With the composition of teams to play in this season’s playoffs decided, FELIX EUPAL looks at the holy-trinity of each of the four teams.
Dmark Power
Joseph Ikong: The 6ft 4 inches shooting guard is Power’s current top scorer. There is no game where he has walked off court without double figures. What Ikong lacks in defence, he makes up in offense. The current table leaders will have to rely on his explosive play to unlock defenses.
Emma Enabu: This may only be the first season for the 19-year-old, but he has turned heads by exceptionally directing traffic from the point-guard position.
Boniface Okello: He may be described a ‘mechanic’ by fans who don’t warm up to his efficient approach, but one thing’s for sure: the 2006 MVP gets the job done. He did it for Marines four years back and he can do it again for Power.
UCU Canons
Steven Mwesigye: Nicknamed “Dukes” by his colleagues, Mwesigye has played all games like his life depended on them. Such an approach has seen him receive the thumbs up from his coach Nick Natuhereza. Everyone knows how the Canons have made something out of nothing. If they are to turn that something (read playoffs) into a title, Mwesigye will be at the back of it.
Jeff Omondi: The Canons were on a respiratory machine until Omondi played the prodigal son by returning from Kenya Ports Authority. He has since helped the Canons hang on to many seemingly lost causes.
Jimmy Enabu: It might just be his first season with Canons but the shooting guard (together with his elder brother Ivan Enabu) has defined the Canons’ offense this season, taking down opponents for fun and gunning those three pointers with ease.
Mountain Dew Falcons
Suudi Ulanga: The true definition of a point guard, Ulanga controls games with ease and no-one compares when it comes to directing the ball to the right person at the right time.
Richard Omondi: Individual brilliancy, it is said, wins you games, while teamwork wins you championships. No player in Falcons has exhibited a good work ethic like the 2009 Zone V MVP Omondi. While most of the players showboat, Omondi always has the bigger picture in mind.
Bienvenue Ngandu: The former APR power-forward is that type of player that any coach would love on his team. Towering and incredibly hardworking, Ngandu scares opponents and ensures the rebounds have his name on them. That is not all, he can shoot extremely well.
Kyambogo Warriors
Steven Okias: His journey this season has been amazing: from a want-away player to a bench material and now to a go-to- man, Okia’s transformation has been nothing short of paradoxical. Getting himself in open spaces and punishing opponents when they least expected is his forte.
Eric Malinga: While his elder brother, Henry Malinga has struggled for form, Eric’s jump-shot has continued to take the defending champions places.
Martin Okwako: He justified he’s one for the big stage by guiding Warriors to a resounding win over Power in last season’s playoff final. A repeat of such form won’t surprise many.