The NBA has closed its only elite basketball training academy in Africa, ending a Senegal-based programme that prepared young players from across the continent for professional opportunities. The league plans to concentrate academy training at a new global centre in Abu Dhabi, where African prospects will compete with players from other regions for places.
The Saly facility opened in November 2018 and combined basketball development with education and support for teenagers. Approximately 110 students trained through the programme, according to a former academy official. Former players include Cameroonian Ulrich Chomche and South Sudanese Khaman Maluach, both examples of the route the academy created between African basketball and opportunities overseas.
The closure and the Abu Dhabi move were reported by Reuters on October 1 after conversations with current and former officials. The NBA described the decision as a change in its global player-development strategy rather than an end to its work in Africa, pointing to continuing programmes on the continent, including Basketball Without Borders and the Basketball Africa League, now in its sixth season.
"We're incredibly proud of the impact that NBA Academy Africa has had and remain committed to developing the next generation of African players," Troy Justice, an NBA senior vice-president, said.
Former academy staff questioned what the move will mean for access. The NBA disputes the suggestion that African players will have fewer opportunities, arguing that a single global location will give prospects greater exposure to coaches and scouts.
