Nigeria’s senior men’s basketball team, D’Tigers, has fallen four places in the latest FIBA World Rankings, now positioned at 42nd, down from 39th.
The former African champions accrued 299.7 points for the period under review, placing them sixth on the continent.
South Sudan has made a significant leap, moving from 34th to 23rd to become Africa’s top-ranked team, surpassing Cote d’Ivoire.
Angola, Tunisia, and Egypt round out the top five teams in Africa.
Globally, the U.S. remains at the top of the rankings, while Serbia has risen to second place, overtaking Germany with a total of 758.9 points.
Basketball fans have expressed concern over D’Tigers’ decline and called for immediate action to restore the team’s competitive edge.
Femi Olatubosun, a fan, criticized the team’s performance, attributing it to a lack of competition and absence from major championships.
“D’Tigers has fallen out of contention and is not the competitive team it once was.
The federation should organize friendly games before the Africa Cup qualifiers to address this issue,” he said.
Anthony Bernard also voiced concerns, attributing the drop in rankings to neglect from the federation.
“D’Tigers, once a powerhouse in African basketball, need to regain their status through friendly matches and competitive play,” he urged.
D’Tigers previously held the top spot in African basketball before the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and remains the only African team to have defeated the U.S. national team.
