2021_BAL_season
2021 BAL season
Inaugural season of the Basketball Africa League
The 2021 BAL season, also known as BAL Season 1, was the inaugural season of the Basketball Africa League (BAL). Established as a joint effort between the National Basketball Association (NBA) and FIBA, the BAL is the highest tier continental league of Africa, replacing the FIBA Africa Basketball League.[1] Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the BAL held its inaugural season one year later as planned, with the season beginning in 2021.[2][3] Initially the league planned to play in six venues in six countries; however, due to the pandemic the season was held in a bio-secure bubble in Kigali, Rwanda. The season began on 16 May 2021 and ended on 30 May 2021.[4]
| 2021 BAL season | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
The Kigali Arena in Kigali hosted the entire competition | ||||||||||
| League | Basketball Africa League | |||||||||
| Season | 2021 | |||||||||
| Dates | 16 – 30 May 2021 | |||||||||
| Number of games | 26 | |||||||||
| Number of teams | 12 | |||||||||
| Regular season | ||||||||||
| Season MVP | Walter Hodge (Zamalek) | |||||||||
| Finals | ||||||||||
| Champions |  Zamalek (1st title) | |||||||||
| Runners-up |  US Monastir | |||||||||
| Third place |  Petro de Luanda | |||||||||
| Fourth place |  Patriots | |||||||||
| Statistical leaders | ||||||||||
| ||||||||||
| Records | ||||||||||
| Biggest home win | 47 points GNBC 66–113 US Monastir (12 May 2021) | |||||||||
| Winning streak | 6 games Zamalek | |||||||||
| Highest attendance | 1,789 US Monastir 63–76 Zamalek (30 May 2021) | |||||||||
| Seasons | ||||||||||
The qualifying rounds for the season were held from 16 October to 21 December 2019, with national champion of each African country has the opportunity to qualify through the qualifying rounds. Meanwhile, six national champions directly qualified for the regular season to make a total of twelve teams in the main tournament.
Zamalek won the first-ever BAL championship after beating US Monastir in the finals and going undefeated over the season.[5]
The plans to establish the BAL by FIBA and the NBA were first revealed in February 2019 during the 2019 NBA All-Star Game.[6]
In August 2019, the seven host cities for the BAL season were announced.[7] Additionally, it was revealed that the inaugural BAL Final Four would be played in the Kigali Arena in Kigali, Rwanda. BAL president Amadou Gallo Fall, later announced at the NBA All-Star 2020 Africa Luncheon in Chicago, that the season was planned to tip off on 13 March 2020.[8] On 20 February 2020, it was announced that the 12 teams were to be drawn in two conferences, named the Sahara and Nile Conferences.[9]
Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic
On 3 March 2020, the BAL announced it was postponing its inaugural season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[10] The decision was made following recommendations of the Senegalese government.
In November, the start of the inaugural season was delayed for a second time and the new season was moved to a later to be announced date in 2021.[11] In March it was announced the league would commence in May 2021. The complete event was rescheduled to be held in the Kigali Arena and the regular season changed its format from two groups to three groups of four.[4] All twelve teams were hosted in a bio-secure bubble in which all players were regularly tested for COVID-19. All games were broadcast live by ESPN Africa.[12]
The twelve teams for the inaugural BAL season had to qualify in their domestic competitions to be able to play in the league, similar to other FIBA-organised competitions. Six teams qualified directly as their national champions while an additional six teams qualified through regional qualifying tournaments.
Direct qualification
FIBA announced that the national champions of six member associations would be directly qualified for the regular season. These teams are from countries which are also hosts cities for the regular season, except for Final Four host Rwanda.[7] On 23 October 2019, AS Douanes won the Senegalese national championship, becoming the first club to qualify.[13]
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Qualifying tournaments
Each of the FIBA Africa member associations was able to register one team from its country to participate in the qualifying tournaments. A total of 31 teams played in the first round, which was divided into six groups in six different host cities.[14] The qualification tournaments started on 16 October and will end 21 December 2019.
