Wikipedia

DR Congo men's national basketball team

The DR Congo national basketball team (French: Équipe nationale de basketball de Congo DR) represents DR Congo in men's international basketball competitions, it is controlled by the Basketball Federation of Democratic Republic of Congo.[2] (French: République démocratique du Congo Fédération de basket-ball)

Democratic Republic of the Congo
FIBA ranking73 Increase 3 (3 March 2026)[1]
Joined FIBA1963
FIBA zoneFIBA Africa
National federationFebaco
CoachMichel Perrin
NicknameLeopards
AfroBasket
Appearances8

The team has appeared in the FIBA Africa Championship, but has yet to appear in the FIBA World Championship. Its biggest success to date was the Final Four placement at the 1975 FIBA Africa Championship when it competed as Zaire.

History

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DR Congo joined FIBA in 1963 and made its continental debut twelve years later at the AfroBasket in 1974. The following year, at AfroBasket 1975, the team—then known as Zaire—finished in fourth place with a 2–3 record. After placing sixth in 1980, DR Congo missed the tournament for the next 27 years.[3]

At AfroBasket 2007, DR Congo returned and finished 15th.[4]

Following another lengthy absence, DR Congo re-emerged at AfroBasket 2017 and advanced to the quarter-finals, highlighted by an upset of Nigeria in the group phase.[5]

In August 2022, Jonathan Kuminga, then a newly crowned NBA champion with the Golden State Warriors, joined the national team for the 2023 FIBA World Cup African Qualifiers, becoming the first NBA player to represent the Leopards.[6] He scored a team-high 18 points and six rebounds in a qualifier against Cameroon.[7]

In qualifying for AfroBasket 2025, DR Congo impressed with a 5–1 record under head coach Michel Perrin.[8] Expectations grew further when Kuminga was named to the preliminary roster.[9]

However, as the tournament approached, Kuminga’s participation was cast into doubt due to unresolved contract negotiations with Golden State. He reportedly declined a two-year, $45 million extension and was considered unlikely to play for DR Congo at AfroBasket 2025.[10][11][12]

Performances

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FIBA Basketball World Cup

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DR Congo has never appeared in the FIBA Basketball World Cup, but has played in the qualifying rounds.

FIBA World Cup record Qualification record
Year Round Position GP W L GP W L –
Brazil 1963 Did not qualify AfroBasket served as qualification
Uruguay 1967
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia 1970
Puerto Rico 1974
Philippines 1978
Colombia 1982
Spain 1986
Argentina 1990
Canada 1994
Greece 1998
United States 2002
Japan 2006
Turkey 2010
Spain 2014
China 2019 6 2 4 2019
PhilippinesJapanIndonesia 2023 12 5 7 2023
Qatar 2027 To be determined In progress 2027
France 2031 To be determined
Total 0/16 0 0 0 18 7 11 Total

AfroBasket

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  Fourth place  

AfroBasket record Qualification record
Year Round Position GP W L GP W L –
Morocco 1964Did not qualify
Tunisia 1965
Morocco 1968
Egypt 1970
Senegal 1972
Central African Republic 1974Classification stage6th413
Egypt 1975Main stage4th523
Senegal 1978Did not qualify
Morocco 1980Classification stage6th523
Somalia 1981Did not qualify
Egypt 1983
Ivory Coast 1985
Tunisia 1987
Angola 1989
Egypt 1992
Kenya 1993
Algeria 1995
Senegal 1997
Angola 1999
Morocco 2001
Egypt 2003
Algeria 2005
Angola 2007Classification round15th624
Libya 2009Did not qualify 4 1 3 2009
Madagascar 2011 Did not enter
Ivory Coast 2013 6 1 5 2013
Tunisia 2015 Withdrew
Senegal Tunisia 2017Quarter-finals6th422 2 1 1 2017
Rwanda 2021Group stage13th312 6 3 3 2021
Angola 2025 Qualification to quarter-finals 11th 4 1 3 6 5 1 2025
Total7/29311120 24 11 13 –

FIBA AfroCan

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  Champions     Fourth place  

Year Round Position GP W L
Mali 2019Champions1st550
Angola 20234th place4th632
Rwanda 2027Qualified
Total 3/31182

Team

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Current roster

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Roster for the 2025 FIBA AfroBasket.[13]

DR Congo national basketball team roster
PlayersCoaches
Pos.No.NameAge – Date of birthHeightClubCtr.
G 1 John Jordan 32 – (1992-10-07)7 October 1992 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) FUS Rabat Morocco
PG 7 Maxi Munanga Shamba 31 – (1993-12-25)25 December 1993 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in) US Maubeuge France
F 11 Franck Nyembo 19 – (2006-05-29)29 May 2006 2.00 m (6 ft 7 in) Chaux Sport Democratic Republic of the Congo
F 15 Rolly Fula Nganga (C) 32 – (1993-02-02)2 February 1993 2.01 m (6 ft 7 in) Val de Seine Basket France
C 18 Jordan Sakho 28 – (1997-04-04)4 April 1997 2.09 m (6 ft 10 in) CB Breogán Spain
F 20 Isaac Ngoy Mushila 26 – (1999-02-17)17 February 1999 1.96 m (6 ft 5 in) Córdoba CB Spain
PF 21 Evariste Shonganya 34 – (1991-04-06)6 April 1991 2.04 m (6 ft 8 in) Val de Seine Basket France
SG 24 Christian Lutete 28 – (1996-10-09)9 October 1996 1.96 m (6 ft 5 in) KK Bosna Royal Bosnia and Herzegovina
SF 31 Christian Eyenga 36 – (1989-06-22)22 June 1989 2.04 m (6 ft 8 in)
PF 33 Mervedi Kasekelayi Miteo 16 – (2008-12-13)13 December 2008 2.08 m (6 ft 10 in) AD Pedro Alvarez Spain
C 34 Garmine Kande 25 – (1999-08-24)24 August 1999 2.05 m (6 ft 9 in) CD Estela Spain
F 55 Djack Kapongo Kabuya 32 – (1993-02-15)15 February 1993 1.96 m (6 ft 5 in) Chaux Sport Democratic Republic of the Congo
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
  • France Gaëtan Douet
  • Democratic Republic of the Congo Muamba Ilunga
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • Club – describes last
    club before the tournament
  • Age – describes age
    on 12 August 2025

