Jannon Otto: Life of American that has become Uganda’s basketball star 

When Jannon Otto, 25, agreed to become a registered Ugandan citizen in February, 2023, she did not know what she was getting herself into, let alone, what to expect.

Born in California, USA on April 14, 1997, her dream growing up was always to represent the USA in the sport she loves so much, basketball. Yet, that dream appeared to be fading by the day; not for the lack of trying, but the level of athletic competition in the USA is so stiff, that the very top league takes in few.

Otto aspired to play in the women’s basketball league, the WNBA, and her failure to get in provided her with some perspective about life.

“I did not think that marked the end of the world for me. I just had to seek opportunities elsewhere, which I got playing in Europe for two to three years now. But I am working so hard to get into the top leagues of Greece, Spain or Italy,” Otto told The Observer.

Until recently, Otto was plying her trade in Luxembourg at a topflight club known as Musel Pikes. However, following her trip to Uganda to don the red or white of the Gazelles, the national women’s basketball team, during the Federation of International Basketball Associations (Fiba) Zone Five Women Afrobasket qualifiers that ran from February 14 to 19 at the MTN arena Lugogo, her employment contract was terminated.

This is a contract that Otto had entered into in August 2022 and according to the club, her decision to leave for the qualifiers in Uganda was unacceptable because the Federation of Uganda Basketball Associations (Fuba) communicated late for her release.

According to Fiba rules, clubs have to release players for international tournaments, but Uganda’s letter to Musel Pikes was dated February 5, yet the tournament was beginning February 14. Otto left Luxembourg for Uganda on February 12 and as it stands, Otto has no job now. Yet, she has no regrets. She would do it all over again.

She said: “Honestly, it is unfortunate, but such is life. I have no bad feelings towards Musel Pikes, although I would have expected them to be happy and understanding. I always dreamed of playing international basketball, representing a country. Uganda gave me that chance, which I was not about to lose.”

And despite her loss, she is in a happy place right now. Coming to Uganda turned out to be an unforgettable experience for her. She was inducted in the Gazelles team just one day before the tournament started. She did not even have a chance to train with her new team-mates. Yet she fitted in so well.

Otto built an incredible telepathy with her teammates and made the team tick. She was the best player on it. Suddenly the team had a gem; a good shooter, dribbler, passer and fantastic defender. In basketball, where a complete team comprises five players, finding one that can play four positions well is not common. Then along came Otto.

Not only did her versatility provide a new sense of purpose for the Gazelles, but she inspired belief and imagination in the team’s play. In addition to that, her infectious smile and always happy demeanour permeated through the team making the bond even stronger.

Vicky Nassolo, the Gazelles team manager said Otto was a friend to everyone; a free should that lit up the room. And boy oh boy, did she light up the basketball court, getting fans to chant her name from the bleaches like she had been there forever! Maybe her destiny was already written in the stars.

ACHOLI ‘ROOTS’

Here in Uganda, Otto is an Acholi name. In fact, when Fuba first announced she was joining the Gazelles, many thought she was a Ugandan that lived in the USA.

But instead, a youthful white woman from Faywood Avenue, Victorville, California, who only came to Africa for the first time recently., walked onto the court. Incidentally, she said smilingly, she prefers the Ugandan (the assertive Acholi accent) pronunciation of Otto, to the American one.

Otto has taken to Uganda and she is not looking back. In fact, she cannot wait to return in July, when the Women’s Afrobasket championship will be held in Kigali, Rwanda. But before she flew out of Entebbe airport on February 21, she spent Monday touring the city of Kampala.

She was trying to get acquainted with her people, whom she said are the most friendly people she has met outside the USA. She did some shopping, which included a Uganda Cranes jersey for her elder brother, who celebrates his birthday this March.

It is a memento that will remind her only sibling how Ugandan they now are. In the week she spent at Onoma hotel in Nakasero, her teammate Sarah Ageno was teaching her some Luganda words and she believes she will catch up slowly, Otto said with a giggle.

Otto is also practicing the national anthem. She is truly into this new union for the long haul, although her only compliant was about the traffic jam.

