Tweet
Arop attends St. Mary’s Secondary School and is a top prospect with Canada Basketball’s National Elite Development Academy
training program. Last week, the 6-foot-5 shooting guard signed a letter of intent to play basketball for Gonzaga.
“I’m happy about it,” Arop said. “I made the right decision about what school I want to go to. It’s close to home ... Edmonton is only
going to be a 12-hour drive away.”
* * *
Arop is in his second year with the
McMaster University-based NEDA program. He’s also a member of the Canadian National Junior Team that’s scheduled to play July 2-12 in Auckland, N.Z., at the FIBA U19 worlds.
Last summer at competitions in Germany and Argentina, Arop burst onto the scene with some spectacular play. He averaged 17 points and 10.2 rebounds during Canada’s five starts in Formosa, Argentina.
“Manny is an athletic and explosive
basketball player on the court,” said Greg Francis, who coaches both the NEDA and
national junior teams. “In the last few years, he has developed a solid understanding of the game. He has really improved his passing, shooting and ball handling.”
Joe Raso, the head coach at McMaster and a teacher at St. Mary’s, accompanied the NEDA team to the tournament in Germany, where Arop led all players in rebounding (11.3 per game) and scored an average of 20.5 points.
Said Raso: “Manny is definitely a scorer, but what makes him stand out from a lot of other kids who score is that he has the ability to lock down people defensively on the ball. And he is a tenacious offensive rebounder. No question, in that tournament, he was one of the top five players.”
training program. Last week, the 6-foot-5 shooting guard signed a letter of intent to play basketball for Gonzaga.
“I’m happy about it,” Arop said. “I made the right decision about what school I want to go to. It’s close to home ... Edmonton is only
going to be a 12-hour drive away.”
* * *
Arop is in his second year with the
McMaster University-based NEDA program. He’s also a member of the Canadian National Junior Team that’s scheduled to play July 2-12 in Auckland, N.Z., at the FIBA U19 worlds.
Last summer at competitions in Germany and Argentina, Arop burst onto the scene with some spectacular play. He averaged 17 points and 10.2 rebounds during Canada’s five starts in Formosa, Argentina.
“Manny is an athletic and explosive
basketball player on the court,” said Greg Francis, who coaches both the NEDA and
national junior teams. “In the last few years, he has developed a solid understanding of the game. He has really improved his passing, shooting and ball handling.”
Joe Raso, the head coach at McMaster and a teacher at St. Mary’s, accompanied the NEDA team to the tournament in Germany, where Arop led all players in rebounding (11.3 per game) and scored an average of 20.5 points.
Said Raso: “Manny is definitely a scorer, but what makes him stand out from a lot of other kids who score is that he has the ability to lock down people defensively on the ball. And he is a tenacious offensive rebounder. No question, in that tournament, he was one of the top five players.”
Comment