₦airaland Forum

lovewins:
Players currently in the NBA who can play for Nigeria

Gabe Vincent
Desmond Bane
Precious Achuiwa
Mark Williams (Bother to Elizabeth Williams)
Josh Okogie
Charles Bassey
OG Anunoby
Onyeka Okongwu
Ayo Dosumu
Zeke Nnaji
Ochai Agbaji
Oso Ighodaro
Isaac Okoro

I culled this just from 5 minutes of looking. I'm pretty sure there a lot more names if I take the time to look. This doesn't include G- league players who probably have significantly more players of Nigerian descent.

I think the point is, we have a better chance at success with the men should the right structure be in place, there just has to be enough incentive to convince these players to commit to a project they can believe in.

Some on the list already play for us while others turned us down.

lovewins:
Players currently in the NBA who can play for Nigeria

Gabe Vincent
Desmond Bane
Precious Achuiwa
Mark Williams (Bother to Elizabeth Williams)
Josh Okogie
Charles Bassey
OG Anunoby
Onyeka Okongwu
Ayo Dosumu
Zeke Nnaji
Ochai Agbaji
Oso Ighodaro
Isaac Okoro

I culled this just from 5 minutes of looking. I'm pretty sure there a lot more names if I take the time to look. This doesn't include G- league players who probably have significantly more players of Nigerian descent.

I think the point is, we have a better chance at success with the men should the right structure be in place, there just has to be enough incentive to convince these players to commit to a project they can believe in.

Desmond Bane ?
As in T-Rex Bane??
He has Nigerian roots keh

Procashtips:
Some on the list already play for us while others turned us down.

Honestly, we took a very solid team to the 2020 Olympics.... Okogie, Achuiwa, Nwora, Vincent, Meru, Okpala, Oni.... Anunoby even almost joined..

After that Olympics, the team just scattered... Only Okogie and Metu have played for the team ever since...
I was surprised that Nwora stopped showing up .. considering that the team gave him more exposure before he was drafted by the Bucks, courtesy of his dad who was coach then.

But again, our football adminstration is poorly managed

Danielnino00:
Honestly, we took a very solid team to the 2020 Olympics.... Okogie, Achuiwa, Nwora, Vincent, Meru, Okpala, Oni.... Anunoby even almost joined..

After that Olympics, the team just scattered... Only Okogie and Metu have played for the team ever since...
I was surprised that Nwora stopped showing up .. considering that the team gave him more exposure before he was drafted by the Bucks, courtesy of his dad who was coach then.

But again, our football adminstration is poorly managed

I bet you meant 'basketball'

Unfortunately, there's nothing attractive about D'tigers again so don't expect these guys or any foreign breed to turn up.

Procashtips:
Some on the list already play for us while others turned us down.

I'm aware of those who have played for us in the past. The purpose of the list was to highlight players currently in the NBA who can play for the D'tigers. Of those listed, only 3 of them have played for Nigeria before and of the three only one (Josh Okogie) has played consistently since 2020. The other 2 (G.Vincent & Precious) haven't really featured for us consistently since the Olympics

Danielnino00:
Desmond Bane ?
As in T-Rex Bane??
He has Nigerian roots keh

Yes. His dad is Nigerian even though I'm unsure if a relationship exist there. But yes Bane is Nigerian.

Procashtips:
I bet you meant 'basketball'

Unfortunately, there's nothing attractive about D'tigers again so don't expect these guys or any foreign breed to turn up.

The only thing attractive enough to get this guy's to come represent is an Olympics ticket. I can assure you if there's a chance of Nigeria qualifying for the Olympics many of them will turn up just like they did in 2020.

Procashtips:
Some on the list already play for us while others turned us down.

I am unaware of anyone on the list who has officially turned us down. Like I explained in a longer post, the incentive just isn't there yet but I'm almost certain the vast majority of these guys will turn up for an Olympics game.

Desmond Bane already signaled interest in representing Nigeria for the 2028 Olympics game and he's even gone a step further in recruiting other NBA talents to actualize this (some of whom I didn't even include in my list). So the Olympics is one incentive that can get them on board, you're however unlikely to see them again after that for competitions like Afrobasket and the rest.

