The National Basketball Association (NBA) today announced that a record of more than 60 players who were either born in Africa or have at least one parent born on the continent are on opening-night rosters for the 2026-27 season.
Overall, opening-night rosters feature 125 international players from a record-tying 43 countries across six continents, including 70 European players, marking the second consecutive season and second time ever with at least that many.
The more than 60 players who were either born in Africa or have at least one parent born on the continent include more than 25 from or with at least one parent from Nigeria.
Among the more than 60 players are three-time NBA All-Star Bam Adebayo (Heat; ties to Nigeria), Antetokounmpo, two-time NBA champion OG Anunoby (New York Knicks; UK; ties to Nigeria), 2026 No. 1 overall pick AJ Dybantsa (Wizards; ties to the Republic of the Congo), 2022-23 Kia NBA MVP and seven-time NBA All-Star Joel Embiid (Philadelphia 76ers; Cameroon), and 2019 NBA champion and four-time NBA All-Star Pascal Siakam (Indiana Pacers; Cameroon).
France has a league-high 17 international players, marking the first time in 13 seasons that a country other than Canada has led the NBA in international players.
The group is headlined by two-time NBA All-Star and 2025-26 Kia NBA Defensive Player of the Year Victor Wembanyama (San Antonio Spurs). Canada ranks second with 16, headlined by 2025 NBA champion and reigning back-to-back Kia NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Oklahoma City Thunder), followed by Australia (nine), Germany (seven), Nigeria (a record six) and Serbia (six).
This is the sixth consecutive season that opening-night rosters feature at least 120 international players and the 13th straight season with at least 100 international players. All 30 NBA teams feature at least one international player. The Dallas Mavericks, Miami Heat and Washington Wizards feature a league-high seven each.
The record for international players (135) and the record for countries and territories represented (43) were set at the start of the 2025-26 and 2017-18 seasons, respectively.
The 70 European players include 2021 NBA champion and two-time Kia NBA MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo (Heat; Greece; ties to Nigeria), 2023 NBA champion and three-time Kia NBA MVP Nikola Jokić (Denver Nuggets; Serbia), six-time NBA All-Star and Kia All-NBA First Team member Luka Dončić (Los Angeles Lakers; Slovenia), and Wembanyama.
Below are additional international player milestones and storylines for the upcoming season:
The 81st NBA regular season tips off today with a tripleheader on beIN Sports, Canal+ and SuperSport as the Boston Celtics visit the Detroit Pistons (9 p.m. CAT), the defending NBA champion Knicks host the 76ers (1 a.m. CAT) and the Spurs meet the Thunder in San Antonio (3:30 a.m. CAT).
The 2026-27 season will reach fans in 214 countries and territories in more than 50 languages through the league’s broadcast partners around the world and NBA League Pass, the league’s premium live game subscription service available via the NBA App.
Below is the full list of international players on 2026-27 opening-night NBA rosters (active and inactive):
| Country | Name | Team | Ties |
| Australia | Dyson Daniels | Atlanta Hawks | |
| Australia | Jock Landale | Atlanta Hawks | |
| Australia | Josh Giddey | Chicago Bulls | |
| Australia | Tyrese Proctor | Cleveland Cavaliers | |
