2024 Paris Olympics Men’s Basketball: Kentucky leads colleges with seven former players on rosters

While the United States men’s basketball roster at the 2024 Olympics is populated by NBA superstars with widely recognized names, the rosters of other nations include plenty of players that are a bit more anonymous. However, many of them are former Division I college basketball players who are now representing their home or adopted countries on the international stage.

Canada’s roster is comprised entirely of former American college players, and South Sudan’s squad is also comprised almost entirely of ex-NCAA basketball players. Ten of the 12 nations competing have players who spent time playing Division I NCAA basketball. 

Two players will actually be suiting up in the college ranks during the 2024-25 season. Hulking center Khaman Maluach of South Sudan will be a freshman at Duke, while forward Akira Jacobs of Japan will be a sophomore at Hawaii.

Roughly 50 colleges are represented on the Olympic rosters. Some of the players were short-lived reserves at mid-major schools while others were All-American superstars who have gone on to play in the NBA. Many fall in between as solid college players who continued their careers as overseas professionals.

Schools with multiple players on Oympic rosters

Kentucky7Iowa State5Gonzaga4Duke3Saint Mary’s3LSU2Michigan2Nebraska2Stanford2

Here is a comprehensive guide for basketball fans interested in learning the backgrounds of those comprising the 2024 Olympic rosters. Only players who played at four-year schools are included.

Matthew Dellavedova is Saint Mary’s all-time leading scorer.   
Getty Images

Australia

Patty Mills — Saint Mary’s
Mills finished second in the WCC in scoring during his sophomore season in 2008-09 with 18.4 points per game before departing and becoming a second round NBA Draft pick. The 6-foot guard was…

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