The long-awaited return of the British Basketball League’s legendary All-Star Game is over as the event’s 10-year absence ends this Sunday in London and we had the pleasure of chatting to Jamell Anderson, the only Manchester Giants player picked for the roster, ahead of the big day.
A 33-year-old small forward, Anderson has won everything you could hope to during his time in the BBL, lifting two Championships, two BBL Cups and one cup Trophy during his five-year spell with the Leicester Riders, and is now making more history as one of just three Giants in the 2024 All-Star fixture.
Having first moved to Manchester in 2021 and then spending a season at nearby Cheshire Phoenix before returning last year, Jamell remains one of the most exciting and experienced players in the division but was still nonetheless humbled to be picked for All-Star men’s North team.
Also making wholesome headlines as the first husband-wife duo to play in the event and representing the same team, no less, we spoke about everything from Georgia and the honour of being selected for the game, to the home crowds at the National Basketball Performance Centre at Belle Vue and more.
— British Basketball League (@britishbasketm) March 13, 2024
Jamell Anderson is the only male Manchester Giants player for the first All-Star Game in a decade.
So for those who might not know too much about the event, can you give them a taster of what to expect from the BBL All-Star Game?
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“Yeah, I mean, from my standpoint it’s just exciting to be part of such a big event. Like you said, it’s not been happening for the last 10 years, so there’s a lot of excitement around, first of all being a part of it, but also the fans being able to come and see some of their favourite players playing.
“There’s also the dunk contest, lots of entertainment and yeah, it’s going to be great.”
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Good stuff. And, obviously, you’re the only male Manchester Giants player picked for the All-Star North team — how much of an honour is it to be representing Great Manchester on that stage?
“Yeah, I mean, I’m representing the Giants, I’m representing my hometown of Nottingham, representing my family; I’ve got a lot of flags for that game and I’m pretty excited to be there, especially with my wife and daughter.
Absolutely. You’re not the only Giants player across both events or even the only Anderson for that matter. How special is it going to be for your partner to both be playing?
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“Yeah, Georgia [Anderson] is the captain of the women’s team so that’s quite special. I mean, we’ve talked about it quite a lot actually and we’re just kind of like in shock.
“We feel really, really honoured to both have been selected and it’s a unique situation to say the least.”
Definitely, what a moment to soak in. Now what about more of a background about the rest of the team and the season for those who might not be aware of the Manchester Giants?
“Everyone on my team is really exciting. We’ve got guys that can dribble amazingly with their eyes closed and pull off every move you think of; we’ve got really good shooters and guys that can literally rip the rim off. Literally.
“One of our players ripped the rim off the basket right in the middle of practice this year, so we had to stop training and wait to get a new one, I’m not exaggerating. That’s the men’s team for you.
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“But yeah we’ve got a real range of talents and players and at loads of different heights as well. Small, tall, young, experienced — I think if you come to a Giants game, you’re going to tick every single box of everything that you would want from a basketball game.”
How would you describe the atmosphere at your home games over at Belle Vue?
“It’s fast-paced, it’s family-friendly, it’s loud, intense and I think that being indoors in Manchester”, he laughs, “and being able to watch something as entertaining as that is a win-win”.
Now, we’ve obviously bigged up Manchester Giants plenty here but one what about the All-Star event itself, are there any talents or opponents you’re excited to be coming up against?
“Nah, I don’t want to give any players any kudos. These are all people that I’m playing against but I would say I’m pretty excited to take the floor with all of them.
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“To be honest, it’s not very often you get the best players all in one place at one time and I’m just hopeful that everyone stays healthy. Also, it’s a really competitive game.”
Have you ever been involved in any kind of All-Star/mixed game like this before?
Funnily enough, me and Georgia actually played on a charity game once where we were both on the same team and she threw me an alley-oop pass and I missed it, so yeah, I was doing in the bad books for a bit after that one, but nothing like this before so I’m pretty excited about it.
Yeah, I’m sure you were doing the dishes for a while. Well, it might be down in London but for those back home who might want to check it out, where can they watch it?
So I would start by going to the British Basketball League website. Obviously, for anyone who was able to get tickets and make the trip, brilliant, but you’ll find every streaming platform and every television channel that it’ll be broadcasted on there so you can find out what time and where.
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Mega. And lastly, just out of curiosity, who’s your favourite basketball player of all time?
The return of the British Basketball League’s All-Star Game at the Copperbox Arena will be broadcast live on Sky Sports and their YouTube channel. Fans can tune in from 12:15pm on Sunday, 17 March HERE.
The Women’s All-Star Game, where Georgia Anderson will be leading the Northern team out onto the court starts at 12:30pm and will feature a halftime mascot and kids’ skills contest.
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This will then be followed by the Slam Dunk and three-point contests from 2:30pm before the men’s event tips off at 3:30pm and, as Jamell mentioned, you can find out all other information on the BBL website.
We wish the Andersons and their teammates all the best for the action tomorrow and what better way to celebrate the event’s return than by winning it for the North?
Featured Images — British Basketball League/Manchester Giants (supplied)
Sport
Road to Victory is all set to turn Manchester’s Castlefield Bowl into the latest World Cup fan zone
Danny Jones
Manchester’s smash-hit Road to Victory is hoping to bring its first-ever open-air World Cup fan zone to the city, as the event is set to take over Castlefield Bowl – on one condition.
