18-year-old Khaman Maluach has made international sports headlines after being selected 10th overall in the 2025 NBA Draft by the Houston Rockets and later traded to the Phoenix Suns. The NBA, or National Basketball Association, is the premier professional basketball league in America.
While not born in Uganda, Maluach has strong ties to the country, having been raised in Kampala, from the age of two as a refugee alongside his mother and siblings.
His interest in the sport was sparked in 2019 when a boda boda rider on the streets of Kampala remarked that he was unusually tall for his age and encouraged him to try basketball. Then just 14 years old, Maluach attended a local basketball camp organised by Luol Deng, a former NBA player of South Sudanese origin. That marked the beginning of his basketball journey.
He later joined the NBA Academy Africa in Saly, Senegal, an elite training centre that combines basketball development with academic education. In 2022, he began his professional career with Cobra Sport, a South Sudanese club, and was later drafted by AS Douanes, a top team in Senegal.
In 2024, Maluach returned to Uganda and signed with the City Oilers, representing the team in the Basketball Africa League (BAL). Despite the Oilers’ early exit from the tournament, Maluach stood out with impressive stats—averaging 17.5 points, a league-leading 13.5 rebounds, and 2.8 blocks per game across six matches.
His performance in the BAL helped secure him a life-changing opportunity in the NBA, where he now joins the Phoenix Suns—a team in the Western Conference’s Pacific Division.
Just a year after leaving Uganda, Maluach is now a top-10 pick in the NBA Draft, a milestone that confirms his rise from Kampala’s streets to global basketball stardom. It’s no exaggeration to say that his career was both discovered and nurtured in Uganda.
During the 2025 NBA Draft, Maluach’s suit featured both the South Sudanese and Ugandan flags on the inside—an intentional tribute to his roots.
“I’m representing those two countries. I feel like they are home to me. I also represent the whole of Africa,” he said in a post-draft interview.
He added, “Living in Africa, I had the whole continent on my back—giving hope and inspiring young kids, the next generation of African basketball.”
What is the NBA Draft and how does it work?
The NBA Draft takes place every June, allowing teams to select players who have never played in the league before. Once drafted, a player can only sign with the team that selected them.
Each team typically gets one pick per round, but this can vary due to trades involving players, money, or other draft picks.
To be eligible, players must turn at least 19 during the draft year. Anyone turning 19 the following year is considered too young.
Many top NBA stars were selected early in the draft and went on to make major contributions to their teams.