Should the above be the case, there's also the flip side of dealing with players who answer call ups these other guys won't and probably even get the qualification ticket, then leaving them off your final list for the big stage. This was exactly what happened in 2020 by the way. Some of the guys we took to the Olympics didn't even qualify us for it. So there's a lot of egos to manage to see this happen.

BTW, this is a recent BBC article detailing Bale's interest in representing Nigeria for the 2028 Olympics, and the call out Aaron to tag along was done publicly on his Instagram story.

https://www.bbc.com/sport/olympics/articles/cp809r0l333o

lovewins:
Players currently in the NBA who can play for Nigeria

Gabe Vincent
Desmond Bane
Precious Achuiwa
Mark Williams (Bother to Elizabeth Williams)
Josh Okogie
Charles Bassey
OG Anunoby
Onyeka Okongwu
Ayo Dosumu
Zeke Nnaji
Ochai Agbaji
Oso Ighodaro
Isaac Okoro

I culled this just from 5 minutes of looking. I'm pretty sure there a lot more names if I take the time to look. This doesn't include G- league players who probably have significantly more players of Nigerian descent.

I think the point is, we have a better chance at success with the men should the right structure be in place, there just has to be enough incentive to convince these players to commit to a project they can believe in.

Add

Aaron Nesmith and Adem Bona to the list

lovewins:
Add

Aaron Nesmith and Adem Bona to the list

Bona already plays for Turkey...

lovewins:
I am unaware of anyone on the list who has officially turned us down. Like I explained in a longer post, the incentive just isn't there yet but I'm almost certain the vast majority of these guys will turn up for an Olympics game.

Desmond Bane already signaled interest in representing Nigeria for the 2028 Olympics game and he's even gone a step further in recruiting other NBA talents to actualize this (some of whom I didn't even include in my list). So the Olympics is one incentive that can get them on board, you're however unlikely to see them again after that for competitions like Afrobasket and the rest.

Should the above be the case, there's also the flip side of dealing with players who answer call ups these other guys won't and probably even get the qualification ticket, then leaving them off your final list for the big stage. This was exactly what happened in 2020 by the way. Some of the guys we took to the Olympics didn't even qualify us for it. So there's a lot of egos to manage to see this happen.

BTW, this is a recent BBC article detailing Bale's interest in representing Nigeria for the 2028 Olympics, and the call out Aaron to tag along was done publicly on his Instagram story.

https://www.bbc.com/sport/olympics/articles/cp809r0l333o

Sweet talk...but this isn't the way to go about it..

When the qualifier starts, many of them won't be present... admittedly, that's understandable given the NBA's rule restricting players from participating in more than one international tournament in a year...
But we still need a decent amount of them to turn up ..

lovewins:
The only thing attractive enough to get this guy's to come represent is an Olympics ticket. I can assure you if there's a chance of Nigeria qualifying for the Olympics many of them will turn up just like they did in 2020.

And how do we win an Olympic ticket when we can hardly put together a formidable team during qualifiers?

Our last 10 matches have been so bad that I lost interest watching our male basketball play.

Danielnino00:
Bona already plays for Turkey...

Bona's real name is actually Ikechukwu Stanley Okoro.

Was even born and raised in Nigeria

Procashtips:
And how do we win an Olympic ticket when we can hardly put together a formidable team during qualifiers?

Our last 10 matches have been so bad that I lost interest watching our male basketball play.

Yea. I hardly watch the D'tigers too after their shambolic display in Lagos during the world cup qualifiers. I guess if these players are really serious about giving the Olympics a shot they'll have to commit to the qualifiers too.

Danielnino00:
Sweet talk...but this isn't the way to go about it..

When the qualifier starts, many of them won't be present... admittedly, that's understandable given the NBA's rule restricting players from participating in more than one international tournament in a year...
But we still need a decent amount of them to turn up ..

Not saying that's the way o, just explaining the situation of things. I'll rather these guys play regularly but it just won't happen. They have too much to lose with injuries and all to prioritise it.

I however see a situation where they can commit to the Olympics qualifiers though. If they really want to see it through I think it's possible to see them play the qualifiers.

