NBA deputy commissioner Mark Tatum said he is confident the continent is blessed with countless talents who are more than capable of following in the footsteps of their ‘brothers’ from Mama Afrika who have graced the United States-based prestigious league and left an indelible mark by virtue of their performances on the court.

“With respect to Africa, we have players in the league who were either born on the continent or have one of their parents who were born on the continent. So that means almost 10 per cent of the players in our league have connections to the continent. We feel very good about the development of the next generation of talents from Africa,” Tatum said.

He cited the Basketball Africa League (BAL) as a symbol of the faith NBA has in the continent — a faith that has already been repaid through the emergence of exciting players.

“As you know, we started a league there…the Basketball Africa League. There were a number of players from that league who played at the FIBA World Cup (held last month), including for the South Sudan team who qualified for the Olympics for the first time. One of our academy players from the NBA Academy in Senegal, also played in that South Sudan team,” Tatum explained.

He added: “We have several prospects from that academy who will play in our league (NBA) and get drafted here in the next couple of years.”

BAL is a partnership between the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) and the NBA, which features 12 teams from across the continent and completed its third season in May this year.

Currently, Mama Afrika boasts of 125 ‘sons’ who have historically plied their trade in the NBA, beginning with Nigerian Hakeem Olajuwon who was signed in the 1984 NBA Draft.

Apart from unearthing talent from Africa, Tatum also described the continent as a huge business opportunity for NBA to expand its activities and reach out to more target audience.

“We also think there is a good business opportunity there, which is why we launched this league and created a separate entity called NBA Africa to invest in creating sports infrastructure and programmes around sports and specifically, NBA. I think the future is very bright for African talent in our league and for business around sports in Africa,” the deputy commissioner said.

NBA have been spreading their tentacles across Africa, opening offices in Johannesburg (2010), Senegal (2021), Nigeria (2022) and Egypt (2023), in addition to collaborating with Shesha to open the first physical store on the continent in the South African capital last year.

Its Basketball Without Borders Africa programme — established in 2003 — has also seen countless coaches and players benefit from mentorship clinics and construction of basketball courts to enhance the growth of the sport at the grassroots.

Overall, Tatum believes the increasing number of international players in the NBA has greatly aided its expansion across the universe by inspiring younger players as well as fans in their respective homelands.

He also spoke of the NBA’s pride at seeing these foreign players turn out and shine for their motherland.

“We support our NBA players going and playing for their national teams. We have an agreement with FIBA that allows for players to play for their national teams in competitions. We have 55 players who represented their countries in this year’s World Cup and every year that number continues to grow,” he explained.

The 2023/2024 NBA season is set to tip off on Tuesday night (early Wednesday morning), with defending champions Denver Nuggets squaring off against Los Angeles Lakers.

Steph Curry’s Golden State Warriors will then face Kevin Durant’s Phoenix Suns.

Last season’s Most Valuable Player (MVP), Cameroonian Joel Embiid — the second ever African to clinch the award after Olajuwon — will lead his Philadelphia 76ers side against Milwaukee Bucks, next Friday.

Basketball enthusiasts worldwide can keep up to date with the latest news through the NBA App, which has been laced with an array of new programming and enhancements to provide unique experiences.

Users will be able to add multiple team and player tabs to their app main screen to enable them enjoy uninterrupted real-time content.