A political brewing situation involving the United States and South Sudan could have a major effect on the Final Four as a Duke University star faces a potential expulsion.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced in a tweet on Saturday afternoon that his department “would take measures to revoke all visas held by South Sudanese passport holders and to restrict any other program to prevent entry into the United States, with immediate effect”.
Rubio said reason is due to “the failure of the South Sudan’s transitional government to accept the return of its citizens repatriated in a timely manner”.
This could affect the University of Duke basketball team because their first-year departure center, Khaman Maluach, is from South Sudan.
Duke spokesperson told Brendan Marks for athletics that they had “no comments on the situation at the time”.
Rubio is a former student from the University of Florida. Saturday evening, the men’s male basketball team of Florida Gators won a place in the national championship match.
It is not known if Maluach is in the United States with a South Sudanese visa or if he can have citizenship in another country.
The statement of the State Department earlier in the day read: “It is time for the South Sudan transitional government to stop taking advantage of the United States. The application of immigration laws in our country is extremely important for national security and public security in the United States.
“Each country must accept the return of its citizens in a timely manner where another country, including the United States, seeks to remove them.”
Maluach was born in the southern city of Rumbek, but grew up in neighboring Uganda as a refugee.
He went to high school in Senegal at the NBA Academy Africa before playing professionally for Cobra Sport – a team from his South Natal Sudan – at the age of 16.
Maluach has played for two other professional teams – as Customs in Senegal and Oilers in the city of Uganda – before being recruited in Duke. He chose the Blue Devils on the offers of UCLA, Kentucky and Kansas.
More to follow.