Determined to mount the podium at this year’s Basketball Africa League (BAL), Nigeria’s representatives, Rivers Hoopers, have continued assembling a tough squad capable of battling for honours when the BAL tips off on April 5 in Rabat, Morocco. The latest of the players to join Rivers Hoopers’ squad is Congo DR’s national team captain, Maxi Munanga Shamba. Since the 2017 Afrobasket tournament in Rwanda, Shamba has been a crucial member of the Congolese national team. The 31-year-old point guard also featured in the former club competition for men (FIBA Africa Champions Cup) before it transitioned to the BAL, for Lupopo (DR Congo), Zamalek (Egypt), and Association Sportive de Sale (Morocco) in 2009, 2013 and 2017 respectively. Shamba, who currently plays in France, averaged 12.7 points per game, three rebounds per game, and 6.7 assists per game at the 2021 Afrobasket. He guided DR Congo to a remarkable 65-55 victory over Morocco during the 2025 Afrobasket qualifiers in February. In 20 minutes, he managed to score 15 points and hit 4-of-6 shots from beyond the arc. Already in Rivers Hoopers’ team are Kelvin Amayo, a combo guard (Nigeria/Canada),Madut Akec, a small forward from South Sudan,Raphael Putney, a power forward (USA), and Peter Olisemeka of Nigeria, a centre.