Danielnino00:
Bona already plays for Turkey...

Oh. Didn't know this. Thanks for pointing that out.

lovewins:
Yea. I hardly watch the D'tigers too after their shambolic display in Lagos during the world cup qualifiers. I guess if these players are really serious about giving the Olympics a shot they'll have to commit to the qualifiers too.

Simple

Former D'Tigress Chineze Nwagbo...

https://x.com/i/status/2037169821704396928

Greetings lovers of the beautiful dunk game,

I understand that D-Tigress get a friendly against Indiana Fevers on May 2??

do4luv14:
Greetings lovers of the beautiful dunk game,

I understand that D-Tigress get a friendly against Indiana Fevers on May 2??

Correct

lovewins:
Not saying that's the way o, just explaining the situation of things. I'll rather these guys play regularly but it just won't happen. They have too much to lose with injuries and all to prioritise it.

I however see a situation where they can commit to the Olympics qualifiers though. If they really want to see it through I think it's possible to see them play the qualifiers.

The NBBF should bring back Ike Diogu, Shane Lawal and Olumide Oyedeji to talk about the way forward for DTigers. Something happened that made many of the NBA players to stop taking the NBBF seriously. We need a new and very good Coach for Dtigers. I am thinking of a Coach that has seen some success in at least the G League in the USA. We had a decent team at the 2019 Men's FIBA World Cup and the team did not even have a lot of NBA players. So, what happened ?

Danielnino00:
Sweet talk...but this isn't the way to go about it..

When the qualifier starts, many of them won't be present... admittedly, that's understandable given the NBA's rule restricting players from participating in more than one international tournament in a year...
But we still need a decent amount of them to turn up ..

Since Desmond Bane has announced his interest to represent Nigeria at the 2028 Olympics, the NBBF should encourage him and use him as a bait to get Big companies to sponsor DTigers and ensure 100% welfare and appearance fees for any NBA star that signs up to play in the Olympics qualifiers for Nigeria. Dangote Industries, BUA foods will back DTigers if the NBBF reaches out to them.

Redman44:
The NBBF should bring back Ike Diogu, Shane Lawal and Olumide Oyedeji to talk about the way forward for DTigers. Something happened that made many of the NBA players to stop taking the NBBF seriously. We need a new and very good Coach for Dtigers. I am thinking of a Coach that has seen some success in at least the G League in the USA. We had a decent team at the 2019 Men's FIBA World Cup and the team did not even have a lot of NBA players. So, what happened ?

The solution to Nigerian basketball is so evident but folks are either not bold enough or too selfish to implement it.

First, if you mean bringing Ike Diogu back as a player then I disagree. He's past his prime and he's done his bit for the country. I don't mind his input as an administrator but being a former player doesn't necessarily mean you'll be a great administrator. The Olumide Oyedeji you mentioned is on the current NBBF board led by Kida. Kida himself and the previous President were also former players. Kanu Nwankwo currently runs Enyimba football club and it's one of the poorly run clubs in the NPFL today. JJ okocha was made Delta state FA chairman at some point but made no contribution to sports development in his state but was at least honourable enough to quit.

I said all of that to say Former players do not necessarily make great administrators. Basketball is a billion dollars sport and the Nigerian basketball ecosystem has the tendency to become that, it however requires the right people to navigate it. Unfortunately the current structure won't allow for this to take place.

If I were to suggest a solution I'll break them into short and long term solutions. The short term solution will be devoid our entire basketball structure of government interference and funding, find multiple capable administrators who are willing to do the leg work of running and independently raising funding for the NBBF. These folks will submit proposals like a pitch deck and the best of them wins it. To be clear, I'll prioritise Nigerian Americans who are in the business in the US for this.

Then I'll move the entire basketball operations to the US. Nigeria quite frankly isn't a basketball country yet and it doesn't make any sense to pretend that it is. I'll rather we move our entire operation to the US where the bulk of our talent is. The idea is to make administration closer to out talent pool. Sell them a vision and with the exploits these folks make it's easier not just to generate independent funding but also to use these success stories to gradually increase the Basketball fan base in Nigeria.

