* Opening-night rosters feature at least 120 international players for the fifth consecutive season and at least 100 international players for the 12th straight season

NEW YORK, United States of America

* Opening-Night Rosters Feature More Than 55 Players Who Were Either Born in Africa or Have at Least One Parent from Africa

* Fifth Consecutive Season with at Least 120 International Players and 12th Straight Season with at Least 100 International Players

* All 30 Teams Feature at Least One International Player

* Atlanta Hawks Have Record-Tying 10 International Players

The National Basketball Association (NBA) (www.NBA.com) today announced that a record 135 international players from a record-tying 43 countries across six continents are on opening-night rosters for the 2025-26 season. Among the record 135 international players are more than 55 players who were either born in Africa or have at least one parent from Africa, including 2021 NBA champion and two-time Kia NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) Giannis Antetokounmpo (Milwaukee Bucks; Greece; ties to Nigeria), 2022-23 Kia NBA MVP and seven-time NBA All-Star Joel Embiid (Philadelphia 76ers; Cameroon), 2019 NBA champion and three-time NBA All-Star Pascal Siakam (Indiana Pacers; Cameroon) and 2023-24 Kia NBA Rookie of the Year and 2025 NBA All-Star Victor Wembanyama (San Antonio Spurs; France; ties to the Democratic Republic of the Congo).

Opening-night rosters feature at least 120 international players for the fifth consecutive season and at least 100 international players for the 12th straight season. All 30 NBA teams feature at least one international player. The previous record for international players (125) and the record for countries and territories represented (43) were set at the start of the 2023-24 and 2017-18 seasons, respectively.

Canada (23 players), headlined by 2025 NBA champion and 2024-25 Kia NBA MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Oklahoma City Thunder), is the most-represented country outside the U.S. for the 12th consecutive season, followed by France, Australia, Germany (7) and Serbia (6).

The Atlanta Hawks feature a record-tying 10 international players, followed by the Portland Trail Blazers and Golden State Warriors with seven apiece.

Below are additional international player milestones and storylines for the upcoming season:

Four international players have won the last seven Kia NBA MVP Awards: Gilgeous-Alexander (2024-25), 2023-24 Kia NBA Rookie of the Year and 2025 NBA All-Star Nikola Jokic (2023-24, 2021-22 and 2020-21), Embiid (2022-23) and Antetokounmpo (2019-20 and 2018-19). Last season also marked the fourth consecutive season that three international players finished top three in MVP voting: Gilgeous-Alexander (No. 1), Jokic (No. 2) and Antetokounmpo (No. 3).

There are a record 16 international players on opening-night rosters who have been NBA All-Stars: Antetokounmpo, five-time NBA All-Star and Kia All-NBA First Team member Luka Doncic (Los Angeles Lakers; Slovenia), Embiid, Gilgeous-Alexander, Rudy Gobert (Minnesota Timberwolves; France), Al Horford (Golden State Warriors; Dominican Republic), Kyrie Irving (Dallas Mavericks; Australia), Jokic, Lauri Markkanen (Utah Jazz; Finland), Kristaps Porzingis (Hawks; Latvia), Domantas Sabonis (Sacramento Kings; Lithuania), Alperen Sengun (Houston Rockets; Turkey), Siakam, Nikola Vucevic (Chicago Bulls; Montenegro), Wembanyama and Andrew Wiggins (Miami Heat; Canada).

At least three international players have made the Kia All-NBA Team each season since 2018-19.

In the 2025-26 NBA GM Survey (https://apo-opa.co/3JkORcR), Jokic (No. 1), Doncic (No. 2), Gilgeous-Alexander (No. 3) and Wembanyama (No. 4) were voted the players most likely to win the 2025-26 Kia NBA MVP Award (67%, 10%, 8% and 7% of votes, respectively).

Three international players were voted as the players GMs would most want to sign if they were starting a franchise today: Wembanyama (83% of votes), Gilgeous-Alexander (13% of votes) and Jokic (3% of votes).

Opening-night rosters feature a record nine NBA Academy program alumni and more than 50 players who participated in Basketball Without Borders.

There are also several American players with parents from other countries, including Jalen Green (Phoenix Suns; ties to the Philippines), Karl-Anthony Towns (New York Knicks; ties to the Dominican Republic) and Jaylin Williams (Thunder; ties to Vietnam).

