Former NBA star Nader eager to make Pharaoh’s debut

 

CAIRO (Egypt) - The Egyptian Basketball Federation recently announced on its Facebook account that Abdelrahman Nader’s documents had been cleared and the 30-year-old was now eligible to officially join the Egyptian national team.

An Egyptian-American professional basketball player, he had been tipped to join the Pharaohs in their last three assignments, the FIBA Basketball World Cup, a tournament in Qatar ahead of the AfroBasket Qualifiers which was the third event he missed.

The South East Melbourne Phoenix (Australian top-tier league) small forward now has the green light to play for the national team and is expected to make the squad for the next window of the 2025 AfroBasket Qualifiers.

“Being able to come back to Egypt where I was born and wearing the Egyptian jersey is something I am excited and honored to do,” Nader told FIBA.Basketball.

 

Born in Alexandria, Egypt, Nader’s family moved to the US when he was a child and his basketball career gained traction at Maine East High School, before transferring to Niles North. In various interviews, he has admitted that he started playing basketball as a way to make friends in his new environment.

The star started playing college basketball for the Northern Illinois Huskies before moving to Iowa State. On June 24, 2016, Nader was drafted by the Boston Celtics with the 58th overall pick. He then joined the Celtics for the 2016 NBA Summer League.

On October 31, 2016, he was acquired by the Maine Red Claws of the NBA Development League. On April 14, 2017, he was named the 2016–17 NBA Development League Rookie of the Year, becoming the first internationally-born player to be named NBA D-League Rookie of the Year and the third Red Claws player to earn the honor.

On July 14, 2017, Nader agreed to a 4-year deal with the Celtics and made his NBA debut on October 18 against the Milwaukee Bucks. He would later feature for the Oklahoma City Thunder, then the Phoenix Suns who he helped to the NBA Finals in 2021 for the first time since 1993.

Set to make his debut at the World Cup where the team won two of their five matches (against Jordan and Mexico), Nader was forced to wait after suffering an injury.

“I was recovering from a knee injury and couldn’t join the team,” he explained. “The team represented Egypt so well, showing the level of talent we have and how competitive we can be on the world stage moving forward, for years to come. I am excited to go to war with my brothers on the court soon.”

Nader had the chance to watch the team in action as the country hosted the first window of Group D of the AfroBasket Qualifiers, as he had hoped to join them in battle, and says he is ready to dream big with the squad.

“I believe that we have so much potential to build and grow with an abundance of young talent, coupled with some seasoned experienced veterans that will help set our team apart in Africa and on the global stage,” he opined.

In the opening window, Egypt went on a 2-1 run, losing their final match to Cote d’Ivoire, and will look to have a perfect run in the next round of qualification. With Nader expected to make the team alongside some other returnees who missed the opening window, a lot more is expected of the team.

“I am going to bring leadership to a group of incredibly passionate and talented Egyptian guys who want to create history for our country. The fans can count on us that we will fight every minute to make our country proud.

Every time I watch African basketball it keeps getting better and more competitive. The amount of talent this incredible continent has is second to none. We must continue to invest in developing our youth across the continent and growing participation and access to basketball to bring us closer together as one Africa,” Nader concluded.

FIBA