Kagame says Africa will work with NBA to spot new basketball talent

Rwanda’s president Paul Kagame has welcomed a partnership between the National Basketball Association (NBA) in the United States and the African continent, saying it exposes young Africans to opportunities in sport and education.

Kagame, who was speaking at a reception hosted by the NBA in New York ahead of the United Nations General Assembly, thanked the organisers for choosing to source talent from Africa.

‘‘In the NBA there have been many Africans but there are many more who can qualify to be there. It is not just playing basketball, it exposes them to many opportunities, including education and many others,’‘ Kagame said.

VIDEO: “In the NBA there have been many Africans but there are many more who can qualify to be there. It is not just playing basketball, it exposes them to many opportunities, including education and many others.” President Kagame | NBA Reception | New York, 23 September 2018 pic.twitter.com/i8sAEtDKbK

— Presidency | Rwanda (@UrugwiroVillage) September 24, 2018

The NBA, which features several players from the African continent, organises several boot camps to identify talent and has an off-season initiative where it organises a show match between Team Africa and the rest of the world.

With over 80 players from Africa, NBA seeks more talent from the continent https://t.co/XihlNPVg6U

— africanews (@africanews) August 3, 2018

Kagame also acknowledged basketballers from the continent who are giving back.

‘‘They come from Africa, they had these opportunities and now they are looking back and saying where we come from there are many more.’‘

Cameroon’s Joel Embiid who plays for the Philadelphia 76ers, recently said he loves to come back to Africa every year, with a hope that his story can be an inspiration to others.

Embiid’s talent was spotted at a Basketball Without Borders camp in 2011, and he was drafted in the NBA in 2014.

Kagame, who was accompanied at the reception by Kenya’s president Uhuru Kenyatta, pledged to mobilise different countries in Africa to support the NBA’s initiative of spotting talent in Africa.

President Kagame concludes: It is not just one country. We want to work together as a continent, come together around this project of taking another step for Africa in our development.

— Presidency | Rwanda (@UrugwiroVillage) September 23, 2018