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|
Qualified teams
| Team | Home city | Qualified as | Qualified on |
|---|---|---|---|
| US Monastir | Monastir, Tunisia | Winners of the 2018–19 Championnat National A | 1 May 2019 |
| Zamalek | Cairo, Egypt | Winners of the 2018–19 Egyptian Super League | 4 May 2019 |
| Petro de Luanda | Luanda, Angola | Winners of the 2018–19 Angolan Basketball League | 25 May 2019 |
 AS Salé | Salé, Morocco | Winners of the 2018–19 Division Excellence | 30 May 2019 |
 AS Douanes | Dakar, Senegal | Winners of the 2019 Nationale 1 season | 23 October 2019 |
 Rivers Hoopers | Port Harcourt, Nigeria | Winners of the 2019 NBBF President Cup | 17 November 2019[15] |
 GS Pétroliers | Algiers, Algeria | West Division winners | 30 November 2019[16] |
 FAP | Yaoundé, Cameroon | West Division runners-up | 30 November 2019[16] |
 AS Police | Bamako, Mali | West Division third place | 1 December 2019[17] |
| Patriots | Kigali, Rwanda | East Division winners | 21 December 2019 |
 GNBC | Antsirabe, Madagascar | East Division runners-up | 21 December 2019[18] |
 Ferroviário de Maputo | Maputo, Mozambique | East Division third place | 22 December 2019 |
Personnel and sponsorship
| Team | Head coach | Team captain |
|---|---|---|
| AS Douanes | Pabi Gueye[19] |
Alkaly Ndour |
| AS Salé | Said El Bouzidi[20] |
Zakaria El Masbahi |
| AS Police | Babacar Kanouté[19] |
Badra Samaké[21] |
| FAP | Lazare Adingono[22] |
Ebaku Akumenzoh |
| Ferroviário de Maputo | Milagre Macome[19] |
Custódio Muchate |
| GNBC | Lova Navalona Raharidera[19] |
Francis Mory |
| GS Pétroliers | Sofiane Boulahia[23] |
Mustapha Adrar |
| Patriots |  Alan Major[24] |
Aristide Mugabe |
| Petro de Luanda |  José Neto[25] |
Leonel Paulo |
| Rivers Hoopers | Ogoh Odaudu[19] |
Belema Alamin |
| US Monastir | Mounir Ben Slimane |
Radhouane Slimane |
| Zamalek |  Augustí Julbe[22] |
Haytham Elsaharty |
Foreign players
In line with league rules, each BAL team was allowed to have four foreign players on its roster, including only two non-African players.
| Team | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player 1 | Player 2 | Player 3 | Player 4 | |
| AS Douanes | Chris Cokley[26] |
Hassan Attia[26] |
 Mohamed Sadi[26] |
— |
| AS Salé | Ra'Shad James[27] |
Terrell Stoglin[28] |
 Johndre Jefferson[27] |
— |
| AS Police | Ibrahima Thomas[27] |
Jawachi Nzeakor[29] |
Mylo Mitchell[27] |
— |
| FAP |  Abdoulaye Harouna[30] |
Marcus Thomas[30] |
Matthew Hezekiah |
— |
| Ferroviário de Maputo |  Adjehi Baru[31] |
Álvaro Calvo Masa[31] |
Demarcus Holland[31] |
 Myck Kabongo |
| GNBC | Cameron Ridley[32] |
— | — | — |
| GS Pétroliers | — | — | — | — |
| Patriots | Jermaine Cole[33] |
 Bush Wamukota[34] |
Brandon Costner[33] |
— |
| Petro de Luanda |  Ryan Richards[35] |
Antwan Scott[27] |
— | — |
| Rivers Hoopers |  Robinson Opong[36] |
Chris Daniels[37] |
Taren Sullivan[37] |
— |
| US Monastir |  Ater Majok[22] |
 Wael Arakji[22] |
Chris Crawford[27] |
— |
| Zamalek | Chinemelu Elonu[38] |
Michael Fakuade[39] |
 Walter Hodge[22] |
Mouloukou Diabate[40] |
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On 1 August 2019, the NBA announced the seven host cities for the regular season.[7] Six cities in six countries would host the regular season games, with three assigned to each conference. The Kigali Arena in Kigali, Rwanda was announced as venue for the inaugural Final Four. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak, it was later decided that the entire event was to be played at the Kigali Arena.[4]
| Arena | Capacity | Location |
|---|---|---|
| Dakar Arena | 15,000 |
Dakar, Senegal |
| Cairo Stadium Indoor Halls Complex | 16,500 |
Cairo, Egypt |
| Salle El Bouâzzaoui | 2,000 |
Salé, Morocco |
| Kilamba Arena | 12,270 |
Luanda, Angola |
| Kigali Arena (Final Four) | 10,000 |
Kigali, Rwanda |
| National Stadium | 3,000[41] |
Lagos, Nigeria |
| Mohamed-Mzali Sports Hall | 4,075 |
Monastir, Tunisia |
| Phase | Round | Draw date | Games |
|---|---|---|---|
| Qualifying | First round | 9 October 2019 | 15 October – 3 November 2019 |
| Elite 16 | 21 November 2019 | 26 November – 22 December 2019 | |
| Group phase | 29 March 2021 | 16–24 May 2021 | |
| Playoffs | Quarter-finals | 26–27 May 2021 | |
| Semi-finals | 29 May 2021 | ||
| Final and third place | 30 May 2021 | ||
In the qualifying rounds, 32 teams from 32 countries participated in the West and East Division. The first round began 15 October and ended 3 November 2019, with sixteen teams advancing to the second round. The second-round games began 26 November and will end 22 December 2019, with six teams qualifying for the regular season.