It’s just the simple matter of if/when* we make it through.
The famous amphitheatre might be in the middle of their 2026 edition of the annual Sounds of the City festival, but given that England have advanced to the quarter-finals of the 2026 tournament, they’ve naturally decided to make some changes.
It might not be in time for this next game against Norway, but should we make it past the Scandinavian side, Castlefield Bowl will be welcoming roughly 9,000 fans for the semis and (touch wood) the final.
Announced this week, the Road to Victory (RtV) team – backed by production company and promoters AIX Live, who specialise in multi-sensory, immersive fan experiences – is pledging to move into their latest Manc venue for the upcoming fixture at the very least.
Having started over at Depot Mayfield before moving to the likes of Diecast and most recently AO Arena, they’re planning to make the most of the ongoing heatwave by securing the beloved Bowl.
With the Manchester Storm ice hockey team returning to the Arena, they’ve had to vacate ahead of preparations, but it could mean that we’re now looking at one of the biggest outdoor supporter parks in the country, let alone the North West.
Once again, we’ve already had The K’s, Wet Leg and Johnny Marr play the multi-date music series this year, and there are more concerts booked, but some understandable exceptions are now being made.
Obviously, how many Road to Victory dates we get here all depends on whether or not Thomas Tuchel’s side make it past Haaland and co., but it’s sure to be a memorable night nonetheless.
Should the boys make it to the semi-final, tickets for the supporter park right after the match and, unsurprisingly, the demand is expected to be huge. For context, more than 40,000 joined the party for the 2022 World Cup, and the previous Euros final in 2024 sold out the AO Arena. Wow.
With that in mind, we’d say be quick on the draw and get down early with doors from 5pm, as the Road to Victory pre-show will kick things off pronto, alongside live DJs, entertainment and bars – all of which promise to deliver an unparalleled festival-like matchday atmosphere.
You can get ready to register your interest and grab yours as soon as they go on sale right HERE; in the meantime, if you’re still wondering where the best places to watch England vs Norway in Manchester are, look no further:
Featured Images — Anthony Mooney (supplied via Road to Victory)/The Manc Group
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Location for new Manchester United stadium announced after club secures land for the build
Danny Jones
The location for Manchester United’s brand-new stadium has been officially revealed just over a fortnight on from the football club securing the land after more than a year of disputes.
Man United’s ‘New Trafford’ is set to be a state-of-the-art sporting ground with a roughly 100,000-seater capacity, not only becoming the largest in the UK but rivalling all other industry-leading arenas around the world.
While there’s been plenty of speculation about funding for the redevelopment, the proposed designs, and the aforementioned plot for the massive project, serious forward momentum can finally begin now that the latter has been resolved.
That being said, the INEOS ownership group, board of executives and partnered Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) have now confirmed where exactly the site for Old Trafford 2.0 will be situated, not to mention some new CGIs.
Put in the simplest terms, the work will be centred around the Wharfside area, with the native council and Freightliner both having, at long last, greenlit the plans in principle.
The Old Trafford Regeneration Mayoral Development Corporation (OTRMDC) and dedicated Taskforce – on which Mayor and seemingly soon-to-be Prime Minister Andy Burnham has served since its inception – are set to create a fresh ‘Stadium District’ across the 150 hectares of space in Stretford.
Revolving not only around the current Metrolink tram stop and other accessible Bee Network routes, but sitting approximately just 350 metres North of the existing ‘Theatre of Dreams’, the blueprints go far beyond just creating newer and bigger stands that are easily reachable.
As per an official MUFC statement, “the vision is for a diverse neighbourhood creating 48,000 local jobs and 15,000 new homes, with the new stadium as the catalyst. Together, the mixed-use developments across 150 hectares have the potential to offer a £7.3bn-per-annum boost to the UK economy.”
Promising to maintain key aspects of nearby heritage, traditions and matchday rituals, be a walk from Pomona to a favourite food truck, or supporters making their way down the Quays and the River Irwell, they’ve even put together a video of what they hope this next chapter for Trafford will look like.
Safe to say, the GMCA, United and everyone involved have pretty ambitious ideas when it comes to a fresh era for the borough and the surrounding section of Stretford and bordering Salford.
Local Council Leader Tom Ross, Leader of Trafford Council, said of this most recent update: “We are delighted to introduce the masterplan which starts a long journey to piece together what could happen where, to bring this world-class cultural and sporting destination to life.
“We want to create a great place to be, not just on matchdays but every day – and we’re looking for as many residents and businesses as possible to help us to shape this vision, through our forthcoming consultation process.
“Wharfside will become a network of attractive neighbourhoods in which to live, work, wander, explore, relax with family, enjoy nature and wildlife, meet friends, eat out, have a drink, shop and be entertained.”
He goes on to add that besides the obvious additions to the matchday experience, this will effectively become the city region’s latest neighbourhood, delivering new parks and waterside spaces, housing including affordable options, and even new health and educational facilities.
Twinned with the obvious transport links and proximity to other key parts of Greater Manchester, this could be one of the biggest overhauls the North West has seen in decades; you can see more down below. What do you make of it all?
Our proposed new home will sit at the heart of a new stadium district ❤️🏟️
Danny Jones -
16th March 2024 
