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Two U.S. senators called on the NBA to reevaluate a partnership with Rwanda and its dictator Paul Kagame, citing the American government's changing policy toward the small African nation, which has been accused of widespread human rights abuses. In a letter sent Friday to Commissioner Adam Silver, Sens. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) and Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) wrote that they are "increasingly alarmed by the NBA's deepening relationship with Rwanda" and said the league "risks becoming complicit in sportswashing." The Senators said the partnership is "contrary to the spirit of American sports."
Kagame's government has been accused by the U.S., U.K. and other countries, as well as a string of human rights organizations, of abuses ranging from imprisonment, torture and murder of political opponents to the funding of child soldiers in the neighboring Democratic Republic of the Congo. Just last week, Robert Kabera, a former Rwandan soldier who became an outspoken critic of Kagame and had fled the country in 2020, was found beheaded in Uganda. Human rights organizations have called for an investigation into whether the killing was politically motivated.
The senators now say the policies of the U.S., U.K and other European nations have "shifted markedly" toward Rwanda. The letter cited Rwanda's role in fomenting the conflict in the DRC, including through deployment of 18,000 troops and its command of the M23, a rebel group "which has summarily executed hundreds of civilians, committed mass rape, recruited child soldiers, and tortured civilians," the senators wrote. At the end of their letter, the senators asked the NBA to answer a series of questions, the first of which read: "What is the NBA's red line for accepting money from foreign governments that commit human rights abuses?"
A new $26 million sports-themed hotel in Rwanda that aims to tap into the country’s growing hospitality market will be a template for expanding other sporting businesses across Africa, the former National Basketball Association executive that spearheaded the project told Semafor. Masai Ujiri, former vice president of NBA franchise Toronto Raptors and a retired basketball player, plans to build a collection of hotels in Africa following the opening of Zaria Court, his company’s first hotel property, in the Rwandan capital Kigali in July.
Kawhi Leonard spent four days in Rwanda, beginning on August 3, with a focus on youth development and a high-level conversation with President Paul Kagame about investing in education and sports across the country. The two met privately for roughly two hours in Kigali to discuss ways athletics can open doors for young people, then reconnected later at a Giants of Africa camp, where Kagame addressed the players and praised Leonard for making the trip.
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While in Kigali, Leonard unveiled a new outdoor basketball court he designed at St. Ignatius School as part of Giants of Africa’s “Built Within” initiative, which aims to construct 100 courts across the continent. The court features messages drawn from Leonard’s childhood—“Play Hard, Have Fun,” “You Are Stronger Than You Think,” and “Be Great”—and color choices inspired by his middle and high school alma maters. The goal is to give thousands of local kids a place to play and a daily reminder to keep going.
NBA Africa's commitment to build 1000 courts on the continent over the next decade continued in Rwanda on Monday, with NBA legend Luol Deng in attendance, as they unveiled a court in Nyamata. The NBA's African operation, in partnership with nonprofit Opportunity International, opened the court at Highland School, with a second court opening scheduled for Tuesday, May 27 at the Loiswell Academy in Nairobi, Kenya.
Former Wizards player Chasson Randle signed with Rwandese team APR Basketball Club for the 2025 season.
The Democratic Republic of Congo is calling on the NBA, Formula 1 and major international soccer clubs to end multimillion-dollar deals with Rwanda's autocratic government. The NBA, whose recent Africa expansion is centered in Rwanda, was the latest to receive a letter from Congo officials. Soccer teams Arsenal, Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain and racing's Formula 1 received similarly worded pleas in recent weeks. In her letter Thursday to NBA commissioner Adam Silver, DRC Foreign Minister Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner questioned the NBA's morality, calling on Silver to consider whether the league's "commitment to social justice and respect for human rights" aligns with its business ties to Rwanda, which the DRC blames for a surge in violence in its country. The letter asked Silver to sever the league's dealings with Rwanda, "If not for your own conscience, then at least in solidarity with the innocent victims of Rwandan aggression."
ESPN previously reported that the NBA's partnership with Rwanda was central to establishing the Basketball Africa League, which launched in 2021; each of the first four championships were played in Kigali at a $104 million arena built in less than a year. As part of a five-year contract extension signed in 2023, Rwanda pays the NBA's business entity in Africa $6 million to $7 million annually in exchange for teams displaying "Visit Rwanda" on their jerseys and the Kigali arena hosting some playoffs. Rwanda's national airline, RwandAir, also is the league's official travel partner.
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NBA Africa says it will build outdoor basketball courts and conduct youth clinics in Nairobi, Kenya, and Rwanda next year, under the organization’s commitment to construct 1,000 courts in Africa over the next decade. The development, announced at a press conference in Nairobi on Tuesday, October 8, will see a total of 100 basketball courts built in Kenya. No details on number of courts to be constructed in Rwanda were shared.
In a letter to two senators who accused the NBA of "putting profit over principle" for partnering with Rwandan dictator Paul Kagame, deputy commissioner Mark Tatum described how the league has championed several social impact initiatives in the country. Tatum also defended the NBA, as he did in an ESPN story that prompted Congressional interest, by noting the league follows "the lead of the U.S. government as to where it's appropriate to engage in business around the world." "If American policies were to change regarding business activities in and relating to Rwanda or any other BAL market, our actions would of course change accordingly," Tatum said in the letter.
Two U.S. senators sent a letter Tuesday to NBA commissioner Adam Silver accusing the league of "putting profit over principle," in response to an ESPN story that detailed the NBA's extensive relationship with Rwandan dictator Paul Kagame. The bipartisan letter, signed by Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) and Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), says the NBA "has long positioned itself as a beacon of social justice" but instead has continued "developing relationships with dictators and despots" such as Kagame.
In the letter, the senators wrote that, "Anyone who dares to question Kagame's rule -- whether it be opposition candidates or the free press -- is jailed, disappeared or brutally murdered." In addition, the senators questioned the NBA's business in China, which ESPN previously investigated.