Report: Nigeria will travel to FIBA World Cup after settling funding dispute
Following a public dispute with the Nigerian Sports Commission, the country's national basketball team has secured the required funds for the upcoming FIBA World Cup and will travel to China for the tournament, sources told Nikos Varlas of Eurohoops.
Earlier this week, some Nigerian players, including former NBA big man Ekpe Udoh and current San Antonio Spurs forward Chimezie Metu, publicly revealed that the country's national sports body had refused to release funds that were allocated for the team, putting its World Cup participation in jeopardy.
Dear Sports World
— Ekpe Udoh (@EkpeUdoh) August 16, 2019
With two weeks before the FIBAWC, The Nigerian Sports Commission refuses to release the money allocated to us for training, travel, and food! We have a special team and possibly the best yet. I hope this gets resolved soon...
Not Surprised Tho
Ekpe
We don’t need fundraising. Just need the higher ups to release the money. Nigeria a wealthy country.
— Ekpe Udoh (@EkpeUdoh) August 17, 2019
✌🏿
I say all of that to say that the Sports Commission of Nigeria hasn’t released the funds held for us to lodge, travel, etc. Of course we will manage, show up to China, and fight for this country, but something has to change!
— Stan Okoye (@StanOkoye_) August 16, 2019
@nbbfonline @NigeriaBasket @titansbasket @FIBA @FIBAWC pic.twitter.com/zzEbG5Xuz9
— Chimezie Metu™ (@Chimezie_Metu) August 16, 2019
Recent funding issues have also affected some of Nigeria's other national sports programs. The country's soccer team only received its funding for this summer's Africa Cup of Nations tournament in Egypt after arriving in the host nation, and releasing that money required direct intervention from Nigeria President Muhammadu Buhari, according to ESPN's Colin Udoh.
At the FIBA World Cup, Nigeria will be the top-ranked African team and sits 33rd in the overall world rankings. The squad will face off against Russia, Argentina, and Korea in Group B in Wuhan, with the top two teams advancing to form a new group in the next round along with the top two countries from Group A - Poland, Venezuela, Ivory Coast, and host China.