A former professional basketball executive and player, Michael Masai Ujiri, has paid a visit to Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria and pledged to help the institution upgrade its facilities to standard for sports development.
The 2013 NBA Executive had come to congratulate Prof Adamu Ahmed, on his appointment as ABU Vice-Chancellor, whom he said they had a past together as basketball players.
Ujiri, also a 2019 NBA champion, owns the Zaria Court in Kigali, Rwanda, a multimillion dollar sports complex, featuring a basketball court, a gym, mini outdoor running track, a sports bar, a swimming pool, and hotel facility for accommodation.
Ujiri, who was born in the UK to Nigerian and Kenyan parents, was raised in Nigeria, where he attended Staff School and Demonstration Secondary School all in Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria.
Briefing the Vice-Chancellor, Prof Adamu Ahmed, on the purpose of his visit to Ahmadu Bello University, Ujiri said he came to discuss areas of critical need, especially sports entertainment and infrastructure around the university.
The professional basketball player said he and Prof Adamu Ahmed had a past together and so he needed to have a conversation and to also look at areas he could contribute to the growth of the institution.
He observed that a lot of facilities in the university had run down and not used as such.
Ujiri stressed the need for reenergising and refurbishing the facilities for the university to gain more from.
The basketball legend canvassed for the promotion of sports development, saying ABU should be at the forefront in that regard.
Ujiri said he wanted ABU to have a befitting sports complex akin to the Zaria Court in Kigali in Rwanda, a sports entertainment infrastructure which he built for sports development.
The basketball player said he grew up in ABU and thought about it everyday, saying he hoped to bring his wife and kids in his subsequent visit to Nigeria.
He thanked the Vice-Chancellor for the warm reception accorded him and members of his entourage.
Receiving the basketball legend, the Vice-Chancellor, Prof Adamu Ahmed, expressed gratitude to Masai Ujiri for the visit which he described as special to him in particular and the university in general.
The Vice-Chancellor said Ujiri’s visit to ABU was timely as the university was recently designated by the Nigerian government as one of the eight sports centres of excellence.
According to Ahmed, Ujiri’s decision to assist the university upgrade its sports infrastructure would certainly complement the federal government effort towards sports development in Nigeria.
Prof Ahmed believed that the ABU Sports Centre of Excellence, if properly positioned, could bridge the gap by serving as platforms for innovation, professional training, and commercialisation of sports.
He recalled when he tried to convince Ujiri to be part of the Nigerian Basketball Team.
The Vice-Chancellor also remembered that he, Ujiri, and a couple of others went to Pretoria in South Africa for a basketball tournament after which they secured a ticket to the World Cup in Japan, where they almost made it to the quarter finals.
Prof Ahmed thanked Ujiri most sincerely for the visit and looked forward to having him around again some other time.
It would be recalled that after ending a professional playing career in 2002, Ujiri worked as a youth coach in Nigeria.
The professional basketball legend admired Hakeem Olajuwon, a former NBA star, who is a Nigerian.
