Hoop-la in Skibb for Hopla visit

SKIBBEREEN Basketball Club recently hosted a clinic by top basketball coach Dave Hopla, who is considered to be the top shooter in the world.

Dave, who played for Belfast side St Galls’s in Irish basketball’s 1980s heyday and is currently the Detroit Pistons’ shooting coach, is travelling around Ireland at the moment and among his stops was a visit to Skibbereen Commuity School to share his tips with the club’s players.

He spent two high-quality hours with the club and provided lectures and skill clinics – all while shooting the ball, a sight to see. 

Dave always relishes the opportunity to come back and share his stories about working with the best players in the world and what he does to make them better shooters like Michael Jordan, Ray Allen, Kobe Bryant and many more.

Dave is a very engaging guy and always provides a positive message about basketball and life. As good as a shooter as he is, he is even a better teacher. As good as a shooter that Hopla is, he is even a better teacher. He resides in Washington DC with his wife Carole and his daughter McKenna.

The club would like to thank coach Dave Quinn for organising Dave Hopla’s visit to Skibbereen, as well as all of the team Managers who put so much time into training the kids, the hard-working committee and the parents of all players, and especially to Skibbereen Community School for providing the state-of-the-art gym on the day.