Enes Kanter, a Turkish professional basketball player in the NBA with the Oklahoma City Thunder visited Uganda in June courtesy of the Nile Dialogue Platform, a Turkish NGO based in Uganda.
Based on an interview between Swalley Kenyi of the Vision Group, and the NDP CEO Lokman Cinar, it was understood that Kanter’s visit was meant to promote social cohesion, the spirit of dialogue, love, and respect to Ugandans as part of the NDP’s Inter-Faith Dialogue.
The local basketball fan base was thrilled by the visit. Representing the basketball community was the president of the National Basketball body of Uganda, Ambrose Tashobya.
He expressed his excitement about the tour and said the Basketball Body of Uganda, would take advantage of the visit to inspire the NBA Junior League players. According to Tashobya, young players tend to think of NBA players as role models hence physical interaction with them would be impactful.
Kanter plays the center position, and stands at 6 feet and 11 inches tall. He was drafted third overall by the Utah Jazz in the 2011 NBA Draft and appeared in every regular season game. On February 2015, Kanter was traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder where he recorded a double-double, 10 points and 13 rebounds per game.
Kanter plays for the Oklahoma City Thunder (AFP)
After playing in an exhibition half-court game, Kanter interacted with the young players and expressed his delight at the opportunity to help grow young talent in Uganda.
Kanter shared that playing in the NBA was a childhood dream. He advised the children to “Always believe in yourself, always chase your dreams, work hard and no matter what happens, never give up.”
He added that “It doesn’t matter where you come from, what sport you play, it is about working hard to achieve what you want.”
Enes Kanter Interacts with School Children (Facebook Image)
Kanter’s passion extends well beyond the basketball court. He is interested in humanitarian activities and expressed his gratitude to the NDP for giving him the opportunity to achieve his goal to live for others.
“[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]When you help others, God will help you and so do not live for yourself, but rather live for others,”[/perfectpullquote]
he said.
Featured Photo —Kanter enjoys a moment at Uganda’s Equator (Photo Credit: Enes Kanter)
