Coach Atto passes on basketball knowhow to next generation

YOUNG Bacchus Marsh basketballers – and some not so young – are being guided on the path to high-level competition by local sports and coaching identity Athanas Zivave.

Zivave, or Coach Atto as he is more commonly and affectionately known, has just opened a new coaching academy called A2Z Basketball in Maddingley – and it is already attracting solid participation rates.

After playing competitively around Bacchus Marsh and further afield, the 25-year-old has changed gears to pass on what he has learnt to younger enthusiasts.

He set up and ran AZ Basketball Skills Coaching in 2024, but has made the change to A2Z because of his desire to reach as many people as possible.

“It’s the first and last letters of the alphabet and I’m trying to reach everyone in between,” Coach Atto said.

“As a junior I grew up playing in Bacchus Marsh. I was lucky enough to be a multisport athlete; I played footy, cricket, soccer, but basketball stuck.

“For me NBA was the goal, as it is for most kids. I was able to find a place in Hoppers Crossing, Transition Sports, who helped my basketball tremendously.

“They not only helped my playing career but also with some of the philosophies that I try and pass on to the kids.”

Coach Atto said knowing the burden that travelling placed on aspiring sportsmen – and particularly on their parents who had to ferry them to training and competitions – he decided to try to provide some form of structured pathway locally.

“I feel that if I had had that here, my basketball would have been even more (successful),” he said.

A2Z Basketball runs classes and sessions every day except Saturdays out of its new headquarters in Osborne Street in Maddingley.

They run for up to six hours on a Sunday, three hours on Mondays and Tuesdays, and for one hour on each of Wednesday and Thursday.

Coach Atto mentors basketballers from as young as 7 to players in their 20s and older, with some local youngsters turning up at coaching sessions as many as three times a week.

He has curtailed his own playing activities to spend more time helping others, but has appeared on the court in Melton, Sunbury, Ballarat and the Surf Coast after he graduated from junior ranks.

He was a regular junior player in Keilor.

“I’m still only 25,” he said. “I still have a lot of time left to play some good basketball, but it’s now my focus has shifted to helping the juniors chase their dreams.

“Mine haven’t fizzled away, they’ve just changed shape.”

The best way to get involved is to phone 0421 698 211 or check out Coach Atto’s social media: coach.attoz on Instagram or his Facebook page AZ Basketball Skills Coaching.