The 80th NBA regular season tips off tonight with a doubleheader on NBA League Pass as the defending NBA champion Thunder hosts the Rockets (1:30 a.m. CAT) and the Warriors visit the Lakers (4 a.m. CAT). The 2025-26 season will reach fans in 214 countries and territories in more than 50 languages through the league's broadcast partners around the world, including ESPN, Amazon Prime Video, ZAP TV and NTV in sub-Saharan Africa, and NBA League Pass, the league's premium live game subscription service available via the NBA App.

Below is the full list of international players on 2025-26 opening-night NBA rosters (active and inactive):

Country Name Team Ties

Australia Dyson Daniels Atlanta Hawks

Australia Josh Green Charlotte Hornets

Australia Josh Giddey Chicago Bulls

Australia Lachlan Olbrich* Chicago Bulls

Australia Luke Travers* Cleveland Cavaliers

Australia Tyrese Proctor Cleveland Cavaliers

Australia Danté Exum Dallas Mavericks

Australia Kyrie Irving Dallas Mavericks

Australia Alex Toohey* Golden State Warriors

Australia Johnny Furphy Indiana Pacers Ties to Papua New Guinea

Australia Jock Landale Memphis Grizzlies

Australia Joe Ingles Minnesota Timberwolves

Australia Rocco Zikarsky* Minnesota Timberwolves

Austria Jakob Poeltl Toronto Raptors

Bahamas Buddy Hield Golden State Warriors

Bahamas Deandre Ayton Los Angeles Lakers Ties to Nigeria

Bahamas VJ Edgecombe Philadelphia 76ers

Belgium Ajay Mitchell Oklahoma City Thunder

Belgium Toumani Camara Portland Trail Blazers Ties to Mali

Bosnia and Herzegovina Karlo Matkovic New Orleans Pelicans Ties to Croatia

Bosnia and Herzegovina Jusuf Nurkic Utah Jazz

Brazil Gui Santos Golden State Warriors

Cameroon Pascal Siakam Indiana Pacers

Cameroon Christian Koloko* Los Angeles Lakers

Cameroon Yves Missi New Orleans Pelicans

Cameroon Joel Embiid Philadelphia 76ers

Canada Caleb Houstan* Atlanta Hawks

Canada Nickeil Alexander-Walker Atlanta Hawks

Canada Emanuel Miller* Chicago Bulls

Canada Dwight Powell Dallas Mavericks

Canada Ryan Nembhard* Dallas Mavericks

Canada Jamal Murray Denver Nuggets

Canada Jackson Rowe* Golden State Warriors

Canada Andrew Nembhard Indiana Pacers

Canada Bennedict Mathurin Indiana Pacers Ties to Haiti

Canada Brandon Clarke Memphis Grizzlies

Canada Olivier-Maxence Prosper* Memphis Grizzlies Ties to Haiti

Canada Zach Edey Memphis Grizzlies

Canada Andrew Wiggins Miami Heat

Canada Leonard Miller Minnesota Timberwolves

Canada Luguentz Dort Oklahoma City Thunder

Canada Dillon Brooks Phoenix Suns

Canada Shaedon Sharpe Portland Trail Blazers

Canada Kelly Olynyk San Antonio Spurs

Canada RJ Barrett Toronto Raptors

Canada AJ Lawson* Toronto Raptors

Canada Will Riley Washington Wizards

Canada Jahmyl Telfort* LA Clippers Ties to Haiti

Canada Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Oklahoma City Thunder

China Yang Hansen Portland Trail Blazers

Croatia Ivica Zubac LA Clippers

Croatia Dario Saric Sacramento Kings

Czech Republic Vít Krejcí Atlanta Hawks

Democratic Republic of the Congo Jonathan Kuminga Golden State Warriors

Democratic Republic of the Congo Bismack Biyombo San Antonio Spurs

Democratic Republic of the Congo Oscar Tshiebwe* Utah Jazz

Dominican Republic Al Horford Golden State Warriors

Dominican Republic David Jones Garcia* San Antonio Spurs

Finland Lauri Markkanen Utah Jazz

France Zaccharie Risacher Atlanta Hawks

France Nolan Traoré Brooklyn Nets

France Tidjane Salaün Charlotte Hornets

France Moussa Diabaté Charlotte Hornets Ties to Guinea and Mali

France Noa Essengue Chicago Bulls Ties to Cameroon

France Nicolas Batum LA Clippers Ties to Cameroon

France Joan Beringer Minnesota Timberwolves Ties to Benin

France Rudy Gobert Minnesota Timberwolves

France Guerschon Yabusele New York Knicks Ties to the Democratic Republic of the Congo

