After a well-deserved summer break, the BBD basketball players returned to the Agora floor this Monday, August 8th. For their return to school, the players gathered for a training session, the first before the start of the season. “There is excitement and enthusiasm. We are happy to see the new faces”smiles Alexandre Ménard.
Four new recruits
Four new players join the team. It is Clement Cavallo, Louis Cassier, Travis Munnings and Kavell Bigby-Williams. The BBD is still working on the recruitment of a tenth player with profile 2 and who could evolve on position 1.
Here is the list of players this season pending the arrival of the last player:
- Paul Billong
- Baptiste Tchouaffé
- Olivier Courtale
- Nicholas DeJong
- Nick Moore
- Clement Cavallo
- Louis Cassier
- Travis Munnings
- Kavell Bigby-Williams
Kavell Bigby-Williams has not yet arrived in Dordogne, he has just finished the championship in the Dominican Republic. He should arrive in Boulazac shortly, before leaving with his national team.
“We tried to build the team in the smartest way possible, based on who we wanted to keep, who wanted to stay, who wanted to leave. We tried to bring the pieces together as we went. measurement by putting as a high point this notion of sharing and commitment for the team before commitment for oneself. This is what last year allowed us to weather the storm and remain unscathed”, explains Alexandre Ménard. On the staff side, Jérémy Sarre takes over from Claude Bergeaud as sports director. The technical staff remains unchanged.
Aim for the top of the board
In building his team, Alexandre Ménard wanted to focus on defense, “the side sharing the ball and the fact that the team is more important than the individual”he also wanted to bring “verticality and athletic density”.
“The Pro B is a very difficult championship. Compared to the season that has just ended, with a lot of humility we will try to get back on track and win as many matches as possible. Of course the BBD must to aim for the top of the table at least. If we say less than a top 4, top 5, it would be playing Guy Roux”concludes Jérémy Sarre.
During the first two weeks, the BBD will resume the training phases, before a first friendly match around August 23 at the Agora, against Tarbes. The BBD will play against Vichy-Clermont on September 27 for the first phase of the Leaders Cup.