Which Teams Are Playing In the BAL Nile Conference?

The Basketball Africa League (BAL) Season Two is set to resume in Cairo with the Nile Conference scheduled to run from April 9-19.

After the astonishing Sahara Conference in Dakar last month, six teams made it to the Egyptian capital with their eyes on the BAL playoffs in Kigali.

By the end of the Nile Conference, four teams will have qualified for the playoffs in May in Kigali.

But, which teams are competing in the Nile Conference and how did get this far?

This Nile Conference gathers teams from various regions of the African continent. From the North part of Africa, hosts Zamalek will carry the Egyptian flag.

Zamalek qualified automatically to the BAL as champions of Egypt’s Super League.

Talking to the bal.nba.com, Zamalek’s new addition Ike Diogu shared the atmosphere in team’s locker room: “There is always going to be pressure,” said the former NBA player.

“We are the reigning [BAL] champions; the country expects us to do well. It’s a pressure that we put on ourselves but pressure also makes diamonds. Good things can come out of pressure. We’re here to win all games, that’s the bottom line. We don’t want to lose any games. All games are going to be tough.”

The East African region is represented in the Nile Conference by South Sudan’s Cobra Sports, who qualified to the BAL on the back on a 2-4 mark in the qualifiers.

Packet Wang has recently joined the Juba-based team from Academica de Coimbra from Portugal’s topflight league.

“National team, Cobra Sports team, we are all playing for South Sudan,” said the regular member of the South Sudanese national team.

“We are just trying to lift our country up and, this is how basketball brings us together. We are here for our people.”

“Leadership, energy, defense, experience, I always find fun things to do, I am not always too serious, but when it comes to real game time I’m locked in, and I always bring a lot of people together,” Wang said.

Cameroon’s FAP and Espoir Fukash from the Democratic Republic of Congo are representing the Central part of Africa.

Francois Enyegue, who served as FAP assistant coach in the inaugural season of the BAL, is now the man in charge of the Cameroonian champions.

“Our mindset is to treat one game a time. Petro and Zamalek are tough teams to play against because of their experienced squad. We are going to try our best every team and try to get wins,” said the man who masterminded FAP to a 6-0 in the Road to BAL qualifiers.

“Our mindset is to treat one game a time. Petro and Zamalek are tough teams to play against because of their experienced squad. We are going to try our best every team and try to get wins.”

“Cameroonian basketball is improving and we are here to show it. My players have known each other for almost a decade, and that’s a plus for us. We are a team that plays aggressive defensively and likes playing fast-break.

“Cameroonian basketball is improving and we are here to show it. My players have known each other for almost a decade, and that’s a plus for us. We are a team that plays aggressive defensively  and likes playing fast-break,” Enyegue pointed out.

And the Southern part of Africa is represented in the Nile Conference by Angola’s Petro de Luanda and South Africa’s Cape Town Tigers.

Tigers forward Evans Ganapamo said: “If we play at our best level we have a good chance to shock a lot of people in this tournament. We are built to play, and hopefully, things go the way we prepared this team for.”

“We added Jemel Artis and Nathi [Sibanyoni], and I think that’s going really to help us.”

Espoir Fukash’s leading scorer Rolly Fula admitted their underdog status, but insisted that “The goal here is Cairo is to win as many as games as possible.”

“It’s a dream to play in the BAL. Every player back home would do anything to experience the BAL, and that’s why the national championship has become more competitive over the past years.

Zamalek lifted the BAL trophy after beating US Monastir in the final last year in Kigali.

Petro de Luanda clinched the BAL’s last step of the podium last year after beating hosts Patriot BB in the Third-Place game.

How the trade market evolved ahead of the Nile Conference

Jared Harrington, a key member for Cape Town Tigers during the Road to BAL qualifiers, has joined Cobra Sports.

Petro de Luanda signed Angolan international player Yanick Moreira and Cape Verde’s Anderson Correira.

DR Congo’s Myck Kabongo, who featured for Ferroviario de Maputo in the BAL inaugural season, is set to shine for Cape Town after helping the South African champions in the Road to BAL qualifiers.

Joining Kabongo in the Tigers’ rotation is former NBA player Jamel Artis, who played for the Orlando Magic in the 2017-18 season.

Although unavailable for Zamalek in Egypt’s Super League – due to the restricted number of foreign players – Nigeria’s great Ike Diogu is a major addition for the reigning BAL champions.