Teen basketball talent takes tips from the best | Canterbury Sport | Surfing, Rugby, Soccer, Football, Cricket in Canterbury

Schoolboy basketball star Ethan Rusbatch isn’t ready to play NBA – but he’s mixed with its stars.

The 17-year-old Cashmere High School Year13 student was the second youngest among 50 players to attend the Basketball Without Borders camp for elite young Asia-Pacific players in Beijing.

The five-day camp organised by the NBA and the sport’s world body FIBA saw the players coached for three days by big names from the NBA.

American talent scouts were also there looking for stars of the future.

"The trip was definitely one of the thrills," said Rusbatch, who arrived back last week.

"You got to meet NBA players, and it was sponsored by Nike so you got a whole heap of free gear!"

Recently retired NBA great Dikembe Mutombo, Jason Terry (Dallas), Mickael Pietrus (Orlando), and Brandon Rush (Indiana) coached the players.

"We had a go with all of them," said Rusbatch. He and New Zealand’s other representative were the youngest at the camp.

The camp concentrated "on fundamentals instead of focusing on flashy stuff," he said.

A 1.95m tall 90kg shooting guard, Rusbatch is already playing premier grade basketball for Checkers – and in fact plays two matches every Saturday, for he also captains his school team in the under-23 grade.

The camp in China was another highlight in a big year for Rusbatch. He played in the Canterbury team that won the under-19 national tournament at Nelson, and played in a tournament in Spain for New Zealand under-18s.

He also played for the national under-18s last year in the Australian state championships.

Two years ago he scored 52 points in a match for Cashmere’s under-17s against St Bede’s – and Cashmere lost.

And Rusbatch might not have displayed "flashy stuff" in China, but here he’s also already noted for his three-point and dunking prowess.

Rusbatch was also a Canterbury age-group touch representative before basketball took over year-round.

Not surprisingly, he hopes to get a scholarship in the United States, and plans to go to a high school there for a year or two to get into the system. His brother Bede Masters is already there at a high school in Connecticut.