5 countries besides USA to produce the most NBA players
The NBA is truly a global league, with 109 international players from 39 countries featuring in the competition's 2021-22 edition. It's the eighth straight season with at least 100 international players on Opening Night rosters.
Nikola Jokic, the reigning Most Valuable Player, is from Serbia. Meanwhile, NBA Finals MVP and two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo is from Greece, but is of Nigerian descent. Luka Doncic, arguably the most exciting young player in the NBA at the moment, is from the small European country of Slovenia.
109 international players from 39 countries are included on opening-night rosters for the #NBA75 Anniversary season
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Even though the United States is the leading producer of talent in the league, other countries have had a lot of players, superstars and Hall of Famers too. On that note, here are the five countries other than the USA to have produced the most number of NBA players.
#5 Serbia - 24
Serbia have produced 24 NBA players so far, with five currently playing in the league. Nikola Jokic is the first MVP to come out of Serbia. Other Serbian players in the NBA include Boban Marjanovic, Nemanja Bjelica, Aleksej Pokusevski and Bogdan Bogdanovic.
The first Serb to play in the NBA is Hall of Famer Vlade Divac. He debuted in the league in the 1989-90 season, along with Zarko Paspalj. Other well-known players from Serbia include Peja Stojakovic, Milos Teodosic, Darko Milicic and Vladimir Radmanovic.
Internationally, Serbia is one of the most successful countries besides the United States. They have won two silver medals in the Olympics, two FIBA World Cup championships and three EuroBasket titles.
#4 Australia - 31
In recent years, Australia have become a powerhouse in international basketball. They won their first international medal in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, where they beat Slovenia for the bronze.
Australia currently have seven players on Opening Night rosters, eight if you include Kyrie Irving, who was born Down Under. These seven players are Patty Mills, Josh Giddey, Joe Ingles, Matisse Thybulle, Josh Green, Jock Landale and Ben Simmons. Australia have produced a total of 31 NBA players since 1991.
Patty Mills drops 42 POINTS as Australia beats Slovenia to win bronze! https://t.co/DGa5us5jBI
Luc Longley is the first Australian to play in the NBA. For those who are unfamiliar with him, Longley won three NBA championships with the Chicago Bulls, doing so in 1996, 1997 and 1998.