The NBA has closed its only basketball academy in Africa, ending an eight-year programme in Senegal and shifting its player development work to a new global centre in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. The league confirmed the decision is part of a broader restructuring of its international academy operations, following the 2025 closures of its academies in Australia and Mexico.
NBA Academy Africa was established in 2018 to identify and develop promising young players across the continent. Since opening, it trained about 110 students, many of whom moved on to elite schools and universities in the United States. The programme also produced players who reached the NBA: Cameroon's Ulrich Kamka Chomche, drafted by the Toronto Raptors in 2024, and South Sudan's Khaman Maluach, who joined the Phoenix Suns.
The Senegal facility will be replaced by the NBA Global Academy in Abu Dhabi, which the league announced earlier this year as a year-round training and academic base for top high-school-age players from the UAE, the wider Middle East and other regions.
Despite the closure, the NBA said it is not scaling back its presence in Africa. Programmes such as the Basketball Africa League and Basketball Without Borders will continue on the continent. "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, NBA senior vice president, told Reuters.
