Coaches Jeni Agramonte and Vika Lawson have led this group
to achieve far more than victories in the competition.
“The language barrier has been the toughest part,” Vika
said.
“We have learned to work together and defend the other
people,” said Wiktoria Nowak, who is playing basketball for the first time. “Some
of us are just learning how to play, or may play only once in a year. Others
play very well and practice every day.
The Dream has players from every country represented here,
except America. They still sit together at meals and they’ve learned to
communicate without knowing each other’s languages. They’ve also learned how to
communicate on the court. Often that involves hand motions and head nods.
Another barrier that they’ve had to overcome is a different
level of basketball skill. Nastia Grigorkevich from Belarus is quite
accomplished, while others are just picking up the game. Grigorkevich says
that’s been challenging.
“In my country, we play very aggressively,” she said, “and I
pick up a lot of fouls here. They are fouls that are not called in Russia. It’s
hard for me because I don’t understand Polish and it’s hard to find words.”
Agramonte says that she has been impressed with the ability
of the girls to relate to each other.
Basketball camp is about basketball, but it’s really about
so much more. The Dream is a great example of that. They may not have won even
half their games, but the impact they’ve had on each other is something you
often only dream about.
The coaches have worked together well, with complementary
gifts.
“Vika knows the sport very well,” Agramonte said.
“She knows how to encourage us, or build us up when we fail,”
added Klaudia Milko.
Ugne Grinkeciciute said, “Making friends away from her Lithuanian
friends, and winning games, is the most fun part of this camp.”
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