2 weeks Ago By Oscar Maung-Haley
Politics tensions between the United States and South Sudan may lead to Khaman Maluach, the Duke Blue Devils center being deported. Saturday night saw Duke's March Madness run end in the Final Four by Houston, who produced a furious second-half comeback to defeat Cooper Flagg and the Blue Devils 70-67, booking the Cougars place in the National Championship game where they will take on Florida . And amidst having to deal with the fallout of the defeat, Duke may also now need to navigate the potential deportation of Maluach, who was born in Rumbek, South Sudan following a post made on X by U.
S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio . Rubio wrote on the social media platform: "I am taking actions to revoke all visas held by South Sudanese passport holders and to restrict any further issuance to prevent entry into the United States, effective immediately, due to the failure of South Sudan's transitional government to accept the return of its repatriated citizens in a timely manner.
" He later added in a statement: "Every country must accept the return of its citizens in a timely manner when another country, including the United States, seeks to remove them. South Sudan’s transitional government has failed to fully respect this principle." Under the Biden administration, South Sudanese passport holders were awarded 'Temporary Protected Status' (TPS) due to ongoing violence between the government and armed opposition.
TPS is set to expire in May. While The Athletic report Duke had "no comment on the situation at this time" regarding Rubio's post in relation to South Sudanese passport holders, the University did then later issue a statement on Sunday morning. Duke spokesperson Frank Tramble said in the statement: "Duke University is aware of the announcement from the Department of State regarding visa holders from South Sudan.
We are looking into the situation and working expeditiously to understand the implications for Duke students.” Additionally, the Raleigh News & Observer also reported Maluach did not speak to reporters following the Final Four defeat to Houston, adding Nina King, Duke's Athletic Director is "looking into" the situation. The announcement from Rubio casts uncertainty around Maluach's future with the program.
The 18-year-old started all 38 of Duke's games this season, averaging 8.7 points and 6.8 rebounds.
The 7-foot-2 center also starred at the 2024 Olympics in Paris last year with some analysts projecting him to be taken in the first round of the 2025 NBA Draft held later this year in June..
