Al Ahly celebrates after winning the Final against AS Douanes to win the 2023 BAL title.
The Basketball Africa League returns for its fourth season on March 9, at 9 a.m. ET when 2022 runner-up Petro de Luanda takes on first-time BAL participant FUS Rabat Basketball.
Here is everything you need to know about the BAL to prepare you for another season.
What is BAL?
The BAL joined forces with the NBA and FIBA four seasons ago to help grow the game internationally. The partnership marked the NBA’s first collaboration to operate a league outside North America.
Since the partnership, the league has blossomed. This season will feature a record 48 games. This year also marks the first time the league will play games across four African countries.
This upcoming season, 12 teams from 12 African countries will compete for a chance to win the title. The 12 teams split into three conferences with four teams each. Last season, there were two conferences with six teams.
4 teams, 12 games, 2 secured spots 🎟️
All you need to know about the Kalahari Conference! Read more 👇📖 #BAL4— Basketball Africa League (@theBAL) March 8, 2024
Each conference will play a 12-game group phase and will play the other three teams in their conference twice. The inaugural Kalahari Conference will occur from March 9-17 in Pretoria. Next is the Nile Conference group stage from April 19-27 in Cairo, followed by the Sahara Conference from May 4-12 in Dakar.
From May 24 to June 1, the top two teams from each conference and the top two third-place teams will travel to Kigali for four seeding games. Then, the remaining teams will battle in an eight-game, single-elimination playoffs.
The two remaining teams will battle for the trophy in the final on Saturday, June 1.
What teams will be a part of this season?
Five new teams and three new countries will be amongst the 12 clubs from 12 African countries in the BAL. Dynamo Basketball Club (Burundi), Al Ahly Ly (Libya), FUS Rabat Basketball (Morocco), Bangui Sporting Club (Central African Republic), and Amee Patriotique Rwandaise Basketball (APR; Rwanda) are the teams set to debut this season.
Meanwhile, both Petro de Luanda (Angola) and US Monastir (Tunisia) will compete in their record fourth season. The rest of the returning teams include AS Douanes (Senegal), Rivers Hoopers (Nigeria), Cape Town Tigers (South Africa), City Oilers (Uganda), and defending champions Al Ahly (Egypt).
To decide which teams participated in the fourth season, champions from the national leagues in Angola, Egypt, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, and Tunisia secured their berth by winning their respective leagues. The remaining six teams secured their participation through the Road to the BAL qualifying tournaments.
Key storylines to watch
Khaman Maluach of AS Douanes celebrates during the game against the Kwara Falcons.
No team has won back-to-back titles yet in the history of the BAL. Al Ahly looks to become the first team to do so. In three seasons, they have won two championships and a bronze medal. Led by Ehab Amin, they return with a talented group, which defeated the G League Ignite at the FIBA International Cup in September.
The BAL Elevate program will have 12 NBA Africa Academy players in action this season. Khaman Maluach is the headliner of the group. The big man is a projected 2025 NBA Draft first-round pick and recently committed to Duke University. He will play his final BAL season for the City Oilers. Potential 2024 first-round pick Ulrich Chomche will play in his second BAL season for Rwanda’s APR.
In addition to the young talent, stars from last season return to the BAL. 2023 Dikembe Mutombo Defensive Player of the Year and All-BAL First Team member Aliou Diarra will play for FUS Rabat this season.
All-BAL Defensive Team members Ater Majok (US Monastir), Samkelo Cele (Cape Town Tigers), Childe Dundao (Petro de Luanda), and Manute Bol Sportsmanship Award winner William Perry (Rivers Hoopers) also return to the BAL.
Where can I watch?
Catch highlights, game recaps, all-access content, and action from all 48 games live on NBA.com and the NBA App.
