Central African nation Cameroon holds the record for having the most active African players in the world’s best basketball league, the NBA.
Joel Embiid of Philadelphia Sixers, Pascal Siakam of Toronto Raptors and Luc Richard Mbah A Moute of Houston Rockets represent Cameroon in the league.
All three players were born and raised in the country before moving to the United States for their High School and College education before getting drafted to the NBA.
Elder statesman Mbah Moute was drafted in 2008 and played for Los Angeles Clippers before signing for Houston Rockets this season.
Joel Embiid was drafted in 2014 while Siakam was drafted in 2016; Embiid was picked third overall but only made his debut last season due to injuries which forced him to miss two seasons.
All three players have played in the 2018 playoffs but Siakam’s Raptors and Embiid’s Sixers were eliminated in the semifinals by Cleveland Cavaliers and Boston Celtics.
However, with the exception of Mbah Moute who won silver at the 2007 AfroBasket with Cameroon, Embiid and Siakam are yet to play for the national team.
Mbah Moute’s Rockets take on Golden State Warriors tonight in the Western Conference Finals.
By Yaw Adjei-Mintah
@YawMintYM on Twitter
