Despite falling short of a coveted Basketball Africa League (BAL) playoff berth during last weekend’s Kalahari Conference in Pretoria, South Africa, Nairobi City Thunder head coach Bradley Ibs believes they are trending in the right direction.
Ibs observed that they ticked more boxes in this year’s campaign compared to last year’s debut.
Thunder wrapped up the Kalahari Conference in fifth with a 40 per cent win rate, comprising two victories from five fixtures. However, this is not enough to send them to the May playoffs in Kigali, Rwanda.
At the summit, Rwanda’s RSSB Tigers set the pace with just a single defeat, edging out Angola’s Petro de Luanda, who mirrored that record, while Libya’s Al Ahly settled third with two losses.
Thunder’s campaign tipped off with a tightly contested 90-85 defeat to regional rivals Dar City before quickly regrouping in their second outing with a composed 71-65 win over hosts Johannesburg Giants.
They suffered a bruising 97-70 loss to BAL heavyweights Petro de Luanda before being overrun 107-80 by Al Ahly.
However, Thunder delivered a statement performance to close their campaign, stunning table-toppers RSSB 101-92.
Reflecting on the campaign, Ibs struck an optimistic tone, noting clear growth despite the early exit.
“We are happy to get another win in this year’s BAL—that’s one more than last year. Maybe we will get more next year,” Ibs said.
In their debut campaign, Thunder exited the Sahara Conference with just a solitary win, against South Africa’s MBB.
Beyond the results, Ibs was encouraged by the team’s overall style of play, pointing to improved cohesion and execution.
“I think we played good basketball in this tournament, but we also had some bad stretches too,” he admitted.
He was quick to highlight key areas that need sharpening ahead of the 2027 campaign, particularly game management and discipline in crunch moments.
“It’s just a matter of maturing — being more disciplined and understanding game situations so we can adjust accordingly,” he said. “If we can eliminate some of those bad stretches in our games, we will probably qualify for the playoffs next year.”
Captain, Tylor Ongwae, added: “Good things take time and we are willing to work hard to get this right, and we shall.”
Meanwhile, Okall Koranga emphasised Thunder’s growing footprint on the continental stage, insisting the team is steadily finding its rhythm against Africa’s elite.
“It was important to achieve a second win in the campaign. We are still growing; two wins are a huge achievement for us. I hope that next season, when we come back, we will have won three or four games.”
