The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

IT IS not how you start, nor how you get there. Most importantly, it’s how you finish.

• The Finish Line, a weekly column, seeks to comment on the state of affairs in local sports, highlighting the highs and the lows, the thrills and the spills and the successes and failures.

THE WEEK THAT WAS

It was interesting to note that Chavanno ‘Buddy’ Hield said he was surprised that he was traded from the New Orleans Pelicans to the Sacramento Kings.

But Hield was mature in his answer to the media when he was introduced as one of the newest Kings in the blockbuster deal right after the All-Star weekend that there was “uncertainty. I didn’t know what to expect, but I know God doesn’t make mistakes, so I’m here for a reason.”

Welcome to the National Basketball Association.

The rookie guard, who seems to have gotten lost in the shuffle in the Pelicans’ organisation, finds himself in a pretty good environment with the Kings where he can get the opportunity to display the shooting abilities that he was known for coming out of the Oklahoma Sooners’ collegiate programme.

“I’m ready to take Sacramento to higher heights. They traded for me, they traded a big piece of their team for me so I know that I have to come and put on a show and give Sacramento my all,” he said in an interview at the airport when he arrived at his new home.

Coming off his Western Conference Rookie of the Month honours for December, Hield put on a show in his last game in a New Orleans uniform - he canned 28 points with six rebounds in the BBVA Rising Stars Challenge as he helped the World beat the USA team 150-141 at the Smoothie King Center on Saturday night.

But the 23-year-old Hield had to take a back seat to Canadian Jamal Murray from the Denver Nuggets, who finished with a game high 36 points in 20 minutes to earn the most valuable player honours.

Hield, the Grand Bahamian native, said he had high aspirations of winning the award in front of the home crowd, not realising that it was his last for the Pelicans. But he said “when a guy is hot, you can’t be selfish and not give the guy the ball,” of Murray’s performance. “Hats off to him, man.”

Under coach Alvin Gentry, I just don’t think that Hield was given sufficient opportunities to display his skills, granted the fact that he’s just a rookie. But as a lottery pick, having been selected at No.6 in the first round by the Pelicans, more was expected of him.

Hopefully this move to the Kings will enable coach Dave Joerger to allow Hield to step up his game and hit the perimeter shots as he was known for with the Sooners.

It’s a pity that things didn’t work out for Hield in New Orleans, but this is the NBA and on any given day before the trade deadline, a player can find himself being shipped elsewhere.

Hopefully for Hield, the move to Sacramento will have a positive effect on his future as he still gets to wear his number 24, which he said indicates the Bahamas’ area code of 242 that he represents.

WELL DONE TEAM

BAHAMAS

If you didn’t get a chance to see the Bahamas team perform at the CONCACAF Beach Soccer World Championship Qualifier, you missed a lot of excitement so far.

For the first three days of the competition, the team prevailed with three consecutive victories to top Group A and advance to the quarter-finals that will be played today at the new national beach soccer stadium at the foot of the Sir Sidney Poitier Bridge.

Whether or not the team goes on to win the tournament that will conclude on Saturday, we should be proud of the team’s efforts, considering that this was a team that was just developed in the last year.

Alexandre Soares and his coaching staff that include Stephen Bellott, should be commended for taking the group of players from the tiny island of the Bahamas through Europe over the past year where they were able to further improve their skills training and playing in a number of cities and returning to perform as a veteran group that has been together for quite a while.

Lesly St Fleur, Gary Joseph, Nesly Jean, Kyle Williams, captain Gavin Christie and goalie Ivan Rolle and company have had a stellar performance so far.

The Bahamas has been known for its raw talent. Once given the chance to be nourished, the sky is the limit. Whether they win or not, the Bahamas has already proven that they have the capability of playing with the best in the world.

The Bahamas Football Association, headed by Anton Sealey, should also be commended for the role they played with FIFA, not only to bring the Qualifier and the World Cup to the Bahamas, but indeed the new facility that was erected in just three months or so.

The BBA and the Local Organising Committee, headed by Jeffery Beckles, have worked tirelessly with FIFA in getting the tournament off the ground.

If what we have seen was any indication, you can expect for the FIFA World Cup set for April 27 to May 7 to be an even more exciting event to watch with the Bahamas, as hosts, being one of the 16 teams from Africa, Asia, Europe, North, Central America and Caribbean, Oceania and South America.

THE WEEK AHEAD

Who will emerge as the champions of the 35th Hugh Campbell Basketball Classic?

The prestigious basketball tournament for senior boys basketball teams from high schools throughout the country will conclude Monday night at Kendal Isaacs Gymnasium when the champions will be crowed.

So far at the AF Adderley Gym, except for the downpour of the rain that seeped through the roof and onto the court on Wednesday night, delaying the games, the teams have entertained the crowd with some exciting games.

As it gets down to crunch time this weekend, expect to see the teams prepare for another possible showdown between New Providence and Grand Bahama for the title. There are still plenty more games left to play, so if you have an interest in cheering for your favourite team, make your way to the AF Adderley Gym.