MARIAL SHAYOK
Sport: Men’s Basketball
Team: South Sudan
Age: 28
Hometown: Ottawa
Residence: Ottawa/China
Local Club: St. Patrick Irish
First Olympics
Instagram: @marialshayok
VIEW MARIAL’S COMPETITION SCHEDULE HERE.
By Martin Cleary
Marial Shayok totally understands the world of basketball, the sport which has thrust Ottawa’s premier player onto a multitude of levels of the game around the globe.
A former accomplished student-athlete with the St. Patrick’s Fighting Irish in his early high school days, he can point in many directions and talk proudly about his journey up and down local, national and international courts.
His last project and his next assignment are so opposite to each other, when it comes to measuring the performance level. But they mean the world to him and give him a full view of one of the world’s most popular sports.
On June 29, Shayok and his support team held court at the Ottawa Boys and Girls’ Club on Heatherington Road for the second annual Shayok Summer Showcase.
About 100 high school players participated in an on-court opportunity to show their skills and be seen by Canadian and American university coaches as well as their families. The showcase attracted 11 NCAA university coaches, including Dayton, Virginia, North Carolina State and Canisius, because they respect Shayok’s approach to basketball.
All the proceeds from the showcase will be equally distributed between the eight participating club teams, which will assist with travel expenses, accommodation and equipment. Teams received $1,000 each from the inaugural Shayok Summer Showcase in 2023.
“The purpose behind the showcase is to provide exposure to young basketball players looking to play beyond high school along with giving them knowledge and guidance so they have the best possible opportunity to grow as a basketball player coming out of Ottawa,” Shayok wrote in an email interview with High Achievers earlier this month.
“It was beautiful to see the community come out and support these kids, while they compete against each other, as all proceeds are donated back to the participating teams. I intend to continue to have this showcase for many years to come so that the kids that are up next have the same opportunity. I think it’s extremely important for our youth.
“I think it was absolutely necessary for me to have this camp (at this time), despite what I have personally going on. I’m grateful to have so many support me to help make sure the showcase was a success. I’ll be representing everyone back home, while I’m on that world stage (2024 Summer Olympics). We’re all in this together.”
Immediately after the showcase, Shayok flew to Kigali, the capital of Rwanda, to join the South Sudan Bright Stars as they started preparations July 1 for their debut performance at the 2024 Summer Olympic Games in Paris.
“Being an Olympian is, honestly, surreal – something I never thought of being growing up,” continued Shayok, who turns 29 years old on Friday, the official opening day of the Summer Games. “I’m super excited to represent my country, my family and friends at the world’s biggest sporting stage.
“I think it’s a true testament to hard work and support I’ve had throughout my life. I’m so thankful to be in this position.”
The thought of playing for South Sudan rolled around Shayok’s mind for a few years, after he received an invitation to join the national team. But he couldn’t make it work because he was in the early stages of developing his professional career.
But Shayok made it work over the past year for South Sudan, which only gained its independence 13 years ago. In that short time frame, the East African country has seen its men’s basketball team develop into the best nation in the continent.
“As soon as I had the chance to join, I knew it would be something I wanted to do, not only for myself, but also for my family,” Shayok wrote. “Despite being born and raised in Canada (specifically Ottawa), I still recognized my heritage and where my people are originally from.”
Shayok’s father Makur was born in Sudan and travelled to the United States to accept an athletic scholarship for basketball at the University of Dayton.
“It also made the decision easier knowing that my old high school coach Joe Mantegna at Blair Academy, who also coached Luol Deng and (South Sudan) head coach Royal Ivey, would be the assistant coach for the national team,” he explained.
South Sudan was one of five African nations to qualify for the 2023 FIBA World Cup in the Philippines, Japan and Indonesia. After posting a 3-2 record in the preliminary and classification rounds, the Bright Stars placed 17th overall. By being the top African nation at the World Cup, South Sudan qualified for its first Summer Olympics in Paris, which sent waves of jubilation through the country.
In its preparation for the Summer Games, South Sudan has posted a 2-2 record, including coming within a basket of upsetting the United States of America in an exhibition game last week. NBA superstar LeBron James scored a layup with six seconds remaining to give the U.S.A. a 101-100 decision over South Sudan, which held a 16-point lead late in the first half.
