KINGSTON, Jamaica — With Jamaican NBA players unavailable, Kofi Cockburn, who plays in Japan, has been added to the Jamaican team for the crucial opening game of the first round of the FIBA Basketball World Cup Americas Qualifiers against Puerto Rico on Friday.

The 26-year-old Cockburn plays for Hiroshima Dragonflies in Japan. The seven-foot centre attended St Andrew Technical High School (STATHS) before migrating to New York and represented the University of Illinois, where he was a two-time All-American.

Paulton Gordon, president of the Jamaica Basketball Association (JABA), told Observer Online that the top players in the squad were not available for this engagement.

“NBA players are not allowed to play in this window. They are not released from their teams. The majority of our players are playing in Europe and Asia,” he revealed.

“We are excited to have Kofi join the group. He was a standout player in the NCAA before he went to play professionally in South Korea and then Japan,” Gordon explained.

“Kofi is a dominant centre who will add steel and purpose to the team in the quest to establish Jamaica as a regional basketball powerhouse,” he added.

The Jamaican squad is Joel Bailey, Drew Thelwell, Marcus McDonald, Omari Johnson, Jordan Kellier, Kentan Facey, Romaine Thomas, Chase Audige, Kofi Cockburn, Tyran DeLattibeaudiere, Giovanni Fraser, Romario Gill.

Jamaica are drawn in Group B alongside Canada, The Bahamas and Puerto Rico as they hunt a spot at the 2027 FIBA World Cup.

Jamaica has two scheduled home games against The Bahamas on February 26 and Canada on March 1, and is in a race against time to get the facility up to the required standard.

A new scoreboard, new hoops, improved lighting for broadcast, additional space for the opposing team and media, and doping control are the requests from FIBA to host the games.

The groups for the FIBA Basketball World Cup Qualifiers are:

Group A: United States, Dominican Republic, Mexico, Nicaragua

Group B: Puerto Rico, Canada, Bahamas, Jamaica

Group C: Brazil, Venezuela, Colombia, Chile

Group D: Argentina, Uruguay, Panama, Cuba