Why Australia has two men’s basketball teams to cheer at the Paris Olympics | Kieran Pender

South Sudan’s story of resilience, unity and hope has a strong Australian flavour thanks to the five players with connections to the country

There are no indoor basketball courts in South Sudan. Not one. But on Sunday, the young nation will make its Olympic basketball debut against Puerto Rico in Lille. It is a remarkable story of resilience, unity and hope – with a strong Australian flavour.

South Sudan, in central Africa, declared independence from Sudan in 2011 following a protracted, bloody civil war. The world’s youngest country remains wracked by internal turmoil. But when retired British-South Sudanese basketball star Luol Deng received a phone call from his brother in 2019, it came with an intriguing offer. The government of South Sudan wanted someone to run its nascent basketball program; would Deng help?