South Sudan’s players walked slowly through the handshake line after losing 96-85 to Serbia, which knocked them out of the men’s Olympic basketball tournament.
They received warm hugs from Serbian players, showing the respect they had earned. The team stayed around midcourt as the crowd at Lille’s Pierre Mauroy Stadium applauded their near-upset of Serbia, ranked fourth in the world by FIBA.
Fans, including South Sudanese, Serbian, and local supporters, were also recognizing the team’s achievements, including their historic win over Puerto Rico earlier in the tournament.
Serbia’s Bogdan Bogdanovic praised the team, saying, “What Luol Deng has done for their federation is amazing. You can see the work is paying off.”
Luol Deng, the South Sudanese-born former Duke star and NBA veteran, has been the president of South Sudan’s basketball federation since 2019. Despite some disagreements with how the game was officiated, Deng took a moment to acknowledge the team’s accomplishments.
“I’m proud of my guys. I’m proud of the federation. I’m proud of South Sudan. I’m proud of our fans. I’m proud of the continent,” Deng said.
“We thank everybody that’s been able to help us out. This was a group effort. We showed a way how to build basketball going forward. And I think that the rest of the continent and the rest of the countries will follow the similar thing that we’re doing.”
Since 2019, South Sudan basketball has struggled to survive, with Deng investing his own money to support a team from a country with only a single outdoor court. The court is dirt, with one rim higher than the other, and lacks official 10-foot regulation goals.
Due to limited facilities, the South Sudan team spent the last few years of competition and preparation for the Olympics as travelers, practicing in Rwanda, which is about 500 miles from South Sudan.
This made the sudden end to South Sudan’s journey at the Paris Games especially tough for the players, who, according to coach Royal Ivey, were “crying in the locker room afterward.”
Marial Shayok believes their achievements over the past week will inspire young players who have never seen South Sudanese basketball at this level. They moved from having their national anthem played incorrectly before the Puerto Rico game to being celebrated properly.
“It’s just the beginning of a bright future. And it’s just an amazing feeling,” Shayok said. “I hope it inspires … South Sudanese kids all over the world. And, the motivation is as high as it can get to get back on the stage and go even further.”
Players like Nuni Omot feel that facing the world’s best teams has shown the talent in Africa. He said he knew “I belong to play with those guys.”
“You never know who’s watching,” he said. However, Deng hopes that the support for South Sudan’s journey to the Olympics doesn’t just become a feel-good story that fades after the closing ceremony.
“We appreciate all the love,” Deng said. “I think that everybody’s been desperate for it. There are a lot of people who support and do great work, to elevate the game and also see African athletes can reach the highs and compete for their countries.
“It’s happening in all sports, where a lot of African players are playing for other countries. And we’ve got to keep on developing and change that narrative.”
