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Veteran basketball tactician Carey Odhiambo believes team unity will transform his current club,  Equity Bank men’s team, into a title winning squad. 

T9,  as he is popularly known in basketball circles, took over the team in 2019.

Despite giving the big boys a run for their money in the regular season, the side still fell short, getting eliminated in the play-offs. 

The title winning coach with Co-operative Bank Spartans believes his current charges need to gel as a team and get players who love what they do then the rest will fall in place.  

Almost half of his playing unit last season had just been signed at the start of the season when he joined in 2019. 

Before the 2020 season was put on hold due to the Covid-19 outbreak, Equity had held trials as the team sought to revamp the playing unit and add depth. Several players could also be on their way out of the team.

“Last season we lacked depth in the centre and forward positions and we needed such players urgently.

The trials produced about eight prospects but we still have to scale down to four or five.

That will have to wait until things open up, therefore I cannot give a list of the new players.

I also had a relatively young squad and we are looking to bring in players who have won a few championships to help build the confidence and winning mentality,” said Odhiambo. 

Fresh from undergoing coaching training in the US, Odhiambo believes the experience he gained from that course will go a long way in helping his team play better.  

“I had an amazing time, learning new ways of doing things, from that course.  

Interacting with top coaches taught me a lot which I am confident will help our course if we can apply it well. 

Financial gain, for instance, should not be the main agenda for a player or coach,” he added. 

A former national team player, Odhiambo played for a Buru Buru-based club Crusaders, in the 80s before switching to Spartans in 1989.

An ankle injury in 1992 ended his playing career prematurely and launching his coaching career. 

“I started out as an assistant coach for Spartans and more than 10 years later I was appointed head coach.

By the time the team was folding in 2016, I had guided them to four consecutive premier league titles and two Zone Five championships gongs. 

I have been involved with the senior national team as a coach since 2009. Before that, I had handled the age group teams on several occasions,” Odhiambo explained.