In the long run, I'll focus on purely developmental programs in Nigeria. Raise funding to run training camps to identify the best talents, and use your structure in America to get the best scholarships to high schools and colleges there. If the talent pool is large enough and the funding is there then run a structured league for those here

lovewins:
The solution to Nigerian basketball is so evident but folks are either not bold enough or too selfish to implement it.

First, if you mean bringing Ike Diogu back as a player then I disagree. He's past his prime and he's done his bit for the country. I don't mind his input as an administrator but being a former player doesn't necessarily mean you'll be a great administrator. The Olumide Oyedeji you mentioned is on the current NBBF board led by Kida. Kida himself and the previous President were also former players. Kanu Nwankwo currently runs Enyimba football club and it's one of the poorly run clubs in the NPFL today. JJ okocha was made Delta state FA chairman at some point but made no contribution to sports development in his state but was at least honourable enough to quit.

I said all of that to say Former players do not necessarily make great administrators. Basketball is a billion dollars sport and the Nigerian basketball ecosystem has the tendency to become that, it however requires the right people to navigate it. Unfortunately the current structure won't allow for this to take place.

If I were to suggest a solution I'll break them into short and long term solutions. The short term solution will be devoid our entire basketball structure of government interference and funding, find multiple capable administrators who are willing to do the leg work of running and independently raising funding for the NBBF. These folks will submit proposals like a pitch deck and the best of them wins it. To be clear, I'll prioritise Nigerian Americans who are in the business in the US for this.

Then I'll move the entire basketball operations to the US. Nigeria quite frankly isn't a basketball country yet and it doesn't make any sense to pretend that it is. I'll rather we move our entire operation to the US where the bulk of our talent is. The idea is to make administration closer to out talent pool. Sell them a vision and with the exploits these folks make it's easier not just to generate independent funding but also to use these success stories to gradually increase the Basketball fan base in Nigeria.

In the long run, I'll focus on purely developmental programs in Nigeria. Raise funding to run training camps to identify the best talents, and use your structure in America to get the best scholarships to high schools and colleges there. If the talent pool is large enough and the funding is there then run a structured league for those here

I am not saying Diogu should come back as a player but as an administrator. Your plan is good. However, we have industries and compsnies here in Nigeria that can sponsor DTigers. The NBBF needs to work harder in attracting sponsors. Like I said, We need to start organizing tournaments in Nigeria that will showcase foreign stars vs home based stars. Cheers.

The NCAA sweet 16 begins in a few hours. Of the 16 coaches vying for a Elite 8 spot, one of them is of Nigerian descent.

Meet Amaka Agugua-Hamilton, coach of Virginia Women's basketball team. She just led Virginia to their first sweet 16 game in 26 years.

Players of African Descent in the NCAA women's Sweet 16:

​South Carolina

🇸🇸 Agot Makeer
🇸🇸🇺🇸 Adhel Tac
🇰🇪 Madina Akot
🇳🇬 Maryam Dauda

​Virginia

🇦🇺🇸🇸 Adeang Ring
🇳🇬 Tabitha Amanze

​UConn

🇪🇬 Jana El Alfy

​Vanderbilt

🇺🇸🇨🇩 Ndjakalenga Mwenentanda

​Oklahoma Sooners

🇸🇳🇫🇷 Daffa Cissoko

https://x.com/i/status/2037554857461084309

A reminder of D’Tigress WNBA friendlies

Mehn Minnesota should have just let Ole Miss go through.

@ TheSuperNerd dem no dey gree oh

PDPGuy:
A reminder of D’Tigress WNBA friendlies

Let them not blackball our girls for fouling Caitlin Clark 😭

BascoVanVeli:
@ TheSuperNerd dem no dey gree oh

It would be very foolish on their part if they dont notice her. But God abeg... Cant they just see they are "overstacked!!!??"

Jazzy should be allowed to come home and not rot on their reserves roster.

Infact, as I type this, the anger reboils in my heart... this US plan.... thunder!!!!

BascoVanVeli:
Let them not blackball our girls for fouling Caitlin Clark 😭

😂😂