Nigeria’s senior men’s national basketball team, D’Tigers, fell from 39th to 42nd in the latest FIBA rankings released on Thursday, August 15, 2024.
This decline in the rankings reflects their inability to qualify for the recently concluded Paris 2024 Olympics Men’s Basketball Tournament, which was won by the USA.
D’Tigers missed out on the Paris 2024 Olympics after going winless at the 2024 FIBA Olympic pre-qualification tournament held at Eko Convention Centre in Lagos, Nigeria.
After reaching 16th in the World Rankings following the Rio 2016 Olympics, D’Tigers suffered losses to Mali and Senegal, finishing third in their group and ending their streak of consecutive Olympic appearances since 2012.
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On the other hand, some African nations, including South Sudan and Cameroon, improved in the latest FIBA rankings.
South Sudan, who delivered an impressive performance at the Paris 2024 Olympic basketball tournament by defeating Puerto Rico 90-79 but losing to the USA and Serbia, achieved the only double-digit rise among the Top 50 in the latest rankings, jumping from 34th to 23rd.
Cameroon also rose five spots to 64th. Côte d’Ivoire holds the highest rank among African countries at 31st, followed closely by Angola at 32nd.
Meanwhile, the USA, after winning the gold medal at the Paris 2024 Olympic Men’s Basketball Tournament, retained the top spot in the rankings, while Serbia moved ahead of Germany to claim the second position.
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