It was viewed as a David vs. Goliath matchup, but it didn’t play out that way. South Sudan has four players with NBA experience with a combined 1,228 career points, while the 12 Americans were NBA champions and/or all-stars with a combined 189,038 points and 7,832 game starts.
Shayok was South Sudan’s top scorer against the Americans with 25 points, connecting on three of four shots from three-point range, and added two steals.
In an earlier exhibition game against Great Britain, Shayok paced South Sudan to an 84-81 victory with a game-high 27 points, three assists and two rebounds in 25 minutes and six seconds of floor time. The games against the U.S.A. and Great Britain were staged in London.
At a pair of pre-Olympic games in Madrid, South Sudan defeated Portugal 80-72, but lost to Argentina 81-72.
“Training camp for the South Sudan team is great,” Shayok added. “A collective group coming together to play for something much bigger than ourselves. It has been quite special being a part of this team. I only knew a few of the players before joining, but since then have built some strong relationships with everyone on the team.
“Being South Sudanese means the world to me. I’m proud to represent my country and help provide so much joy to our supporters by doing what I love. I’m grateful and don’t take this opportunity lightly. It’s truly an honour. I’ve never been to South Sudan yet, but definitely plan on going soon to visit my many family members that are there.”
Shayok’s world basketball journey started at his Ottawa home with his family. All he had to do was look around the dinner table for inspiration and motivation. He could put together one scary three-on-three team with his sister Yar and older brother Shayok, who both played university basketball in the United States. Father Makur could sub-in occasionally for the team as well as coach.
During his high school days, Marial Shayok travelled with Canada Basketball youth teams to the 2011 FIBA Americas boys’ U16 championship in Cancun, Mexico, and the 2012 FIBA boys’ U17 world championship in Kaunas, Lithuania. Canada placed fifth at the 2012 worlds.
After Shayok took the St. Patrick Irish to a new level of excellence with his fluid and precise skills, he attended Blair Academy, a prep school in Blairstown, New Jersey, to upgrade his game to a higher dimension and complete his high school education.
University coaches noticed this sharpshooter and he originally signed with Marquette University, but it was short lived. Instead, he played three years at the University of Virginia (2012-17). He sat out one year so he could transfer to Iowa State University, where he led the Cyclones to the 2019 Big 12 tournament championship, where he was named the MVP, and a berth in the NCAA tournament. He averaged 18.7 points and 4.9 rebounds a game for Iowa State.
In the run-up to the 2019 NBA Draft, Shayak was fast-breaking from city to city to city across the U.S., showing his talents to numerous teams in one-day auditions. The Philadelphia 76ers called his name at the draft in the second round, No. 54 overall.
Shayok was the first Ottawa basketball player ever selected in the NBA Draft. He signed a two-way contract, played seven minutes in four games with the 76ers, but was a dominant player with the NBA G League’s Delaware Blue Coats, averaging 23 points, 6.0 rebounds and 3.8 assists a game, while shooting 46 per cent from the field and 36 per cent from three-point range. Despite being named to the NBA G League all-rookie team and the third all-star team, Philadelphia put him on waivers after the 2019-20 season.
In the past four years, Shayok played two years in Turkey for the Frutti Extra Bursapor program (2020-21) and Fenerbahce (2021-22) before returning to the NBA G League in 2022-23 with the Maine Celtics, the developmental team for the Boston Celtics.
Last season, he ran the court with Shandong Hi-Speed Kirin, which is a Northern Division team in the Chinese Basketball Association located in Jinan, the capital of Shandong with a population of 9.2 million. Shayok was selected to the CBA’s all-import team.
“I loved China,” added Shayok, who averaged 19.1 points, 4.5 rebounds and 3.6 assists over 47 games for Shandong. “I was not only able to experience playing great basketball, but also got to take in Chinese culture along with the people who made my time there wonderful.
“I ended up having a really good year and making the all-import team this past season. I should be deciding where I play this upcoming season soon.”
Another season will be another chapter in Shayok’s evolving and all-embracing basketball world.
COMPETITION SCHEDULE:
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