| Australia | Kyrie Irving | Dallas Mavericks | |
| Australia | Johnny Furphy | Indiana Pacers | Ties to Papua New Guinea |
| Australia | Rocco Zikarsky* | Minnesota Timberwolves | |
| Australia | Ben Simmons | Sacramento Kings | |
| Australia | Josh Green | Utah Jazz | |
| Austria | Jakob Poeltl | Toronto Raptors | |
| Bahamas | Buddy Hield | Chicago Bulls | |
| Bahamas | VJ Edgecombe | Philadelphia 76ers | |
| Bahamas | Deandre Ayton | Washington Wizards | Ties to Nigeria |
| Belgium | Ajay Mitchell | Oklahoma City Thunder | |
| Belgium | Toumani Camara | Portland Trail Blazers | Ties to Mali |
| Bosnia and Herzegovina | Jusuf Nurkić | Utah Jazz | |
| Brazil | Gui Santos | Golden State Warriors | |
| Cameroon | Pascal Siakam | Indiana Pacers | |
| Cameroon | Yves Missi | New Orleans Pelicans | |
| Cameroon | Joel Embiid | Philadelphia 76ers | |
| Canada | Nickeil Alexander-Walker | Atlanta Hawks | |
| Canada | Luguentz Dort | Atlanta Hawks | |
| Canada | Leonard Miller | Chicago Bulls | |
| Canada | Jamal Murray | Denver Nuggets | |
| Canada | Ryan Nembhard* | Denver Nuggets | |
| Canada | Andrew Nembhard | Indiana Pacers | |
| Canada | Zach Edey | Memphis Grizzlies | |
| Canada | Olivier-Maxence Prosper | Memphis Grizzlies | Ties to Haiti |
| Canada | Andrew Wiggins | Miami Heat | |
| Canada | Trey Lyles | Minnesota Timberwolves | |
| Canada | Bennedict Mathurin | New Orleans Pelicans | Ties to Haiti |
| Canada | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander | Oklahoma City Thunder | |
| Canada | Dillon Brooks | Phoenix Suns | |
| Canada | Shaedon Sharpe | Portland Trail Blazers | |
| Canada | RJ Barrett | Toronto Raptors | |
| Canada | Will Riley | Washington Wizards | |
| China | Yang Hansen | Portland Trail Blazers | |
| Croatia | Mario Hezonja | Cleveland Cavaliers | |
| Croatia | Ivica Zubac | Indiana Pacers | |
| Croatia | Karlo Matković | New Orleans Pelicans | |
| Czech Republic | Vít Krejčí | Portland Trail Blazers | |
| Democratic Republic of the Congo | Oscar Tshiebwe* | Houston Rockets | |
| Democratic Republic of the Congo | Jonathan Kuminga | Minnesota Timberwolves | |
| Dominican Republic | Al Horford | Golden State Warriors | |
| Dominican Republic | David Jones Garcia* | San Antonio Spurs | |
| Estonia | Henri Veesaar | Atlanta Hawks | |
| Finland | Lauri Markkanen | Utah Jazz | |
| France | Nolan Traoré | Brooklyn Nets | |
| France | Moussa Diabaté | Charlotte Hornets | Ties to Guinea and Mali |
| France | Tidjane Salaün | Charlotte Hornets | |
| France | Noa Essengue | Chicago Bulls | Ties to Cameroon |
| France | Zaccharie Risacher | Dallas Mavericks | |
| France | Ousmane Dieng | Milwaukee Bucks | Ties to Senegal |
| France | Joan Beringer | Minnesota Timberwolves | Ties to Benin |
| France | Rudy Gobert | Minnesota Timberwolves | |
| France | Pacôme Dadiet | New York Knicks | Ties to Ivory Coast |
| France | Mohamed Diawara | New York Knicks | Ties to Mali |
| France | Noah Penda | Orlando Magic | Ties to Cameroon and Martinique |
| France | Rayan Rupert* | Philadelphia 76ers | Ties to Morocco |
| France | Sidy Cissoko | Portland Trail Blazers | Ties to Senegal |
| France | Maxime Raynaud | Sacramento Kings | |
| France | Victor Wembanyama | San Antonio Spurs | |
| France | Bilal Coulibaly | Washington Wizards | Ties to Mali |
| France | Alex Sarr | Washington Wizards | Ties to Senegal |
| Georgia | Sandro Mamukelashvili | Los Angeles Lakers | |
| Georgia | Goga Bitadze | Orlando Magic | |
