‘Beast’ reveals love for LeBron, shooting hoops, sees potential for basketball in SA

Rugby World Cup winner Tendai Mtawarira says basketball was his first love growing up, but admits he wasn’t very good at it.

The burly prop, who won the 2019 Rugby World Cup with the Springboks, was an enthusiastic hoop shooter in his high school days in Zimbabwe, but he realised rugby would more likely pay the bills.

That does not mean “The Beast” has lost his affection for the game on the court.

The sport has journeyed with the 39-year-old through his life, but played second fiddle during his rugby-playing days, which included 117 Tests and more than 200 matches in the black and white colours of the Sharks.

As with many children in the 1990s, NBA Hall of Famer and superstar Michael Jordan was a major influence on the former Bok prop’s love affair with the game.

LeBron James then became his favourite, Mtawarira said at the 10th annual NBA Africa All-Star Luncheon at the Moscone Centre in San Francisco on Saturday.

Now that his days of crunching opposition bones in scrums are over, his fondness for hooping balls has been rekindled. 

“My love for basketball has been there for a long time,” Mtawarira said. “I played in high school and followed LeBron James while he was at the Cleveland Cavaliers and Miami Heat. I tried to emulate him because he is the epitome of a real, proper athlete.”

Mtawarira now watches James play for the LA Lakers in the company of his 11-year-old son, Wangu, who is an avid basketball player himself. “He [Wangu] is into the sport and plays,” Mtawarira said.

Wangu’s strides in the sport have impressed his father’s followers on social media, with his ball skills showing immense quality. Watching his son from the sidelines has made Mtawarira realise the potential for growth of basketball in South Africa.

Based on his observations at the grassroots level and with proper infrastructure built around the provinces, Mtawarira believes rapid growth in the game is possible.

“There is a genuine interest from the South African audience in terms of the game, especially at the grassroots level. There are a lot of young children getting into basketball, yet I don’t think we have the best facilities and courts everywhere for kids to have access to the sport.

“There needs to be a big investment in building infrastructure for basketball and getting proper coaches to teach the kids the fundamentals. My son now is playing the sport at 11. He plays the sport every other weekend and he’s got a coach.

“I see some other kids and they want to play. But they don’t have the means to access the sport. It is really important we raise awareness in the country because many kids would want to play the sport.”

The National Basketball Association All-Star weekend is a weekend festival held every February during the middle of the NBA regular season that consists of a variety of events, exhibitions and performances culminating in the NBA All-Star Game held on the Sunday night.

Sunday's 2025 All Star game sees a new three-match format, with semifinals between Team Chuck and Team Kenny (3.20am Monday morning SA time) and Team Shaq and Team Candace (4.10am), the winners of which competed in the final (5am).

Daily Dispatch