Good News: Indonesian Basketball Player Derrick Michael Xzavierro Joins NBA Global Academy

Derrick Michael Xzavierro joins the NBA Global Academy (Photo: NBA Academy)

JAKARTA - Indonesian basketball candidate Derrick Michael Xzavierro will join the NBA Global Academy basketball training program at the Basketball Australia Centre of Excellence at the Australian Institute of Sport, Canberra, Australia.

Xzavierro is a forward player with a height of 2.03 meters from Jakarta, is the first candidate from Indonesia to attend the NBA Academy, a training center for the best players from outside the United States.

"I am thrilled to be joining the NBA Global Academy to learn from the coaches and train with the best basketball players, who are my age, from different parts of the world", Xzavierro said in a written statement reported from Antara on Tuesday.

"This is a great opportunity to develop my talent and be the next step to becoming a better player and leader", he added.

Xzavierro previously participated in the Jr. NBA program in Indonesia in 2017 and made his game debut with the Indonesian men's senior national team at the FIBA Asia Cup 2021 Qualifiers.

Xzavierro was also part of the first NBA Academy selected through NBA Global Scout, a basketball talent development and search program accessible through HomeCourt, an AI-enabled basketball training app that became the NBA's official partner.

The platform, which has been used by nearly 25 thousand candidates from 197 countries, is designed to provide more opportunities for classy basketball players from all over the world to be discovered and selected for future basketball development opportunities.

"Derrick is the best candidate from Indonesia that fits our program", said NBA Global Academy Technical Director Marty Clarke.

"We look forward to the opportunity to help Derrick develop and prepare for the next level", he said.

NBA Global Academy prepares the best high school age candidates from outside the United States with a holistic approach to developing players.

The program focuses on health and fitness, character development, life skills and provides opportunities for candidates to learn the game from NBA coaches with professional, college, and international training experience.

Meanwhile, the Australian Institute of Sports in Canberra is home to world-class facilities and leading sports practitioners in sports science, sports medicine, and training. The Australian Institute of Sport is the flagship of the Australian Sports Commission, the Australian Government's sporting body.