CNN
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The USA is the preeminent force in men’s Olympic basketball. It has won the gold medal on 14 occasions and frequently assembles some of the sport’s biggest stars on the international stage.
So when a new upstart on the block, fresh off a captivating performance at the FIBA World Cup in 2023, pushed LeBron James and co. all the way to the final buzzer in an Olympic warmup game, the basketball world took notice.
South Sudan, the world’s newest country, captured the hearts of spectators at the World Cup en route to a 17th place finish out of 32 teams. While that might not appear to be all that impressive at first glance, the Bright Stars finished top of the pool of teams that did not advance to the knockout stages and left the competition with a winning 3-2 record.
As the best-placed African team, the result secured the squad a spot at the Olympics for the very first time in its history.
Not bad for a country that has only officially existed for 13 years and has no indoor basketball facilities.
Among those making their national team debuts at the tournament was Wenyen Gabriel, who’s had multiple stints in the NBA…
