Nigeria senior men’s basketball team, D’Tigers, on Thursday dropped four steps to place 42nd in the World and 6th in Africa according to the latest FIBA World rankings.
D’Tigers’ failure to make it to the Olympics Qualifying Tournament and ultimately the Paris 2024 Games finished with a total of 299.7 points to further slide down the ladder in the World and on the African continent.
South Sudan made the most dramatic move within the Top 50, leaping from 34th to 23rd and is ranked number one in Africa with a total 481 points after securing their first Olympic win during their debut appearance at the Olympics. This remarkable achievement now positions South Sudan as the highest-ranked African team, surpassing Cote d’Ivoire that moved two steps up and seats in 31st position in the World and number two in Africa with 392.3 points.
The other African countries in the top 50 rankings are Angola who moved three steps up at the 32nd spot and number three on the continent, Tunisia in 37th position dropping two spots to stay fourth in Africa, Egypt moved up two steps to place 38th in the World and fifth on the continent.
Cape Verde are in the 45th spot having moved one step up to be the seventh best team in Africa while Senegal is 47th in the World and eighth in Africa.
Cameroon also saw positive movement, climbing five places to 64th after strong performances at the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Latvia and is ranked ninth in Africa while Guinea is ranked 73rd moving three places up for tenth place on the continent.
However, the United States gold medal in the Men’s Olympic Basketball Tournament at Paris 2024, solidified their position at the top of the FIBA World Rankings.
Serbia made a significant leap, climbing two spots to claim the second position with 758.9 points, surpassing Germany.
France also saw a substantial rise in the rankings, moving up five spots to fourth place after reaching the Gold Medal Game at Paris 2024. This makes France the highest climber within the Top 20, now trailing just behind Germany, which holds third place.
Canada’s historic Olympic run, their first in 24 years, propelled them to fifth place in the rankings. This achievement builds on their third-place finish at the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023.
Greece and Puerto Rico each advanced one spot in the rankings following their victories in the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournaments, with Greece now in 13th place and Puerto Rico in 15th.
The Philippines advanced four spots to 34th, and Japan’s Olympic performance led to a five-place jump, bringing them to 21st in the world.
Costa Rica made the biggest leap in the Top 100, moving up 18 places to 71st, while El Salvador made a significant improvement, rising 23 spots to 103rd. Both nations enhanced their rankings by reaching the final of the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2027 Central American Pre-Qualifiers.