She said: “America has traffic jam, but the one in Kampala is out of this world. Each time we were on the road, I felt we were about to collide with the next vehicle. I cannot imagine driving here. It is distressing, phew!”

Nonetheless, Otto still braved Kampala’s streets to get her mother some Ugandan souvenirs – fridge magnets with the Ugandan flag and map. Otto’s her mother is her one and true inspiration.

“She loves fridge magnets. But then she followed every game I played even though when I first told her that I had become Ugandan and was travelling down to play in a Fiba tournament, her immediate reaction was ‘whaaaat?’” Otto said, as she laughed.

Her mother did not know what to expect from Uganda, an African country she had little knowledge about. Yet, as it turned out, Otto said, her mother is now super excited and proud of her.

Which mother would not be, after their daughter goes into a new country and displays top-level basketball; the kind that gets her picked for the national team – the country’s best five players?

BASKETBALL IN HER BLOOD

Otto’s mother is a high school basketball coach, who introduced her daughter to the sport from the age of five. That motivated Otto to fall in love with the sport even though she played soccer, volleyball and competed in cross-country championships at school.

However, the intensity and technique of playing basketball just got her drawn to the sport more than any other. But also watching NBA stars like the late Kobe Bryant, who played for her home team, the LA Lakers, drove her on because of his work ethic.

LA Clippers star, Kawhi Leonard, is another pro basketball player she loves so much, because not only is he good, but he went to Otto’s alma mater, Riverside University. Playing for Uganda, Otto said, is a platform for her to be at the Olympics. And she feels that the Gazelles team has a good chance of being at the 2024 Olympics in France.

“The quality of the Gazelles team is good. I had not imagined. In fact, I feel we can reach so far if we work hard together. I was particularly amazed by the physicality and speed of basketball played in the recent qualifiers. It was nothing like I had ever experienced before in my professional life. It was tough,” Otto said.

Tough is probably what life has been for Otto. At the age of 12, she was diagnosed with diabetes. She lives and plays with type I diabetes. Ensuring that her blood sugars are at an equilibrium is one of her life challenges. Sometimes they go up and at other times, they drop, which makes the balancing act a huge teaser.

During the game against South Sudan in the recent Zone Five Women Afrobasket qualifiers, she had to get off court to get an injection. The South Sudanese thought she was doping, yet she was getting an insulin shot. Physios are a big part of her life. Otto said she has to watch what she eats, to keep within the normal ranges, which is not easy.

Yet, Otto enjoyed the Ugandan posho, which is clearly her favourite food in her new adopted home. But she also loved jackfruit (ffene), something she first saw and ate in Uganda. She thanks Flavia Oketcho, her Gazelles captain, for introducing her to it.

That said, in America, chicken is her thing, as much as she loves coffee too; she is working on perfecting her cappuccino making skills. Outside of the foods, Otto enjoys hiking and nature. In fact, she never passes up a chance to visit a national park in the USA during her holidays; well, she is in for a big thrill when she gets to visit Uganda’s parks.

CLOSED DOORS, OPEN WINDOWS

Being that Otto is from California, it is not surprising that hip-hop music appeals to her. Some of the best rappers like the late Tupac, Snoop Doggy Dogg and Dr. Dre became big there. But she also listens to RnB and dancehall music. Otto is back in California now, although she did not expect it to be this soon. She was there in December for Christmas.

The cancellation of her contract at Musel Pikes just turned her life around so fast. It was disappointing, but then playing for Uganda was irresistible; no regrets. Although losing her job created a new low for Otto, who was still on a high after she helped Uganda win silver in the recent Zone Five championship, she is grateful to Spanish coach Alberto Atuna, who gave her the opportunity to play for the Gazelles.

Atuna had so much trust in her, which she paid back significantly with her always match-winning displays. The two share an agent. And the good news is that as one door closes, another opens. Otto received news from her agent that later in March, she will be flying to Australia to play in the league there.

Playing in Australia should keep Otto in good stead for the Women’s Afrobasket Championship in July, where her exploits will be important in the Gazelles’ quest for glory.

jovi@observer.ug