Africa-Press – Rwanda. Trades are happening across various teams which are busy beefing up their rosters ahead of the much-anticipated 2025 Basketball Africa League (BAL) playoffs slated for June 6–14 in Pretoria, South Africa.
From Rwanda’s APR who recently signed star South Sudanese forward Nuni Omot to Samkelo Cele’s sensational move to Petro de Luanda, Times Sport presents the top trades made by various clubs so far as the playoffs edge closer.
Nuni Omot (APR)
The South Sudanese small forward needs no introduction to the BAL audience.
Omot played a pivotal role in helping Egyptian giants Al Ahly SC win BAL championship in 2023. His exploits eventually earned him the MVP award.
APR made a statement of their BAL ambitions by adding Omot to their roster.
Jo Lual Acuil (Al Ittihad)
After helping Libya’s Al Ahly to the final of the 2024 BAL, Acuil is back to the roster ahead of the playoffs in Pretoria.
The Libyan champions dominated the 2025 Kalahari Conference in Kigali with a perfect 6-0 record without Acuil. His latest additon came as a big boost for the team which is again pushing to win their first BAL championship.
Omar Abada (FUS Rabat)
Omar Abada helped Club Africain win the 2025 Tunisian League title. Now, he returns to the BAL for the third time in his career.
Abada, a point guard who was named to the 2021 BAL All-Star team, is a major addition to the Moroccan champions who secured the last qualifying spot for this season’s playoffs.
Samkelo Cele (Petro de Luanda)
Last season, South African guard Samkelo Cele made headlines in the BAL for playing a key role in helping the Cape Town Tigers reach the semifinals for the first time in the club’s history.
He made arguably his biggest impact in the 2024 quarterfinals against FUS Rabat, hitting a buzzer-beating three-pointer to tie the game at 83-83 before the Tigers prevailed 91-88 in overtime.
Fabian White Jr (Al Ahli Tripoli)
With Deon Thompson no longer in Al Ahli Tripoli’s plans, the Libyan champions signed American Fabian White Jr. to replace him for the BAL playoffs.
Ahmed Doumbia (Rivers Hoopers)
Doumbia, a key member of the Guinean national team, has joined the Nigerian champions, who finished second in the Kalahari Conference.
He signed a short term deal which will see him play for the club during playoffs.
Jalan McCloud (Kriol Star)
Like most of the eight teams heading to the BAL playoffs, Kriol Star hit the market and signed American point guard Jalan McCloud.
The Cape Verde champions qualified for the playoffs on their BAL maiden appearance after finishing third in the Sahara Conferencea and, with McCloud, they may potentially become the playoffs surprise package.
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