After he fled with his family as a child several years back due to civil war in the land of his birth, present-day South Sudan, Luol Deng fled to Egypt, Britain and eventually to the United States where his journey to become a famous National Basketball Association (NBA) star began.

Deng is a two-time NBA All-Star who joined the Chicago Bulls in 2004. He played his last game, for the Minnesota Timberwolves, in 2018.

In his recent visit to South Sudan, Deng visited the Manute Bol Court, a facility built in the capital Juba in 2015. The Luol Deng Foundation opened the Manute Bol Court in memory of Manute Bol.

Bol, a South Sudanese who played in the NBA league, died in 2010.

Deng spent a couple of days at the court, coaching boys and encouraging them to play basketball, despite the challenges.

“Next year, we want to do more. I think we need to grow and not just by how many kids we are taking in to Manute Foundation, but also how the programme can get bigger and see how we can expand,” Deng told reporters who gathered at Manute Bol Court last week.

Deng pledged commitment towards improving basketball in South Sudan. “In future when I stop playing, I think I will spend more time here because basketball profession takes a lot of your time. So for me, it is something that I think we will do more with the foundation in future,” Deng said.

He vowed to directly involve the NBA to ensure support is rendered to Manute Bol Foundation. “I am now excited to see where Manute Bol has reached and I think even the NBA is going to come here and be involved with the junior NBA because now people are seeing the potential of what is going on here in South Sudan,” he stressed.

Deng founded Luol Deng Foundation, a non-profit organization that inspires the youth in South Sudan through the game of basketball.

He, however, said his foundation also focuses on providing hospital supplies, supporting education as well as refugees through sports.

“The Luol Deng Foundation also focuses on other issues, not just basketball. Every year, we send 10 doctors to South Sudan to perform surgeries. We also did a school in Aweil State and facilitated hospitals with several medical supplies,” Deng said.

He also vowed to venture into football, boxing, rugby and athletics.