Nigeria’s D’Tigers has been rated seventh among the 16 teams competing at this month’s FIBA Afrobasket taking place in Kigali, Rwanda.
According to the Power Rankings released by FIBA at the weekend, D’Tigers’ chances of claiming its second title seem to be questioned by the ranking.
“Nigeria showed up at Tokyo 2020 last month with eight NBA players but none of them was available for Kigali. When the country’s Basketball Federation announced their final roster a week before the AfroBasket 2021, Omotayo Jordan Ogundiran was the only returning player from the Qualifiers, where he averaged 2.7 points in three games. Coach Mike Brown needs to be able to build a competitive team in less than two weeks. The chances of the No.1 team in Africa winning their second AfroBasket since 2015 are now being questioned,” FIBA stated.
Read Also: 2021 Afrobasket: Brown pledges commitment to D’Tigers
Despite playing second fiddle to Nigeria in the world rating, defending champions Tunisia is considered a potential champions accord to the Power Rankings.
“Reigning African champions Tunisia have moved on from losses to Brazil and hosts Croatia at Split’s FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament (OQT) two months ago. By beating Cote d’Ivoire in their latest warm-up game before departing for Kigali, Tunisia spelt out a message loud: “Do not ever underestimate the heart of a champion,” FIBA added.
Senegal, Egypt, Angola, Cote d’Ivoire and Cameroon are ranked ahead of Nigeria based on their preparation coupled with the quality of players listed for the championships by these teams.
Nigeria will begin its campaign at the tournament on Wednesday, August 25 against Mali.
Leave a Reply