ANG - Moore granted Angolan citizenship

LUANDA (AfroBasket/FIBA Basketball World Cup) - The wait is over for Reggie Moore who will get to wear Angola's colours at the 2013 AfroBasket.

After two days of discussions and deliberations, Angola's national parliament on Friday night approved the citizenship request of the American-born Moore.

The 32-year-old has been playing in Angola's national league for the past five seasons, having spells with both Recreativo do Libolo and Primeiro D'Agosto.

Last December, Moore helped D'Agosto clinch their seventh African Champions Cup in the Equatorial Guinea capital city of Malabo.

For years, Moore was a topic of discussion to join the national team, especially because of his long-range shooting and defensive abilities.

A few months after the disappointing 2011 AfroBasket Final defeat to Tunisia, Jaime Covilha - who took over the team midway through the competition and is a member of Angola's current coaching staff - voiced his opinion about the need to add Moore to the national team.

Moore became the second foreign-born player to represent Angola after the Chad-born Abdel Moussa.

The 1.98m forward started the training camp with Angola four weeks ago on home soil, but will only join the group next week in Spain as he remained in Angola awaiting the verdict of the national parliament.

Angola have been drawn in Group C of this summer's AfroBasket to be staged in the Cote d'Ivoire capital of Abidjan from 20 to 31 August.

The tournament is a qualifying event for the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup, with the top three teams securing places in next year's event in Spain.

FIBA