NBA opening-night rosters feature 120 international players
FILE–Giannis Antetokounmpo #34 of the Milwaukee Bucks. Adam Glanzman/Getty Images/AFP
Opening-night rosters for the NBA’s 2022-23 season, which tips off later on Tuesday, will feature 120 international players from 40 countries, according to the league.
The record for international players (121) and record for countries and territories represented (43) were set at the start of the 2021-22 and 2017-18 seasons, respectively.
Canada is the most-represented country outside of the United States for a ninth consecutive year with 22 players featuring across the opening-night rosters of the NBA’s 30 teams.
Australia (10), France (9) and Germany (6) were next on the list followed by Nigeria, Serbia and Spain who each have five players on opening-night rosters.
There is a total of 58 European players on opening-night rosters, including three members of the 2021-22All-NBA First Team: Giannis Antetokounmpo (Milwaukee Bucks; Greece; ties to Nigeria), Luka Doncic (Dallas Mavericks; Slovenia) and 2021-22 NBA Most Valuable Player Nikola Jokic (Denver Nuggets; Serbia).
The Toronto Raptors have eight international players, marking the second consecutive season the NBA’s only Canadian team lead the league in that category.
Thirty-eight players on opening-night rosters participated in Basketball Without Borders (BWB) prior to their NBA careers.
There are also a number of American players with ties to other countries. Among the American players with ties to other countries are Bam Adebayo (Miami Heat; ties to Nigeria), Jalen Green (Houston Rockets; ties to the Philippines), Matisse Thybulle (76ers; ties to Australia and Haiti), Juan Toscano-Anderson (Lakers; ties to Mexico), Karl-Anthony Towns (Minnesota Timberwolves; ties to the Dominican Republic) and Jaylin Williams (Thunder; ties to Vietnam). –With reports from Reuters
