The First Hong Kong Born Player in the NBA

Hong Kong has never been known as a basketball powerhouse. Yet, on October 1, 2024, Hong Kong-born basketball player David Muoka made history by signing an Exhibit 10 contract with the Portland Trail Blazers. Although he was waived the same day, he became the first basketball player born and raised in Hong Kong to sign a contract with an NBA franchise.

One year prior, in 2023, he became the first Hong Kong-born basketball player to be selected in the NBA G-League Draft when the Capital City Go-Go drafted him third overall. Since then, he has played for both the Long Island Nets and the Windy City Bulls.

However, although David Muoka is the first basketball player born in Hong Kong to sign an NBA contract, he is not the first Hongkonger to do so (a milestone that has yet to be achieved), let alone to play in an official NBA game.

In fact, David Muoka is not even eligible to play for the Hong Kong basketball team. Born to a British mother and a Nigerian father, Muoka does not hold a Hong Kong passport. Because Hong Kong law does not permit dual citizenship for naturalized citizens, Muoka must renounce his British passport to obtain an HKSAR passport and become eligible to represent Hong Kong in FIBA tournaments.