| Germany | Moritz Wagner | Brooklyn Nets | |
| Germany | Dennis Schröder | Charlotte Hornets | Ties to The Gambia |
| Germany | Hannes Steinbach | Charlotte Hornets | |
| Germany | Isaiah Hartenstein | Oklahoma City Thunder | |
| Germany | Tristan da Silva | Orlando Magic | Ties to Brazil |
| Germany | Franz Wagner | Orlando Magic | |
| Germany | Ariel Hukporti | Philadelphia 76ers | Ties to Togo |
| Greece | Giannis Antetokounmpo | Miami Heat | Ties to Nigeria |
| Guinea | Moussa Cissé | Dallas Mavericks | |
| Israel | Ben Saraf | Brooklyn Nets | |
| Israel | Deni Avdija | Portland Trail Blazers | |
| Italy | Simone Fontecchio | Miami Heat | |
| Jamaica | Nick Richards | Miami Heat | |
| Japan | Rui Hachimura | LA Clippers | Ties to Benin |
| Latvia | Kristaps Porziņģis | Golden State Warriors | |
| Lithuania | Kasparas Jakučionis | Milwaukee Bucks | |
| Lithuania | Domantas Sabonis | Sacramento Kings | |
| Mexico | Karim López | Memphis Grizzlies | Ties to Spain |
| Montenegro | Nikola Vučević | Orlando Magic | |
| Netherlands | Tristan Enaruna* | Cleveland Cavaliers | Ties to Nigeria |
| Netherlands | Malevy Leons* | Golden State Warriors | |
| Netherlands | Quinten Post | Memphis Grizzlies | |
| New Zealand | Steven Adams | Houston Rockets | |
| Nigeria | Ugonna Onyenso* | Detroit Pistons | |
| Nigeria | Charles Bassey | Golden State Warriors | |
| Nigeria | Adem Bona | Philadelphia 76ers | Ties to Türkiye |
| Nigeria | Precious Achiuwa | Sacramento Kings | |
| Nigeria | Josh Okogie | Utah Jazz | |
| Nigeria | Felix Okpara* | Washington Wizards | |
| Portugal | Neemias Queta | Boston Celtics | Ties to Guinea-Bissau |
| Russia | Egor Dёmin | Brooklyn Nets | |
| Russia | Vladislav Goldin* | Miami Heat | |
| Senegal | Mouhamed Gueye | Atlanta Hawks | |
| Senegal | Khalifa Diop | Cleveland Cavaliers | |
| Senegal | Tacko Fall* | Philadelphia 76ers | |
| Serbia | Nikola Jokić | Denver Nuggets | |
| Serbia | Bogdan Bogdanović | Houston Rockets | |
| Serbia | Nikola Jović | Miami Heat | |
| Serbia | Bogoljub Marković | Milwaukee Bucks | |
| Serbia | Nikola Topić | Oklahoma City Thunder | |
| Serbia | Tristan Vukčević | Washington Wizards | Ties to Sweden |
| Slovenia | Luka Dončić | Los Angeles Lakers | |
| South Sudan | Khaman Maluach | Phoenix Suns | Ties to Uganda |
| South Sudan | Duop Reath* | Phoenix Suns | Ties to Australia |
| Spain | Hugo González | Boston Celtics | |
| Spain | Santi Aldama | Dallas Mavericks | |
| Spain | Sergio De Larrea | Dallas Mavericks | |
| Spain | Baba Miller | LA Clippers | |
| Spain | Aday Mara | Oklahoma City Thunder | |
| Sweden | Pelle Larsson | Miami Heat | |
| Switzerland | Clint Capela | Houston Rockets | Ties to Angola and the Democratic Republic of the Congo |
| Switzerland | Yanic Konan Niederhäuser | LA Clippers | Ties to Ivory Coast |
| Switzerland | Kyshawn George | Washington Wizards | Ties to Canada and France |
| Türkiye | Tarik Biberović | Dallas Mavericks | Ties to Bosnia and Herzegovina |
| Türkiye | Alperen Sengun | Houston Rockets | |
| Ukraine | Svi Mykhailiuk | Utah Jazz | |
| United Kingdom | Amari Williams* | Boston Celtics | |
| United Kingdom | Tobi Lawal* | Dallas Mavericks | Ties to Nigeria |
| United Kingdom | OG Anunoby | New York Knicks | Ties to Nigeria |
*Two-Way Player
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Contact
Kevin Alonzo, NBA, KAlonzo@nba.com, (212) 407-8158
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