MVP Cast with Mark Woods

The Shane Walker One

Bristol Flyers centre Shane Walker joins the MVP Cast.
He tells about his first forays into coaching, how it fits into his drive to gives kids positive role models and a sense of well-being - and why he's bought land in Ghana as part of a long-term project there.
We discuss the joy and pain of trying to make it big in the USA, playing with Kevin Durant and against other NBAers, the magical formulas that separate good BBL teams from the not, and what impact 777's investment into the British Basketball League might have. More at MVP247.com.

The Lauren Milligan One

Oaklands Wolves player-coach Lauren Milligan joins the MVP Cast.
She tells Mark Woods about becoming the youngest playcaller in the Women's British Basketball League and nurturing wins with developing young talent at Oaklands Basketball Academy on and off the court. We explore her route through the sport, the mentors who have helped her, her ambitions for the future - and food. More at MVP247.com.

The Tayo Ogedengbe One

Surrey Scorchers forward Tayo Ogedengbe joins the MVP Cast.
He tells Mark Woods about honest conversations about racism with his three young sons and how the BBL's Players Voice initiative has a role to play in addressing issues. We chat about the concept of a players union and how the British Basketball League might develop, his own pathway in the UK and abroad, his side gig in modelling and how he was shaped by a spell in his teens when he was left homeless. More at MVP247.com

The Dwayne Lautier-Ogunleye One

Great Britain guard Dwayne Lautier-Ogunleye joins the MVP Cast.
He tells Mark Woods about being a child of London, and of France, and the cross-capital switches that took him to Bristol, then college, and then the pros. We talk about social media in the world of basketball, dealing with injuries, and GB's forthcoming FIBA World Cup qualifiers against Greece and Turkey. More at MVP247.com.
Sponsored by TeamSportz.

The Bennett Koch One

Sheffield Sharks centre Bennett Koch joins the MVP Cast. He tells Mark Woods about the ebbs and flows of his three years in the British Basketball League, the family brotherhood that propelled him and his siblings onto the court, trash talking, playing overseas and how he likes to unwind .... with a hike. More at MVP247.com.
 
Sponsored by TeamSportz (www.teamsportz.pro)

The Francisco Baptista One

Tech guru Francisco Baptista joins the MVP Cast. The founder and CEO of Team Sports talks to us about how AI and data are transforming sports at grassroots and pro levels, how his new App aims to alter the way players and coaches are able to develop their basketball game, where the next step in tech will be, and how he was inspired by his upbringing in Angola before ending up in Hemel. More at mvp247.com

The Helen Naylor One

Sheffield Hatters forward Helen Naylor joins the MVP Cast.
She tells Mark Woods about pairing basketball with having her first child last year and the physical and logistical challenges presented by pregnancy and parenting. We explore the role of her basketball-playing family, the flatlining and resurrection of the Hatters and her succession of great teams in the WBBL and elsewhere. More at MVP247.com
Sponsored by TeamSportz - find out more at www.teamsportz.pro

The Kimbal Mackenzie One

Leicester Riders guard Kimbal Mackenzie joins the MVP Cast.
He tells Mark Woods about hooping it as a kid in Canada, looking to make it in the NBA and dealing with the loss of that dream. He recounts his switch to Spain, his ambitions to make it big off the court - and getting paid in Bitcoin. More at MVP247.com
Sponsored by TeamSportz - www.teamsportz.pro

The Boban Jacdonmi One

Glasgow Rocks centre Boban Jacdonmi joins the MVP Cast.
He tells Mark Woods about playing catch-up following his late, late start in basketball, how he accelerated his development with a former Harlem Globetrotter in Stoke, his path to the USA through junior college to Division One of the NCAA, his international ambitions, and how he sees his career panning out with the Rocks, and beyond. More at MVP247.com

The Josh Ward Hibbert One

London Lions guard Josh Ward Hibbert joins the MVP Cast.
He tells Mark Woods about his transition to basketball from tennis, his alternative sporting career as a junior Grand Slam champion and the transition from one to the other. We talk about his development as a basketballer and the influences that shaped him, and his role on a Lions team starting its bid in the FIBA Europe Cup. More at MVP247.com