₦airaland Forum

Embiid already played for the US in the last Olympics. He would have to apply to switch allegiance to Cameroon, then wait three years. That's the rule.
That was also the reason Nneka Ogwumike could not play for us. I fully expect her to still play for Nigeria in 2028, if she is still playing at that time (she will be 38 years old in 2028). She might even be able to play for us next year at the World Championships next year, if we qualify (we would qualify directly by winning the Afrobasket today). Unfortunately, her sister Chiney has not played in the last couple of years because of persistent injury issues and is now more a TV presenter than a basketball player
A Nigerian team with Nneka Ogwumike (LA Sparks), Arike Ogunbowale (Dallas Wings), Kiki Iriafen (Washington Mystics), Elizabeth Olatayo Williams and Michaela Onyenwere (both Chicago Sky) as well as Anastasiia Olairi Kosu (Minnesota Lynx) would be an excellent team and even an outside bet for gold, both next year and at the 2028 Olympics.
Note that Kosu, a relatively unknown name to most Nigerians, has already played in youth basketball for Russia, but the ongoing sanctions on Russia should make it less difficult to get her to play for us than Nneka Ogwumike's case. Luckily, she identifies with Nigeria and has looked up to Nneka Ogwumike since both met in Kursk about 10 years ago, when Kosu was about 10 years old. Nneka often played for Kosu's hometown club, Dinamo Kursk, during the WNBA off-season.