Khaman Maluach became one of the youngest to ever play in the basketball World Cup, playing 16 minutes Monday in South Sudan's 89-86 victory over China.
Maluach, 16, scored one point as South Sudan recorded its first-ever World Cup victory. Chicago Bulls guard Carlik Jones scored 21 points while Kuany Kuany added 16 for South Sudan (1-1), which plays Serbia on Wednesday in its final group game.
The 7-foot-2 Maluach, who is widely considered an elite 2025 NBA draft prospect, turns 17 next month. The only players younger than Maluach in World Cup history were Ivory Coast's Georges Lath (16 years, 3 months in 1986) and China's Gao Ailun (16 years, 9 months in 2010).
Maluach is a member of the NBA Africa Academy in Senegal, which he joined as a high school freshman in 2021 — two years after he started playing basketball seriously while living in Uganda.