France Mohamed Diawara New York Knicks Ties to Mali

France Pacôme Dadiet New York Knicks Ties to Ivory Coast

France Ousmane Dieng Oklahoma City Thunder Ties to Senegal

France Rayan Rupert Portland Trail Blazers Ties to Morocco

France Sidy Cissoko* Portland Trail Blazers Ties to Senegal

France Maxime Raynaud Sacramento Kings

France Victor Wembanyama San Antonio Spurs Ties to the Democratic Republic of the Congo

France Alex Sarr Washington Wizards Ties to Senegal

France Bilal Coulibaly Washington Wizards Ties to Mali

France Noah Penda Orlando Magic Ties to Cameroon and Martinique

Georgia Goga Bitadze Orlando Magic

Georgia Sandro Mamukelashvili Toronto Raptors

Germany Maxi Kleber Los Angeles Lakers

Germany Ariel Hukporti New York Knicks Ties to Togo

Germany Isaiah Hartenstein Oklahoma City Thunder

Germany Tristan da Silva Orlando Magic Ties to Brazil

Germany Dennis Schröder Sacramento Kings Ties to The Gambia

Germany Franz Wagner Orlando Magic

Germany Moritz Wagner Orlando Magic

Greece Alex Antetokounmpo* Milwaukee Bucks Ties to Nigeria

Greece Giannis Antetokounmpo Milwaukee Bucks Ties to Nigeria

Greece Thanasis Antetokounmpo Milwaukee Bucks Ties to Nigeria

Guinea Moussa Cissé* Dallas Mavericks

Israel Ben Saraf Brooklyn Nets

Israel Deni Avdija Portland Trail Blazers

Italy Simone Fontecchio Miami Heat

Jamaica Nick Richards Phoenix Suns

Japan Rui Hachimura Los Angeles Lakers Ties to Benin

Latvia Kristaps Porzingis Atlanta Hawks

Lithuania Jonas Valanciunas Denver Nuggets

Lithuania Kasparas Jakucionis Miami Heat

Lithuania Domantas Sabonis Sacramento Kings

Mali N'Faly Dante Atlanta Hawks

Montenegro Nikola Vucevic Chicago Bulls

Netherlands Quinten Post Golden State Warriors

New Zealand Steven Adams Houston Rockets

Nigeria Adem Bona Philadelphia 76ers Ties to Turkey

Nigeria Josh Okogie Houston Rockets

Portugal Neemias Queta Boston Celtics Ties to Guinea-Bissau

Russia Egor D?min Brooklyn Nets

Russia Vladislav Goldin* Miami Heat

Senegal Eli Ndiaye* Atlanta Hawks

Senegal Mouhamed Gueye Atlanta Hawks

Serbia Nikola Jokic Denver Nuggets

Serbia Bogdan Bogdanovic LA Clippers

Serbia Nikola Jovic Miami Heat

Serbia Nikola Topic Oklahoma City Thunder

Serbia Tristan Vukcevic* Washington Wizards Ties to Sweden

Serbia Nikola Durisic Atlanta Hawks

Slovenia Luka Doncic Los Angeles Lakers

South Sudan Khaman Maluach Phoenix Suns Ties to Uganda

South Sudan Duop Reath Portland Trail Blazers Ties to Australia

Spain Hugo González Boston Celtics

Spain Santi Aldama Memphis Grizzlies

St. Lucia Chris Boucher Boston Celtics Ties to Canada

Sweden Bobi Klintman Detroit Pistons

Sweden Pelle Larsson Miami Heat

Switzerland Clint Capela Houston Rockets Ties to Angola and the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Switzerland Yanic Konan Niederhauser LA Clippers Ties to Ivory Coast

Switzerland Kyshawn George Washington Wizards Ties to Canada and France

Turkey Alperen Sengun Houston Rockets

Ukraine Svi Mykhailiuk Utah Jazz

Ukraine Max Shulga* Boston Celtics

United Kingdom Amari Williams* Boston Celtics

United Kingdom OG Anunoby New York Knicks Ties to Nigeria

United Kingdom Tosan Evbuomwan* New York Knicks Ties to Nigeria

United Kingdom Jeremy Sochan San Antonio Spurs Ties to Poland

* - Two-Way Player

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of National Basketball Association (NBA).