Rumors

NBA Africa says it will build outdoor basketball courts and conduct youth clinics in Nairobi, Kenya, and Rwanda next year, under the organization’s commitment to construct 1,000 courts in Africa over the next decade. The development, announced at a press conference in Nairobi on Tuesday, October 8, will see a total of 100 basketball courts built in Kenya. No details on number of courts to be constructed in Rwanda were shared.

newtimes.co.rw

The United States National Basketball Association (NBA) has officially launched its first Kenyan chapter in Westlands, Nairobi. Michael Finley, NBA Kenya's senior director and national operations lead said that the new office will support all of the league's business and basketball development endeavors in the country. Finley made the remarks during the unveiling at State House Nairobi on Wednesday where President William Ruto received a high-profile NBA delegation.

The Star

Helios is the largest investor in the project outside the NBA itself, and has been joined by some notable names including former U.S. President Barack Obama, whose father was Kenyan, and Forest Whitaker, who won an Oscar for playing Ugandan dictator Idi Amin in the 2006 movie ‘The Last King of Scotland’. A host of former players have also signed up, including Grant Hill and Dikembe Mutombo, who was born in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Luol Deng, born in what is now South Sudan, is also a stakeholder.

Bloomberg

Malcolm Brogdon: Today I arrived in Kenya with the @BrogdonFamFnd’s #Hoops4Humanity initiative to continue our mission supporting access to clean water in East Africa.  Thankful to have @Garrett Temple and @Tim Frazier joining us on this trip 🙏🏾   #CleanWaterForAll 💦 pic.twitter.com/v1UTmbVr7I

Twitter

Once his immediate future is sorted out, Maker is keen to represent Australia at next year's Tokyo Olympics. "I want to play for Australia," Maker, who was born in Kenya and moved to Australia with his family as a one-year-old, said. "I grew up there so it will be great to put on the green and gold."

Sydney Morning Herald

Makur Maker -- a 6-foot-11 Kenyan-born Australian living in the United States -- is entering the 2020 NBA draft, sources told ESPN on Saturday. Agile at nearly 7-foot, Maker has caught the attention of NBA teams with his ability to handle the ball in the open court and create shots for himself. The NBA agreed to allow Maker, 19, to be eligible for the 2020 draft class after he had been only two credits short of graduating with his original 2019 high school class in California.

ESPN

Through Underdogs United, which helps professional athletes exchange their jerseys for sportswear with “clean water solutions stitched in,” Irving’s No. 11 Celtics Jersey is being auctioned off with the proceeds going towards clean water initiatives for schools in rural Kenya through a partnership with Impact Water. Irving isn’t the only NBA player involved with Underdogs United, but according to the Underdogs United founder it was Irving who got the ball rolling. "Kyrie was the first high-profile athlete to commit to the Global Jersey Exchange, and his leadership really catalyzed the initiative,” said Stephen Gabauer, founder of Underdogs United. “Since Kyrie joined, we've partnered with over 100 professional athletes, including 10 other NBA stars (Golden State’s Stephen Curry being one of them). With their support, we've now reached over 10,000 children with safe drinking water. We're excited about Kyrie's auction and the lasting impact it will create in our partner communities for years to come."

NBC Sports

Marc J. Spears: The 12-team Basketball Africa League will be in Angola, Kenya, Rwanda, Nigeria, South Africa and Senegal (nine total countries) from January-March 2020, source said. BAL will be like “Champions League” format built on the foundation of current club competitions with FIBA Africa.

Twitter

Marc J. Spears: NBA and FIBA will conduct qualification tournaments later this year to identify the 12 teams representing several African countries, including Angola, Egypt, Kenya, Morocco, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, South Africa & Tunisia, with no more than 2 teams from the same country, source.

Twitter

Bismack Biyombo: Had a privilege to be at the opening of @sauti_kuu’s new sports and education facility in Kenya . To be able to See @AumaObama’s work it’s overwhelming. This is just proving that Africa is moving in the right direction!

Twitter

Twitter user RealJamesKarimi recently spotted a mobile Warriors tribute in Nairobi, Kenya: A bus decorated with portraits of Stephen Curry. The transit bus, called a "matatu" in Swahili, serves locals around Nairobi, and they're all just as brightly colored and fun. "There is always a unique razzmatazz and flair that's associated with these buses," Karimi told SFGATE.

San Francisco Chronicle

Dirk Nowitzki stood in front of some Kenyan journalists and tried to impress them in their native language during Basketball Without Borders last week. Let’s just say his Swahili needs some work. “I saw some media members I’ve talked to before [from Kenya] and I tried some Swahili on them,” Nowitzki said. “It really didn’t go that well. But Kenya is into other sports. Soccer, cricket and rugby are really big. Basketball is not really their go-to sport.”

The Undefeated

Nowitzki has made several trips to Africa, and his family went to Kenya to visit his wife’s family before arriving in South Africa for the NBA Africa Game and Basketball Without Borders. “We went to Kenya for eight days,” Nowitzki said. “We saw most of her family, traveled a little bit, saw a safari. We brought the whole family. We’re going to Europe for a bit. It’s hard traveling with three young kids: 4, 2 and 9 months. We’ve been traveling for a month. Germany, Sweden and now here.”

The Undefeated

The projected Hall of Famer is not certain whether he will play during both of his contract seasons. Once Nowitzki retires, he expects to spend more time in Kenya and possibly purchase a home there. “I signed on for two more, so hopefully I can play those two,” Nowitzki said. “Last year with the Achilles [injury], I missed almost two months. It was frustrating and disappointing. Hopefully, injurywise it will be a lot better this season and maybe I’ll play another one. We will see how it goes this [season]. We will see how the body feels.

The Undefeated