Robert Bailey, STAR Writer

Jamaica's senior men's basketball team is now without a coach, weeks ahead of their participation in this year's Caribbean Basketball Championships (CBC), which will be held in The Bahamas from July 25 to August 5.

Ajani Williams, president of the Jamaica Basketball Association (JaBA) told The STAR that former coach Sam Vincent, who guided the team to the CBC title in 2009, was still owed outstanding fees by his administration.

"We are hoping that it would be Sam Vincent, but he is under some pressure because he has received some offers overseas and honestly there are some funds that are still owed to him that we are trying to resolve," said Williams.

"We are trying to get some assistance from the SDF (Sports Development Foundation) to cover some of the back payments that are currently owed to him because Sam is our first choice right now in terms of coaches moving forward," Williams said.

When asked what the exact amount owed to Vincent is, Williams replied: "It is not much."

However, he noted that the average salary for a high-calibre coach such as Vincent for the tournament is around US$15,000 (J$1.2m)

"He is willing to come assist with our programme, but the budget for these national teams is very high and so we will have to find compensation to pay him because he comes very affordable," said Williams, who is in his second term as head of the JaBA.

Williams also noted that he has not discussed the matter of getting a replacement for Vincent, if he decides not to continue his duties as the head coach of the senior team.

"I am sure that we would have some prospects if that were to happen, but I have no clue who that person would be," he added.

In the meantime, Williams disclosed that Samardo Samuels, Roy Hibbert, and Patrick Ewing Jr have all been confirmed to participate in this year's tournament and that they have been working around the clock to bring in two other overseas players in Ryan Reid and Weyinmi Efejuku.

All three players along with Reid ply their trade in the United States' National Basketball Association (NBA). Samuels represented the Cleveland Cavaliers, Hibbert plays for the Indiana Pacers, Ewing Jr for the New Orleans Hornets and Reid plays for the Oklahoma Thunder. Efejuku currently plies his trade in the European League.