Seven top African prospects from Cameroon, the Central African Republic, Cote d’Ivoire, Morocco, Nigeria, as well as players with ties to Senegal, have made impressive impact in the 10th yearly Basketball Without Borders (BWB) All-Star Camp in Los Angeles, California.
Among them is Obinna Ekezie, son of former Nigerian NBA player Obinna Ekezie Sr. who was awarded the Defensive MVP and formed part of the All-Star Team alongside Cheickh Niang (Italy; ties to Senegal) and Caleb Ourigou (Cote d’Ivoire).
Franck Belibi (Cameroon), Peter Julius (Nigeria), Noah El Baze (Morocco), BWB Africa 2025 Boys All-Star and NBA Academy Africa prospect, Ramsey Guessagba-Sato (Central Africa Republic), and Franck Belibi (Cameroon) represented Africa at the camp.
The camp brought together 40 international prospects from Africa, the Americas, Asia, Europe and Oceania to participate in athletic testing, movement efficiency, skill development stations, 3-on-3 competitions, life-skills seminars, and 5-on-5 games under the guidance of current and former NBA and FIBA players, legends and coaches, including Danilo Gallinari (Italy) and James Gist to participate in the four-day camp at the UCLA Health Centre, also at the Los Angeles Lakers training facility.
Several members of the NBA Coaching Development Program (CDP), which assists former players who are looking to transition into the coaching ranks and further deepens the pipeline of coaching talent across leagues, served as BWB All-Star 2026 coaches, including former NBA players Scotty Hopson, Khalid El-Amin and Craig Smith, and former WNBA player Meighan Simmons.
President of the World Association of Basketball Coaches; Australia, Patrick Hunt, Chris Ebersole (Los Angeles Lakers Director of Player Development and Experience) and Luca Desta (longtime NBA front office executive; Ethiopia) served as the camp directors.
The final day of the camp was concluded with African prospects receiving camp honors, with the 2026 All-Stars award given to Cheickh Niang (Italy; ties to Senegal), Caleb Ourigou (Cameroon), and Obinna Ekezie (Nigeria).
The Defensive MVP award went to Obinna Ekezie (Nigeria).
