The NBA Academy is a basketball development initiative created by the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

(NBA) that develops top international high school-age prospects. The program includes academies across

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

(known as the Global Academy),

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

(known as the NBA Academy Latin America), and

Senegal Senegal, officially the Republic of Senegal, is the westernmost country in West Africa, situated on the Atlantic Ocean coastline. It borders Mauritania to Mauritania–Senegal border, the north, Mali to Mali–Senegal border, the east, Guinea t ...

(known as the NBA Academy Africa) for top prospects from their respective countries and continents. The program provides player development in addition to education, housing, and mentorship.

History

The NBA Academy was launched in 2016 to provide a comprehensive development pathway for young elite athletes in their home regions. NBA academies recruit talent through their Jr. NBA programs, which are located in over 75 countries. The NBA began by partnering with three government-operated camps in

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

that same year to help develop young Chinese players for professional basketball. In 2017, the league launched academies in India, Australia, and Africa. In 2018, the NBA opened an academy in Mexico City. The NBA formerly had a location in

Xinjiang Xinjiang,; , SASM/GNC romanization, SASM/GNC: Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Sinkiang, officially the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (XUAR), is an Autonomous regions of China, autonomous region of the China, People' ...

, China, but it was closed in June 2019 due to multiple controversies. As of May 2020, more than 25 NBA Academy graduates committed to NCAA Division I schools.

Josh Giddey Joshua James Giddey (born 10 October 2002) is an Australian professional basketball player for the Chicago Bulls of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was selected by the Oklahoma City Thunder with the sixth overall pick in the 2021 N ...

became the first NBA Academy Graduate selected in the NBA draft in 2021. He was selected with the sixth overall pick by the

Oklahoma City Thunder The Oklahoma City Thunder are an American professional basketball team based in Oklahoma City. The Thunder compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division (NBA), Northwest Division of the Western Confer ...

Notable players

Global Academy (Australia)

* Dyson Daniels * Hyunjung Lee * Jonathan Tchamwa Tchatchoua * Francisco Caffaro * Anyang Garang * Derrick Michael Xzavierro

India

Prashant Singh Rawat Prashant Singh Rawat (born 15 August 2000) is an Indian professional basketball player, last playing for Uttarakhand of the National Basketball Championship. Personal Prashant Singh Rawat is the son of Narendra Singh Rawat, a former India na ...

हल्द्वानी के प्रशांत का सीनियर बास्केटबॉल टीम में चयन

Hindustan ''Hindūstān'' ( English: /ˈhɪndustæn/ or /ˈhɪndustɑn/, ; ) was a historical region, polity, and a name for India, historically used simultaneously for northern Indian subcontinent and the entire subcontinent, used in the modern day ...

, 18 February 2020. Accessed 25 February 2021. * Princepal Singh

Latin America

* Bennedict Mathurin * Oumar Ballo *

Santiago Véscovi Santiago Véscovi Vannet (born 14 September 2001) is a Uruguayan professional basketball player for the Baxi Manresa of the Liga ACB. He played college basketball for the Tennessee Volunteers. Early life and career Born in Montevideo, Véscovi ...

Olivier-Maxence Prosper Olivier-Maxence Prosper ( ; born July 3, 2002) is a Canadian professional basketball player for the Dallas Mavericks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Clemson Tigers and the Marquette Golden Eagles ...

* Jermaine Miranda Perez * Malik Wade

Africa

Ibou Badji Ibou Dianko Badji (born 13 October 2002) is a Senegalese professional basketball player for Lenovo Tenerife of the Spanish Liga ACB. Early life and career In 2017–18, Badji trained with NBA Academy Africa in Saly, Senegal, where he emerged as ...

* Abdoul Halil Barre * Timothy Ighoefe * Nelly Junior Joseph

Controversy

In July 2020, the NBA faced complaints from its employees over human rights concerns within the NBA Academy located in China. According to the findings of an

ESPN ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...

investigation, American coaches at three NBA training academies in China told league officials their Chinese partners were physically abusing young players and failing to provide schooling, even though NBA Commissioner

Adam Silver Adam Silver (born April 25, 1962) is an American lawyer and sports executive who is serving as the fifth and current commissioner of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He joined the NBA in 1992 and has held various positions within the ...

had said that education would be central to the program. Following the opening of an NBA Academy in

, American coaches were frequently harassed and surveilled. One American coach was detained three times without cause; he and others were unable to obtain housing because of their status as foreigners, with one employee describing it as adjacent to "World War II Germany".

Notes

References

{{NBA National Basketball Association Sports academies Youth basketball Basketball organizations