South Sudan's Kaman Maluach, 16, is one African youngster who is regarded by many as a top talent to look out for in the global basketball stage in a few years to come. In an exclusive interview with Olympics.com at the NBA Academy Africa a few months ago, the teenager widely regarded as a 2025 NBA draft prospect, shared his remarkable origin story, how Giannis Antetokounmpo inspired him and his aspirations to grow basketball in Africa. ALSO READ: FIBA World Cup 2023: South Sudan earns historic Paris 2024 Olympic berth There were three words etched on Khaman Maluach's shoes. 'Only the family.' A beaming Maluach explains that he chose to put those words on his sneakers because, it means only for my family. It's not like me pushing other people away, but to me, it's like I'm doing this for my family. Standing at 7-foot-2 (2.18m), you don't need to be a basketball expert to see the raw potential in Maluach. With his mesmerizing range and dogged resilience, the teenager from South Sudan has captured the attention of the globe at FIBA World Cup 2023 where he is competing as the youngest player at the event. ALSO READ: Khaman Maluach and Aisha Hassan named BWB Africa 2023 MVPs When the Bright Stars scored their first-ever World Cup victory over People's Republic of China, Maluach was straight into the crowd taking selfies soaking up the euphoria with South Sudanese fans. His charisma was contagious as he celebrated another of the country's historic basketball firsts. Inspired by Giannis Antetokounmpo Back in Senegal, that same charm was evident when the young star opened up about his basketball origin story. I'm a nice guy, he said. Actually, I'm nice on the outside but on the court, I'm not that nice. I would say a hard worker and someone looking to change my family's life. Born in South Sudan, Maluach grew up in neighbouring Uganda as a refugee along with his siblings and mother. The change he alludes to points to his short but meteoric basketball journey that started in 2019, which all began when he was stopped by a motorcyclist while he was walking down the road. He was like, 'Yo, you should start playing basketball. In three to four years, you'll be such a tall person,' Maluach said remembering his words. The seed that the man planted took root later in the year when in August, at a basketball camp organised by Luol Deng, Maluach got to see the sport firsthand. After seeing a guy his height dunk, the young boy was instantly inspired. He rushed home that night to watch highlights of the NBA Finals between the Toronto Raptors and the Golden State Warriors. Kevin Durant immediately caught his attention: KD was so good until he got injured! Maluach recalled. Later, he found footage of Giannis Antetokounmpo, the 2.11m-tall basketball behemoth known fondly as the 'Greek Freak' for his preternatural frame. Seeing someone nearly of the same dimensions as him in action touched something deep in Maluach. Giannis is almost my height. Aggressive. Dunking. And when I could see someone, my height doing that, I knew I could do it too. I was like, 'Wow!' I have to play basketball. Because of Giannis: that's why I play basketball. Mostly because of him. He came from nothing to something, Maluach continued. Such things motivated me a lot.
