Kouat Noi (born 29 October 1997) is a South Sudanese-Australian professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

player for the

Sydney Kings The Sydney Kings are an Australian men's professional basketball team competing in the National Basketball League (NBL). The team is based in Sydney, New South Wales. The Kings were formed from a merger between the West Sydney Westars and the ...

of the Australian National Basketball League (NBL).

Early life

Noi was born in

Khartoum Khartoum or Khartum ( ; ar, الخرطوم, Al-Khurṭūm, din, Kaartuɔ̈m) is the capital of Sudan. With a population of 5,274,321, its metropolitan area is the largest in Sudan. It is located at the confluence of the White Nile, flowing n ...

, Sudan during the height of the

Second Sudanese Civil War The Second Sudanese Civil War was a conflict from 1983 to 2005 between the central Sudanese government and the Sudan People's Liberation Army. It was largely a continuation of the First Sudanese Civil War of 1955 to 1972. Although it originate ...

. His family fled the country amid escalations of the conflict, first to Egypt and later to Australia in 2002. Growing up in

Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to: *Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England *Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England *Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area in Australia, named after Newcastle ...

, he blossomed into a basketball star, and went on to average 9.1 points and 4.3 rebounds while helping lead Australia to a silver medal at the

2014 FIBA Under-17 World Championship The 2014 FIBA Under-17 World Championship (Arabic: بطولة العالم لكرة السلة 2014 تحت 17 سنة ) was the 3rd edition of the FIBA Under-17 World Championship, the biennial international men's youth basketball championship cont ...

Dubai Dubai (, ; ar, دبي, translit=Dubayy, , ) is the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, the most populated of the 7 emirates of the United Arab Emirates.The Government and Politics of ...

. Noi attended St Francis Xavier's College in Newcastle. In 2014, Noi moved to the United States and enrolled at

Montverde Academy Montverde Academy is a private PK–12 school in Montverde, Florida, United States. History The school was founded in 1912 as Montgomery Industrial School. The school president was Henry P. Carpenter. It underwent a major expansion in 1921, whe ...

Montverde, Florida Montverde is a town in Lake County, Florida, United States. The population was 1,655 at the 2020 census and an estimated 1,675 in 2018. It is part of the Orlando–Kissimmee–Sanford Metropolitan Statistical Area. History Montverde wa ...

, where he briefly played alongside

Ben Simmons Benjamin David Simmons (born 20 July 1996) is an Australian professional basketball player for the Brooklyn Nets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for one season with the LSU Tigers, after which he was ...

. As a senior in the 2015–16 season, Noi averaged more than 19 points per game for the Eagles.

College career

Noi enrolled at

Texas Christian University Texas Christian University (TCU) is a private research university in Fort Worth, Texas. It was established in 1873 by brothers Addison and Randolph Clark as the Add-Ran Male & Female College. It is affiliated with the Christian Church (Disciples ...

(TCU) on a basketball scholarship in the summer of 2016, and redshirted in his first season on campus as the Horned Frogs won the 2017 NIT title under first-year head coach

Jamie Dixon James Patrick Dixon II (born November 10, 1965) is an American college basketball coach who is the head coach of the TCU Horned Frogs men's team, where he played college ball. He previously served as the head coach of the University of Pittsbu ...

. In 2017–18, Noi played in all 33 of TCU's games, starting nine of them. He averaged 10.2 points per game as the Frogs finished the season with a 21-12 record and secured a berth in the 2018 NCAA tournament, the program's first in 20 years. As a sophomore, Noi registered his first collegiate 20-point game with a 27-point performance against

Eastern Michigan Eastern Michigan University (EMU, Eastern Michigan or simply Eastern), is a public research university in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Founded in 1849 as Michigan State Normal School, the school was the fourth normal school established in the United Sta ...

on 26 November 2018 and his first career 30-point game against

Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...

on 12 January 2019. Noi averaged 13.9 points and 4.9 rebounds per game as a sophomore playing in 31 games, including 19 starts. He declared for the

2019 NBA draft The 2019 NBA draft was held on June 20, 2019. It took place at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. National Basketball Association (NBA) teams took turns selecting amateur United States college basketball players and other eligible players, i ...

, forfeiting his remaining two years of eligibility. He later withdrew from the draft.

Professional career

Cairns Taipans (2019–2022)

In July 2019, Noi signed with the

Cairns Taipans The Cairns Taipans are an Australian professional basketball team based in Cairns, Queensland. The Taipans compete in the National Basketball League (Australia), National Basketball League (NBL) and play their home games at the Cairns Conventio ...

of the Australian National Basketball League. In March 2021, he suffered a PCL injury that ruled him out for 12 weeks. In June 2021, Noi signed a two-season contract with the club (the second year being a mutual option). Following the

2021–22 NBL season The 2021–22 NBL season was the 44th season of the National Basketball League since its establishment in 1979. A total of ten teams are contesting in the 2021–22 season, which commenced on 3 December 2021. Australian broadcast rights to the ...

, Noi joined the

USC Rip City USC Rip City is a NBL1 North club based in Sunshine Coast, Queensland. The club fields a team in both the Men's and Women's NBL1 North. The club is a division of the University of the Sunshine Coast Basketball Association (USCBA), one of two majo ...

in the

NBL1 North NBL1 North, formerly the Queensland Basketball League (QBL), is a semi-professional basketball league in Queensland and Northern Territory, Australia, comprising both a men's and women's competition. In 2020, Basketball Queensland partnered wit ...

, where he earned All-Star Five honours.

Sydney Kings (2022–present)

In June 2022, Noi signed a two-season contract with the

(the second year being a mutual option).

Personal life

Noi was born in Sudan but considers himself as South Sudanese. His father, Ater Dhiu, played basketball for the Sudan men's national basketball team.

References

External links

TCU Horned Frogs bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Noi, Kouat 1997 births Living people Australian expatriate basketball people in the United States Australian men's basketball players Cairns Taipans players Forwards (basketball) Montverde Academy alumni People from Khartoum South Sudanese emigrants to Australia South Sudanese expatriate basketball people in the United States South Sudanese men's basketball players Sydney Kings players TCU Horned Frogs men's basketball players South Sudanese refugees Refugees in Egypt Sportsmen from New South Wales Sportspeople from Newcastle, New South Wales Sudanese people of South Sudanese descent