Head coaches

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Name Nationality Tenure
Jacques Ndala DR Congo2010s
Kouadio Michel CIV2010s
Philipp Onguéné FRA2016–2017
Papy Kipunka DR Congo2017–2018[14]
John Douaglin[15] France2018
Mathias Eckhoff[16] Norway2020–2022[17]
Thomas Drouot  France February 2022 – July 2022[18]
Emmanuel Mavomo  DR Congo August 2022 – May 2023[19]
Pierrot Ilunga  DR Congo 2023[20]
Michel Perrin  France 2025

Notable eligible players

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Past rosters

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Top scorers

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The following players were the DR Congo's top scorers in their AfroBasket tournaments:

DR Congo top scorers at AfroBasket
Tournament Player Points PPG
2017[22] Herve Kabasele Kasonga 59 14.8
2021[23] Henry Pwono 48 16.0

See also

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References

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  1. ↑ "FIBA World Ranking Presented by Nike". FIBA. 3 March 2026. Retrieved 3 March 2026.
  2. ↑ FIBA National Federations – Democratic Republic of the Congo[dead link], fiba.com. Retrieved 10 January 2013.
  3. ↑ "DR Congo national basketball team". Basketball Africa. 12 March 2021. Retrieved 17 August 2025.
  4. ↑ "DR Congo returns to AfroBasket after long absence". FIBA. 15 August 2007. Retrieved 17 August 2025.
  5. ↑ "DR Congo stun Nigeria to reach AfroBasket quarter-finals". FIBA. 10 September 2017. Retrieved 17 August 2025.
  6. ↑ "Splash Brothers, Ibaka, Iggy encouraged me to play for my national team – Kuminga". FIBA. 26 August 2022. Retrieved 17 August 2025.
  7. ↑ "Kuminga shines as DRC battles Cameroon". The New Times Rwanda. 29 August 2022. Retrieved 17 August 2025.
  8. ↑ "Team profile: Can DR Congo keep up their strong performance?". FIBA. 3 July 2025. Retrieved 17 August 2025.
  9. ↑ "Leopards ready to shock African basketball world". FIBA. 18 July 2025. Retrieved 17 August 2025.
  10. ↑ "Jonathan Kuminga likely to miss AfroBasket 2025 with DR Congo". BasketNews. 30 July 2025. Retrieved 17 August 2025.
  11. ↑ "Jonathan Kuminga will not participate in AfroBasket amid Warriors negotiations". Golden State of Mind. 30 July 2025. Retrieved 17 August 2025.
  12. ↑ "Jonathan Kuminga stalemate with Golden State set to cost him AfroBasket". NBA Analysis Network. 1 August 2025. Retrieved 17 August 2025.
  13. ↑ "Team roster: DR Congo" (PDF). fiba.basketball. 12 August 2025. p. 5.
  14. ↑ "DR Congo mourns passing of former national teams head coach Papy Kiembe". FIBA.basketball. Retrieved 30 August 2022.
  15. ↑ "DR Congo appoint Douaglin as head coach in bid to qualify for World Cup". FIBA.basketball. Retrieved 29 August 2021.
  16. ↑ "Kayembe excited about new DR Congo sophisticated style". FIBA.basketball. Retrieved 29 August 2021.
  17. ↑ "AfroBasket 2021 - Team Profile: Democratic Republic of Congo". FIBA.basketball. Retrieved 30 August 2022.
  18. ↑ Demba, Varore (17 February 2022). "Basketball : la RD Congo engage un nouvel entraîneur pour les qualifications au Mondial 2023". Sport News Africa (in French). Retrieved 31 August 2022.
  19. ↑ "Emmanuel Mavomo: "We want to be the first to qualify the DRC for the World Cup"". African News Paper. 26 August 2022. Retrieved 30 August 2022.
  20. ↑ "Team Profile: DR Congo are chasing back-to-back FIBA AfroCan success". FIBA.basketball. Retrieved 19 August 2025.
  21. ↑ "Congo DR at the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 African Qualifiers". FIBA.basketball. Retrieved 27 August 2022.
  22. ↑ "Dem.Rep. of Congo at the FIBA Afrobasket 2017". FIBA.basketball. Retrieved 11 September 2022.
  23. ↑ "Congo DR at the FIBA AfroBasket 2021". FIBA.basketball. Retrieved 11 September 2022.
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