Nigeria’s Flamingos after a 4-0 defeat of Algeria
- Nigerian Football4 days ago
Financial rainfall awaits Nigeria’s Flamingos for every goal scored in Algeria
- OBITUARY6 days ago
NFF mourns the demise of former FIFA referee, Bosede Momoh
- U-17 AFCON1 week ago
Morocco crowned CAF U-17 AFCON champions after dramatic penalty shootout win over Mali
- U-20 FOOTBALL1 week ago
Nigeria begin CAF Under-20 Africa Cup of Nations title chase with Tunisian clash
- Nigerian Football1 week ago
Remo Stars maintain ‘7Up’ lead over Rivers United
- feature6 days ago
Ghana’s Cardinal, Appiah Turkson, listed as a possible Pope
- Nigerian Football4 days ago
Former WAFU President, Ogufere mourns Christian Chukwu