The Rise of International Talent in College Basketball

By Evren Khan

An Exciting New Path of Basketball to Further Spread the Sport

Zvonimir Ivisic from Croatia

With more international support for basketball, we could see competitions similar to the World Cup in basketball. Aspects of NBA basketball trickle down into college basketball and vice versa. Both leagues utilize similar strategies, plays, players, and coaches. One prevalent change in both leagues recently is the international reach of the game. International players have always been an important part of the NBA and NCAA; whether it be Yao Ming, Pau Gasol, or Dirk Nowitzki. Many NCAA schools have recently recruited international athletes such as:

Kentucky took Zvonimir Ivisic from Croatia

Kansas took Johnny Furphy from Australia

UCLA took Berke Buyuktuncel from Turkey

Washington State took Rueben Chinyelu from South Africa

UCLA took Llane Fibleuil from France

Old Dominion took Vasean Allette from Canada

This list is only a few of the top recruits from other countries. Moreover, more than half of Arizona University’s basketball roster comes from outside the US. As more countries are represented in the NBA and NCAA more international sports fans will be introduced to basketball. This will help all aspects of basketball because more fans will watch and support teams which brings in more money into the sport. Along these lines, this will make the sport more enticing to play both in college with NIL deal money and the NBA payroll will be even higher. Furthermore, more kids from other countries will play basketball and could join the NCAA or NBA further increasing basketball’s influence abroad. Already, countries such as Brazil, Spain, China, Indonesia, the United Kingdom, and the US have basketball as a major sport. The increase in NCAA and NBA international players will further increase the number of countries where basketball is an influential sport.

There are already signs of international influence in basketball as it becomes a more international sport. For example, the 2023 NBA MVP was Joel Embid from Cameroon and the 2022 and 2021 NBA MVP was Nikola Jokic from Serbia. Furthermore, the 2020 and 2019 NBA MVP was Giannis Antetokounmpo from Greece. As the NBA becomes more international so does NCAA basketball as it is a pipeline of players for the NBA. As international players continue to shine, winning awards and trophies, more teams and colleges will be recruiting them. Possibly the NBA could even expand to teams not only from North America creating a global league. With more international support, basketball can reach a level of influence similar to other sports like soccer, the most followed sport in the world, and create new leagues across the world.