biba
09-30-2007, 04:49 PM
Hoops and harmony: How PeacePlayers is changing the Middle East
By Chad Ford ESPN.com
R. C. Buford, San Antonio Spurs General Manager
What does the most successful NBA general manager of the past decade do in the offseason?
For the past several years, as a board member of PeacePlayers, R.C. Buford has been providing hands-on support. Last September, he checked out the PeacePlayers program in Durban, South Africa. In October, on his way back from the Spurs' preseason games in France, he stopped to lend a hand in Northern Ireland. And in August, he made his first visit to Israel for the PeacePlayers' second annual Building Bridges program.
The Building Bridges program brought together about 80 young Palestinian and Israeli ballplayers for a two-day, overnight camp, where they learned basketball skills during the day and spent time together at night. Sponsored by adidas, the campers all got uniforms, a new pair of high-tops and other gear.
Buford learned about PeacePlayers from Ron Shapiro, a high-powered baseball agent who serves as chair of the PeacePlayers board. Two former Spurs, Steve Kerr and Danny Ferry, also sit on the board, along with NBA super-agent Arn Tellem.
Buford seems almost reclusive in his role with the Spurs. But in Israel, he opens up with the kids. He runs basketball drill stations, jokes with the kids during a water break, hands out awards and even conducts a late-night coaching clinic for the PeacePlayers coaches.
"PeacePlayers is a great opportunity to be around kids using basketball to bridge damaged relationships in areas that need some good things to happen," Buford says.
As the GM for the Spurs, Buford is known as a guy who can see the big picture. From the sound of things, that trait has helped PeacePlayers.
"Basketball is a game where all five players need to share the ball," Buford says. "If it is played with great teamwork, the sum of the parts is greater than the individual. It's a great forum for building trust. A lot of the game happens with things you can't see. Communication and trust with teammates is the key. It seems to me that the same can be said of peacemaking."
Buford's support of PeacePlayers isn't the only area in which he has given kids a chance.
In 2004, during a Basketball Without Borders camp in South Africa, Buford met a 15-year-old player from Cameroon, Alexis Mang-Ikri Wangmene.
The two immediately hit it off, despite not speaking the same language, and at the end of the camp, Buford asked Alexis if he would like move to the United States, play high school basketball and live with Buford's family.
Three years later, Buford refers to Alexis as his adopted son. Alexis is expected to play for Rick Barnes and the Texas Longhorns as a freshman in the fall.
"I'm not a sociologist, but to me, kids are the same everywhere," Buford says. "The issues these kids face are really imposed on them by the adults. Anytime you can find a way to provide them with a fresh canvas to rewrite the existing story, you give them a chance to make the world a better place."
By Chad Ford ESPN.com
R. C. Buford, San Antonio Spurs General Manager
What does the most successful NBA general manager of the past decade do in the offseason?
For the past several years, as a board member of PeacePlayers, R.C. Buford has been providing hands-on support. Last September, he checked out the PeacePlayers program in Durban, South Africa. In October, on his way back from the Spurs' preseason games in France, he stopped to lend a hand in Northern Ireland. And in August, he made his first visit to Israel for the PeacePlayers' second annual Building Bridges program.
The Building Bridges program brought together about 80 young Palestinian and Israeli ballplayers for a two-day, overnight camp, where they learned basketball skills during the day and spent time together at night. Sponsored by adidas, the campers all got uniforms, a new pair of high-tops and other gear.
Buford learned about PeacePlayers from Ron Shapiro, a high-powered baseball agent who serves as chair of the PeacePlayers board. Two former Spurs, Steve Kerr and Danny Ferry, also sit on the board, along with NBA super-agent Arn Tellem.
Buford seems almost reclusive in his role with the Spurs. But in Israel, he opens up with the kids. He runs basketball drill stations, jokes with the kids during a water break, hands out awards and even conducts a late-night coaching clinic for the PeacePlayers coaches.
"PeacePlayers is a great opportunity to be around kids using basketball to bridge damaged relationships in areas that need some good things to happen," Buford says.
As the GM for the Spurs, Buford is known as a guy who can see the big picture. From the sound of things, that trait has helped PeacePlayers.
"Basketball is a game where all five players need to share the ball," Buford says. "If it is played with great teamwork, the sum of the parts is greater than the individual. It's a great forum for building trust. A lot of the game happens with things you can't see. Communication and trust with teammates is the key. It seems to me that the same can be said of peacemaking."
Buford's support of PeacePlayers isn't the only area in which he has given kids a chance.
In 2004, during a Basketball Without Borders camp in South Africa, Buford met a 15-year-old player from Cameroon, Alexis Mang-Ikri Wangmene.
The two immediately hit it off, despite not speaking the same language, and at the end of the camp, Buford asked Alexis if he would like move to the United States, play high school basketball and live with Buford's family.
Three years later, Buford refers to Alexis as his adopted son. Alexis is expected to play for Rick Barnes and the Texas Longhorns as a freshman in the fall.
"I'm not a sociologist, but to me, kids are the same everywhere," Buford says. "The issues these kids face are really imposed on them by the adults. Anytime you can find a way to provide them with a fresh canvas to rewrite the existing story, you give them a chance to make the world a better place."