The group phase began on 16 May 2021 and ended on 24 May 2021. Initially, it was planned that in the regular season, the twelve teams would play in two Conferences with six teams each. Each team would play five games, one against each opponent, inside its conference. The top three teams from each conference would advance to the Super 6.[42] The regular season would be played in six arenas divided over the African continent.[42]
The format was changed to a group phase as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, which was completely played at the Kigali Arena. In three groups of four each team plays the other one time and the first, second and best third-placed teams advance to the playoffs.[4]
Group A
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | PF | PA | PD | Pts | Qualification | USM | PAT | RIV | GNB | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | US Monastir |
3 | 3 | 0 | 303 | 211 | +92 | 6 | Advance to playoffs | — | — | 91–75 | — | |
| 2 | Patriots (H) |
3 | 2 | 1 | 236 | 223 | +13 | 5 | — | — | 83–60 | 78–72 | ||
| 3 | Rivers Hoopers |
3 | 1 | 2 | 210 | 251 | −41 | 4 | 70–99 | — | — | — | ||
| 4 | GNBC |
3 | 0 | 3 | 207 | 271 | −64 | 3 | 66–113 | — | 69–80 | — |
Group B
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | PF | PA | PD | Pts | Qualification | PDL | ASS | FAP | POL | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Petro de Luanda |
3 | 3 | 0 | 247 | 208 | +39 | 6 | Advance to playoffs | — | 97–78 | — | 84–66 | |
| 2 | AS Salé |
3 | 2 | 1 | 253 | 260 | −7 | 5 | — | — | 87–84 | 88–79 | ||
| 3 | FAP |
3 | 1 | 2 | 235 | 218 | +17 | 4 | 64–66 | — | — | 87–65 | ||
| 4 | AS Police |
3 | 0 | 3 | 210 | 259 | −49 | 3 | — | — | — |
Group C
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | PF | PA | PD | Pts | Qualification | ZAM | FVM | ASD | GSP | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Zamalek |
3 | 3 | 0 | 254 | 181 | +73 | 6 | Advance to playoffs | — | 71–55 | — | 97–64 | |
| 2 | Ferroviário de Maputo |
3 | 2 | 1 | 229 | 218 | +11 | 5 | — | — | 88–74 | — | ||
| 3 | AS Douanes |
3 | 1 | 2 | 230 | 250 | −20 | 4 | 62–86 | — | — | 94–76 | ||
| 4 | GS Pétroliers |
3 | 0 | 3 | 213 | 277 | −64 | 3 | — | 73–86 | — | — |
Ranking of third-placed teams
| Pos | Grp | Team | Pld | W | L | PF | PA | PD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | B | FAP |
3 | 1 | 2 | 235 | 218 | +17 | 4 | Advance to playoffs |
| 2 | C | AS Douanes |
3 | 1 | 2 | 230 | 250 | −20 | 4 | |
| 3 | A | Rivers Hoopers |
3 | 1 | 2 | 210 | 251 | −41 | 4 |
All eight qualified teams from the group stage were ranked and seeded to determine the match-ups. The play-offs games were played in a single-elimination format.[4][43] The playoffs began on 26 May and ended on 30 May 2021 with the 2021 BAL Finals.[44]
Bracket
| Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Finals | ||||||||
| 27 May | ||||||||||
1 US Monastir | 86 | |||||||||
| 29 May | ||||||||||
8 AS Douanes | 62 | |||||||||
1 US Monastir | 87 | |||||||||
| 27 May | ||||||||||
4 Patriots | 46 | |||||||||
4 Patriots | 73 | |||||||||
| 30 May | ||||||||||
5 Ferroviário de Maputo | 71 | |||||||||
1 US Monastir | 63 | |||||||||
| 26 May | ||||||||||
2 Zamalek | 76 | |||||||||
2 Zamalek | 82 | |||||||||
| 29 May | ||||||||||
7 FAP | 53 | |||||||||
2 Zamalek | 89 | |||||||||
| 26 May | ||||||||||
