S’Sudan dares D’Tigers in Afrobasket opener

D’Tigers will tip off their 2021 Afrobasket qualifiers against South Sudan on Thursday (today) in a Group D fixture at the Kigali Arena in Rwanda.

Although the team will be without the trio of Al-Farouk Aminu (Orlando Magic), Josh Okogie (Minnesota Timberwolves), and Chimezie Metu, they are favorites to win the encounter.

South Sudan comes into the tie as underdogs but with a lot of height in their team. Though they parade unknown players, they have been boosted by their national federation president, Luol Deng, who has opted to coach the team at the qualifiers.

Deng said, “We take the opportunity that came to us. We have been building and we knew about coming here about a week ago. We are looking forward to it and it is a great chance for us to qualify.”

Deng, a two-time NBA All Star player was a first round seventh overall pick by the Phoenix Suns and played for 15 seasons in the NBA for Chicago Bulls, Miami Heat, Cleveland Cavaliers, Minnesota Timberwolves and Los Angeles Lakers. He retired in 2019.

Shooting guard Teny Puot is one of the players to watch out for in the team given his three-point prowess when he gets some space beyond the arc.

Newly invited Orleans Loiret Basket power forward, Chima Moneke and POAK Athens power forward Amanze Egezeke are some of the players to look out for in the team.

The top three teams from each group will automatically qualify for the 2021 FIBA AfroBasket to be held in Rwanda.