DAKAR/PARIS (Senegal/France) - The Basketball Africa League (BAL) today announced that the league will host a Combine in Paris, France for aspiring BAL players ahead of the 2023 BAL season, which will tip off Saturday, March 11 in Dakar, Senegal.  The two-day scouting event, which will feature 30 players from Africa, Europe, the U.S. and around the world, will take place on January 15 and 16.

The players will take part in anthropometric and athletic testing, positional skill development and 5-on-5 games in front of attending scouts, coaches, and executives from the 12 club teams that have qualified for the 2023 BAL season.  2021 NBA All-Star Game and former Utah Jazz head coach Quin Snyder will serve as BAL Combine camp director.  Joining Snyder's coaching staff will be 2021 WNBA Champion and Chicago Sky head coach James Wade, French Women's National Team head coach Jean-Aime Toupane, former NBA player Ed Davis, French U18 Men's National Team head coach Lamine Kebe and French U20 National Team assistant coach and Limoges CSP head coach Mehdy Mary.

BAL President Amadou Gallo Fall, FIBA Africa and BAL Board President Anibal Manave, 2011 NBA Champion and BAL Ambassador Ian Mahinmi (France; ties to Benin), and 2012 NBA Champion Ronny Turiaf (France) will also attend and interact with the participants.

The third BAL season will once again feature the top 12 club teams from 12 African countries playing a total of 38 games in Dakar, Cairo and Kigali over three months in 2023.   

During the 2023 BAL season, the 12 club champions will be divided into two conferences.  The Sahara Conference will play a 15-game group phase at the Dakar Arena in Dakar from March 11-21, and the Nile Conference will play a 15-game group phase at the Hassan Mostafa Indoor Sports Complex in Cairo from April 26 – May 6.  The top four teams from each conference will advance to an eight-game, single elimination Playoffs and Finals at BK Arena in Kigali from May 21-27.

The BAL teams and additional details about the 2023 BAL season will be announced in the coming months. Fans can register their interest in tickets at BAL.NBA.com. 

 FIBA