The South Sudan men's national basketball team is the national basketball team representing South Sudan. It was established in May 2011, and became a member of FIBA in December 2013.[2] They are nicknamed the Bright Stars.
The team played its first unofficial match in Juba against Ugandan club champions Power on 13 July 2011. Power won the match 86–84.[3]
In 2016, the team played in an exhibition tournament named Indigenous Basketball Competition in Vancouver, Canada.[4]
On 9 January 2016, it was announced by the South Sudan Basketball Federation that Jerry Steele would become the new head coach of the men's national team for preparation of the 2017 AfroBasket competition. Through the agreement Steele would be under contract until the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.[5]
In the 2017 AfroBasket qualifiers, the team was placed in Zone 5 Group A, with Egypt, Kenya, Rwanda. South Sudan played its first official international game on 12 March 2017, against Egypt in Cairo.[6] They would lose to Egypt by 11 points (87–76) in the first match on 12 March. Two days later the national team got it first victory in group stage against Kenya by 2 (68–66). The next day, the team relieved its next loss by ten (80–90) to Rwanda, later placing them in the Classification game. On 12 March, the team would beat Kenya in the Classification game in OT (84–89).
On 7 November 2017, Scott Catt was appointed to be the new head coach of the men's national team by the South Sudan Basketball Federation. Madut Bol, son of the late Manute Bol, was also named as assistant head coach of the men's national team.[7]
In November 2020, former NBA All-StarLuol Deng became the president of the SSBF.[8] He also briefly coached the team. In September 2021, Royal Ivey, assistant coach with the Brooklyn Nets, became the head coach of the team.[9] At AfroBasket 2021, South Sudan made its debut at a major tournament and reached the round of 16 after defeating Uganda and Cameroon in the preliminary round. In the round of 16, South Sudan beat Kenya, in the quarterfinals the team lost to defending champions Tunisia.
South Sudan (black) vs China (white) at the 2023 World Cup.
In the following 2023 FIBA World Cup qualification games, the Bright Stars impressed and had an unbeaten record in the first round (6–0), beating the defending African champions Tunisia twice and qualifying for their first World Cup in the third round with two games left. In the second round, again coached by Royal Ivey, they had another successful streak in order to qualify for South Sudan's first-ever World Cup in 2023.[10]
On August 28, South Sudan earned its first World Cup victory with a dominant win over China in Quezon City, Philippines.[11] South Sudan qualified for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris by finishing as the best African team in the World Cup, beating Angola in their final game. This will be their first-ever Olympics.[12]
In exhibition play leading up to the 2024 Olympics, South Sudan played the United States and lost by just one point, 100–101, to a team led by four former NBA MVP winners, including LeBron James, Joel Embiid, Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant.[13] On the opening day of the Olympics, South Sudan stunned Puerto Rico for their first Olympic victory in the first game of group play, winning 90–79.[14]Carlik Jones led the way with 19 points.[15] The Bright Stars lost their two following games to the United States[16] and Serbia, and thus did not advance past the preliminary stage.[17]
Luol Ajou Deng is a South Sudanese-British former professional basketball player. He was a two-time NBA All-Star and was named to the NBA All-Defensive Second Team in 2012. Born in what is now South Sudan, Deng fled the country with his family as a child, eventually settling in the United Kingdom. He became a British citizen in 2006, and has played for the Great Britain national team.
Royal Terence Ivey is an American professional basketball coach and former player who is an assistant coach for the Houston Rockets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He is also the head coach of the South Sudan national team, who he coached at the 2023 World Cup and 2024 Olympics. He played college basketball for the Texas Longhorns before spending 10 years in the NBA.
The Serbia men's national basketball team represents Serbia in international men's basketball competition, and is controlled by the Basketball Federation of Serbia. Serbia is currently ranked second in the FIBA World Ranking.
The Nigeria men's national basketball team represents Nigeria in international basketball, and it is governed by the Nigeria Basketball Federation (NBBF).
The Angolan men's national basketball team is controlled by the Federação Angolana de Basquetebol. Angola has been a member of FIBA since 1979. Ranking 23rd in the FIBA World Rankings, Angola is the top team of FIBA Africa, and a regular competitor at the Summer Olympic Games and the FIBA World Cup.
The Japan national basketball team, also known as Akatsuki Japan, is the national team representing Japan in international basketball competitions and is administered by the Japan Basketball Association (JBA),. As the 1936 founding member of FIBA Asia, Japan has one of Asia's longest basketball traditions.
The Great Britain men's national basketball team represents Great Britain in international basketball competitions. The national team is administered by British Basketball.
The Cape Verde national basketball team represents Cape Verde in international basketball matches and is administered by the Federação Cabo-verdiana de Basquetebol.
Rwanda men's national basketball team is a basketball team that represents Rwanda in international competitions. It is administered by the Rwandan Basketball Federation (FERWABA) Rwanda has yet to qualify for the FIBA Basketball World Cup, but has qualified for the AfroBasket six times.
Kenya national basketball team is the national men basketball team in Kenya. It is operated by the Kenya Basketball Federation (KBF).
The DR Congo national basketball team represents DR Congo in men's international basketball competitions, it is controlled by the Basketball Federation of Democratic Republic of Congo.
Sports in South Sudan are still not widely recognized internationally.
The Uganda national basketball team also known as The Silverbacks represents Uganda in international basketball competitions. It is administered by the Federation of Uganda Basketball Associations (FUBA).
The Kenya women's national basketball team represents Kenya in international competitions. Internationally they are known as the Kenyan Lionesses. It is administrated by the Kenya Basketball Federation (KBF).
Nyang Luol "Tako" Wek III is a South Sudanese basketball player who last played for Bangui SC of the Basketball Africa League (BAL). Wek has been a member of the South Sudan national team, and played at FIBA AfroBasket 2021 with his country.
Junior Madut, also sometimes referred to as Deng Junior Ring, is a South Sudanese-Australian professional basketball player for Kauhajoen Karhu of the Korisliiga. After two seasons of college basketball for the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors, he played a season and a half in the National Basketball League (NBL). He is also plays for the South Sudan national team.
Deng Acuoth is an Australian-South Sudanese professional basketball player. Standing at 2.08 m, he plays as center.
The South Sudan Basketball Federation (SSBF) is the national basketball federation of South Sudan. It operates the men's team, women's team and junior teams. The federation is a FIBA member since November 14, 2003 and is a founding member of the South Sudanese Olympic Committee. The headquarters are located at Juba.
This article shows the rosters of all participating teams at the 5x5 men's basketball tournament at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, France.
South Sudan competed at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris from 26 July to 11 August 2024. This was the nation's third appearance at the Summer Olympics, since its debut in 2016.
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11 (15 August 2024) [1] 
Power 86–84 South Sudan 
Egypt 87–76 South Sudan 
Tanzania 60–115 South Sudan 
