The opening fixture of the 2025 Men’s Division of the National Basketball League between City Oilers and Namuwongo Blazers may be regarded as a season marker by many fans of the game but it’s far from it.
If anything, the Friday night match up at Lugogo Indoor Stadium will only bare the needs of either side, especially the Oilers who will be without MVP Titus Lual and star point guard Fayed Bbale.
With the duo out, off season acquisitions Edgar Munaba and Bolton Rujumba will have to be thrown in the deep end straight away. Coach Andrew Tendo will have to direct the front court defensive load to Rogers Dauna, Rujumba and returnee Joseph Chuma who is a bit frail on that end of the floor and could be a target for the Blazers the half court.
Returning Emmanuel Okumu who is the most vocal defender on the team will, alongside Dier Malual and Munaba, guard the wings in Tendo’s preferred man-to-man defensive coverage.
Peter Obleng elevated his offensive game last season and will give wing defenders lots of problems this year starting tonight. With help from outside shooters Paul Odong and Innocent Ochera, Obleng makes Blazers a bit opulent on the wing, especially offensively.
Benjamin Kawumi, Allawi Ssenkubuge and skipper Ivan Muhwezi will their hands full is slowing down a high-octane Blazers back court that will alternate between Joel Lukoji, Tony Drileba, Jimmy Enabu, Ochera, Henry Ssebagala and Blair Wadaya.
How will teams turn up offensively?
The two coaches, Stephen Nyeko and Tendo, seem to favour a relatively fast paced game that creates small games within the game and we will most likely see a lot of transition basketball.
Kawumi who will most likely direct Oilers traffic will take the lead for the champions while Lukoji will pace up the Blazers.
Of course chemistry would stand in your way when you have many new players on the team and that might be visible from either, especially in the half court sets. However, the Blazers may have an edge in the half court because of the experience in their core.
“There are going to be growing pains along the way probably until halfway the season,” Tendo told Kawowo Sports after a friendly game against Livingstone. “Obviously, when you have new guys in you don’t expect them to understand what we do here in a few sessions, it takes some time but we are working towards getting them to the same wavelength”
From the outside looking in, Allawi could be given the green light to shoot the ball for Oilers.