The NBA Africa Game is live on ESPN on Saturday from Ellis Park Arena in Johannesburg, South Africa and the basketball exhibition is the first league game on the continent and has Team World taking on Team Africa and both teams will be composed of professional stars and the matchup is streaming live on WatchESPN and is on TV from the network starting at 9 am ET.
The game will mark the first time that an NBA game is played in Africa and it could lead to more games in the future, according to Adam Silver. Chris Paul is participating in the game for Team World and Marcus SMart would have been playing, but he injured his hand this summer. Luol Deng is on the Tema Africa along with Boris Diaw, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Serge Ibaka and Nic Batum.
Deng is the captain of the team and he comes in from South Sudan originally and he said that he is honored to be involved in the game. Deng has done work in Africa in the past and he has not shied away from his past, including when the issues came up with Danny Ferry last year. According to NBA.com, there are 10 players on the Africa team that had one of their parents born in Africa. Giannis Antetokounmpo is the Greek freak and he could be fun to watch in the exhibition.
Gregg Popovich will be leading the African side, while Brad Stevens will be the coach for Team World and that is made of many stars. Paul along with Kenneth Faried, Bradley Beal, Marc Gasol, Pau Gasol and Jeff Green are on the team and heading into the game the team will be looking to put on a good exhibition for the continent.
The NBA will try and keep expanding the game through the world and this is one way to get it done. Nikola Vucevic had a big season last year for the Magic and he will be on the roster as well. Batum has his father from Cameroon, while Antetokounmpo has dual citizenship in Nigeria after his parents emigrated from there to Greece.
According to NBA.com, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver will be at the game along with Dikembe Mutombo and Hakeem Olajuwon, who work with the NBA in connection to expanding the game to Africa. The game also will support various causes, including NBA Cares and the Boys & Girls Club. The game is on at 9 am and will be on TV from ESPN and streaming online from WatchESPN.
Check here for the NBA Africa Game live coverage from ESPN and WatchESPN.