3 Petro de Luanda | 71 | Third place game | ||||||||
3 Petro de Luanda | 79 | |||||||||
| 30 May | ||||||||||
6 AS Salé | 72 | |||||||||
4 Patriots | 68 | |||||||||
3 Petro de Luanda | 97 | |||||||||
| Position | Team | Record |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Zamalek |
6–0 |
| 2 | US Monastir |
5–1 |
| 3 | Petro de Luanda |
5–1 |
| 4 | Patriots |
3–3 |
| 5 | Ferroviário de Maputo |
2–2 |
| 6 | AS Salé |
2–2 |
| 7 | FAP |
1–3 |
| 8 | AS Douanes |
1–3 |
| 9 | Rivers Hoopers |
1–2 |
| 10 | AS Police |
0–3 |
| 11 | GS Pétroliers |
0–3 |
| 12 | GNBC |
0–3 |
- Most Valuable Player:
Walter Hodge (Zamalek)[45] - Defensive Player of the Year:
Anas Mahmoud (Zamalek)[45] - Sportsmanship Award:
Makrem Ben Romdhane (US Monastir)[46] - Ubuntu Award:
Hicham Benayad-Cherif (GS Pétroliers)[47] - Scoring Champion:
Terrell Stoglin (AS Salé) - All-BAL First Team:[48]
- Omar Abada (US Monastir)
- Walter Hodge (Zamalek)
Wael Arakji (US Monastir)- Makrem Ben Romdhane (US Monastir)
- Anas Mahmoud (Zamalek)
The following were the statistical leaders in 2021 BAL season.[49]
Individual statistic leaders
|
Individual game highs
|
Team statistic leaders
| Category | Team | Statistic |
|---|---|---|
| Points per game | US Monastir | 89.9 |
| Rebounds per game | FAP | 42.0 |
| Assists per game | US Monastir | 24.4 |
| Steals per game | 11.0 | |
| Blocks per game | Rivers Hoopers | 5.3 |
| Turnovers per game | GS Pétroliers | 22.0 |
| Fouls per game | 25.7 | |
| FG% | Zamalek | 49.9% |
| FT% | Ferroviário de Maputo | 78.9% |
| 3FG% | US Monastir | 36.1% |
The BAL has faced criticism by The Guardian over its close ties with the Rwandan government in organising the league, using the league as a vehicle for sportswashing by Rwandan President Paul Kagame, pointing to ongoing repression and human rights abuses under his regime.[50]
On May 10, 2021, American rapper J. Cole signed a contract with the Rwanda-based Patriots.[51] In three games with the team, he scored five points, had three assists and five rebounds in 45 minutes of gameplay. Terrell Stoglin of AS Salé states about the signing: "For a guy who has so much money and has another career to just come here and average, like, one point a game and still get glorified is very disrespectful to the game. It's disrespectful to the ones who sacrificed their whole lives for this."[52]
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- "Basketball Africa League to tip off historic inaugural season in May". Basketball Africa League. 29 March 2021. Archived from the original on 3 June 2021. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
- "Egypt's Zamalek wins inaugural Basketball Africa League". NBA.com. 2021-07-01. Retrieved 2023-09-23.
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- "NBA's Basketball Africa League Reveals Seven Host Cities for Inaugural Season". Sports Video Group. August 2019. Retrieved 27 September 2019.
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- "BAL inaugural season postponed to 2021". The New Times. 12 November 2020.
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- "Who are the five new head coaches in the Basketball Africa League?". FIBA. 25 August 2020. Retrieved 25 September 2020.
- "AS Police captain Samake: They'll respect us at BAL". FIBA. 23 September 2020. Retrieved 25 September 2020.
