African NBA Scout Eyes Talent in BAL Tourney
Voice of America
The inaugural Africa Basketball League tournament is entering the playoff stage. For Sonny Side of Sports, VOA's Prince Nesta spoke with Sarah Chan, Africa scouting manager for the 2019 NBA champion Toronto Raptors, about her basketball journey and the games plying in the BAL.
The interview was edited for brevity and clarity. VOA: Briefly, can you speak a little bit about your background? Chan: I am from South Sudan. I grew up in Khartoum until I was about 12. South Sudan was going through a civil war...a civil war that had affected everybody. And so, my family and I relocated to Kenya looking for greener pastures, looking for peace, putting education at the center of everything...My parents reiterated: "we go, we learn, we come back, and we impact." That was the song in our daily lives. And so, (I have) a background of civil war into being privileged to have an amazing family that's very supportive of a young girl that was trying something out.
FILE - The benches of a school sit empty in Kabul, Afghanistan, Dec. 22, 2022. A Taliban decree that reportedly took effect Dec. 3, 2024, bans medical schools in Afghanistan from admitting female students.
FILE - The United States Steel Mon Valley Works Clairton Plant is in Clairton, Pennsylvania, on Sunday, Oct. 13, 2024. FILE - A rally by U.S. Steel employees is held outside the United Steel Tower in downtown Pittsburgh to display their support for the transaction with Nippon Steel, Sept. 4, 2024.
FILE - Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan attends the G20 summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, November 19, 2024.
FILE - The logo of Nippon Steel Corp. is seen at an office building where the company's head office in Tokyo on December 19, 2023.
FILE - A Pakistan Navy soldier stands guard next to a loaded Chinese ship, at Gwadar port, about 700 kilometers (435 miles) west of Karachi, Pakistan, Nov. 13, 2016.
Navy divers of the Latvian Armed Forces take part in NATO exercise Freezing Winds 24, led by the Finnish Navy, in the Gulf of Finland, the Baltic Sea, Finland, November 23, 2024. Finnish Defence Forces/Handout via REUTERS FILE - A view of the anchor of the Chinese ship, the bulk carrier Yi Peng 3, in the sea of Kattegat, near the City of Grenaa in Jutland, Denmark, November 20, 2024.
The Israel Security Agency said it had identified more than 200 cyberattacks conducted by the Islamic Republic of Iran.
FILE - 155 mm M795 artillery projectiles are stacked during manufacturing process at the Scranton Army Ammunition Plant in Scranton, Pa., Thursday, April 13, 2023.
Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba delivers his policy speech at the extraordinary session of parliament's lower house Nov. 29, 2024, in Tokyo.
Polling station officials arrange marked ballots before proceeding to the counting at a voting station in Windhoek, Namibia, on December 1, 2024, during extended voting following the country's general election.
FILE - French soldiers guard the entrance to the Base Aerienne Projetee in N'Djamena on May 14, 2024.