SALT LAKE CITY — Thabo Sefolosha’s presence at Basketball Without Borders Africa this week in Johannesburg, South Africa is about more than hoops, and about even more than helping youth.
It’s personal.
The new Utah Jazz small forward has been involved with the program since arriving in the NBA in 2006, going to various countries on the continent, but each time South Africa is on the itinerary, it’s a unique opportunity for the 6-foot-7 wing whose father hails from the country.
“It’s a country that I’m still learning as I come here more often,” said the Switzerland-born Sefolosha on Thursday via conference call, noting that his family was not allowed there during Apartheid because of laws against interracial marriage.