When South Sudan takes the court in the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup, the men’s national team will make history with one of the youngest players ever to compete.
Khaman Maluach, 16, was named to South Sudan’s 12-man roster for the World Cup on Thursday. He will be the third-youngest player to suit up in the tournament, which started in 1950, according to Jonathan Givony of ESPN.
The 7-foot-2 Maluach started playing basketball roughly four years ago in Uganda. He then joined the NBA Africa Academy in Senegal and is one of four players from the academy competing in the World Cup, joining Cui Yongxi, Josh Giddey and Dyson Daniels.
Maluach is on pace to graduate high school in the summer of 2025. He has received college offers from Duke and UCLA and will be eligible to enter the draft immediately because he is an international prospect born in 2006.
NBA Academy Africa’s Khaman Maluach (South Sudan) is the youngest player on 2023 FIBA World Cup rosters.
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— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) August 24, 2023
South Sudan became a sovereign state from Sudan in July 2011 and joined FIBA two years later. The team, whose president is Luol Deng, will be competing in its first international event outside of Africa at the FIBA Basketball World Cup.
The group will open its tournament on Saturday against Puerto Rico in Group B in Manila, Philippines (4 a.m. EDT, ESPN+). The team will also face China on Monday (4 a.m.) and Serbia on Wednesday (4 a.m.) to round out the group phase.
The top two teams from each group will advance to the second round.
South Sudan is headlined by free agent Wenyen Gabriel, Chicago Bulls guard Carlik Jones, Maine Celtics guard Marial Shayok and Peter Jok, who attended Iowa. The group went 3-2 in its exhibition schedule ahead of the event.
The FIBA Basketball World Cup will help seven countries qualify for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, France. The seven spots include the top two teams from both the Americas and Europe (not including host France) and one team from Africa, Asia and Oceania.
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