Despite losing his grandfather last week, Jonah Otim was available for Silverbacks training Monday evening in a bid to earn a place on the team that travels to Cairo, Egypt on February 24.
The guard was one of the players dropped by head coach Mandy Juruni when the Silverbacks made their debut at the Afrobasket Championship 2015 in Tunisia.
“I am working hard to make the team and hopefully I do,” the City Oilers guard told Kawowo Sports after the team’s practice session on Monday.
Otim has been in top form this calendar year winning the Zone V championship with Oilers before clinching the team’s fourth straight league title.
“Everyone on the team is working hard but it is the coach to decide who should go,” the former Ndejje University captain revealed. “I had a good season and got some good experience throughout the year,”
Otim played at the FIBA Africa Champions Cup that was hosted by Egypt and is one of the few players who have an experience of playing in Cairo.
“I have been a regular figure in the team’s trials in the last few years and that has given me confidence that I can deliver for the team,” he says.
Uganda will face off with rivals Kenya, Rwanda and hosts Egypt in a bid to win one of the two available slots to this year’s Afrobasket.
Team Uganda started week 3 of training on Monday with a full house at the Lugogo Indoor Stadium.
The battle for places is amongst the eleven available players and Juruni will only need eight of those before travelling to Cairo.
Four foreign based players are expected to join the side before the start of the tournament.
Ivan Lumanyika, Norman Blick and Mark Opio are the other players who were dropped by Juruni in 2015 and are all striving to make the final team this time round.
Team Uganda is expected to travel to Egypt on February 24.
Uganda hosted the qualifiers in 2014 and managed to qualify for the first time ahead of Rwanda and Kenya.
Rwanda started their training late last year while Kenya named their team on Monday.
Hosts Egypt are camping in Dubai in preparations for the event.