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- "GSP coach Boulahia: We will be outsiders at the BAL". 1 September 2020. Retrieved 25 September 2020.
- "Basketball: Patriots sign new American coach Alan Major". The New Times Rwanda. 24 April 2021. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
- "Angolan champions Petro de Luanda hire Brazilian Jose Neto as new head coach". FIBA. 2 September 2020. Retrieved 25 September 2020.
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- "BAL - Basket-ball : Les clubs affûtent leurs armes pour la compétition | Africa Foot United". africafootunited.com (in French). Archived from the original on 13 May 2021. Retrieved 12 May 2021.
- Faye, Matt (27 April 2021). "LU alum Josh Nzeakor to play in NBA's new Basketball Africa League". Beaumont Enterprise. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
- "Cameroon's FAP out to conquer the continent at newly-launched Basketball Africa League". FIBA.basketball. Retrieved 12 May 2021.
- "Manso, Holland, Baru e Obgonna reforçam Ferroviário de Maputo na BAL". Lance (in European Portuguese). 27 April 2021. Archived from the original on 30 April 2021. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
- "Basketball Africa League : Cameron DeVon Ridley en renfort de GNBC | NewsMada". Newsmada.com (in French). 26 April 2021. Archived from the original on 28 April 2021. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
- "Patriots coach confirms rapper J. Cole on club's roster for Basketball Africa League". The New Times Rwanda. 11 May 2021. Retrieved 12 May 2021.
- "Wamukota joins Rwanda's Patriots with Basketball Africa League title in mind". FIBA.basketball. Retrieved 12 May 2021.
- "Petro de Luanda já em Kigali para a BAL - ANGOP". Agência Angola Press. Retrieved 8 May 2021.
- "Basketball: Rivers Hoopers sign Ugandan star to replace injured Ezeli". Premium Times. 22 April 2021. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
- "Rivers Hoopers add Chris Daniels and Taren Sullivan to BAL roster". Rivers Hoopers. 15 April 2021. Archived from the original on 19 April 2021. Retrieved 8 May 2021.
- "Al Zamalek tabs Chinemelu Elonu for BAL". Afrobasket.com. 18 April 2021. Retrieved 18 April 2021.
- "Michael Fakuade joins Zamalek for the BAL". The BAL Report. 17 April 2021. Retrieved 18 April 2021.
- Abduljalil, Yusuf (17 April 2021). "Al Zamalek tabs Souleyman Diabate". Afrobasket.com. Retrieved 18 April 2021.
- "Lagos ready to take over Surulere National Stadium – Ambode". March 2017. Retrieved 11 March 2020.
- "NBA's Basketball Africa League Gets One Step Closer To Reality With Announcement Of Host Cities". Forbes. Retrieved 28 September 2019.
- "Rwanda to host NBA's Africa League final". The East African. Retrieved 11 November 2019.
- "BAL Announced Inaugural Playoffs Schedule". BAL. 24 May 2021. Archived from the original on 24 May 2021. Retrieved 24 May 2021.
- "Zamalek are the champions of the inaugural Basketball Africa League". www.thebal.com. Archived from the original on 30 May 2021. Retrieved 31 May 2021.
- @theBAL (4 June 2021). "The Manute Bol BAL Sportsmanship Award went to US Monastir's Makrem Ben Romdhane, for exemplifying the ideals of sportsmanship on the court with ethical behavior, fair play, and integrity" (Tweet). Retrieved 9 April 2022 – via Twitter.
- "Hichem Benayad-Cherif Receives Inaugural Basketball Africa League Ubuntu Award". The Guardian Nigeria News. 7 October 2021. Retrieved 8 April 2022.
- @theBAL (4 June 2021). "The All-BAL First Team. ⭐" (Tweet). Retrieved 6 June 2021 – via Twitter.
- "Basketball Africa League Best Individual Games - RealGM". basketball.realgm.com. Retrieved 20 May 2021.
- "The NBA's alignment with Rwanda's repressive leader was headscratching". the Guardian. 1 June 2021. Retrieved 30 April 2022.
- ALBERTIE, QUENTON S. (April 28, 2021). "J. COLE TO SIGN DEAL WITH BASKETBALL AFRICA LEAGUE'S RWANDA PATRIOTS". Slam.
- Zucker, Joseph. "J. Cole Playing in Basketball Africa League Is 'Disrespectful,' Terrell Stoglin Says". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 30 April 2022.