NBA's Africa League to debut May 16

The teams:

1. Algeria
2. Angola
3. Cameroon
4. Egypt
5. Madagascar
6. Mali
7. Morocco
8. Mozambique
9. Nigeria
10. Rwanda
11. Senegal
12. Tunisia

The big picture: The BAL will strengthen the NBA's talent pipeline in Africa, which has already produced over 80 current and former players, including 2021 MVP candidate Joel Embiid (Cameroon).

• It will also help foster a more robust basketball landscape in Africa itself, with players not just dreaming of going abroad, but also of making a name for themselves in Africa.
• The NBA has hosted Basketball Without Borders camps throughout Africa since 2003, opened an official league office in South Africa in 2010 and built a training academy in Senegal in 2017.

The bottom line: The NBA has spent the last 25 years importing a surge of international talent — now it hopes to benefit by exporting the brand those global stars have helped build.