Improbable journey has Jongkuch grateful, others inspired

Kur Jongkuch, whose parents fled the Second Sudanese Civil War, spent his early years in a Kenyan refugee camp. They found safety in London, Ontario. Kur found sports. Today, he’s playing Division I hoops at Temple University.

(Photo: Zamani Feelings / Temple University).

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You would expect Kur Jongkuch’s eyes to be firmly fixed on the future.

Playing out a final year of NCAA eligibility at Temple University. Honing his game for a potential international pro opportunity. Or an NBA G League spot. Or, maybe, just maybe, an NBA Draft pick.

Yet, with freakish talent, combined with beyond-his-years maturity, the 23-year-old star-in-the-making is approaching his unlimited future with an appreciation of every sacrifice made in his past.

“To be honest, I am not even supposed to be here right now.”

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Canada was never the destination, never meant to be home – or even a stopover on the journey. It wasn’t even a possibility when the Jongkuch family fled on foot a violent civil war in Sudan.

From 1983-2005, the Second Sudanese Civil War was an almost unimaginable conflict resulting in nearly two million people killed and another four million displaced because of violence, famine, and disease. The Jongkuch family was among those who opted to leave their lives behind and flee the country. Kur Jongkuch was born May 18, 1999, in Kenya, as the family walked away from the bloodshed in their homeland.

Stop reading for a moment after this paragraph to imagine that. We read the stories of refugees often, but perhaps don’t take the time to place ourselves in that moment. Imagine what it takes to make that decision to leave. Imagine the fear. Imagine walking out your front door – right now – and never returning. Family in tow. No destination in mind.

Jongkuch thinks about that moment in his parents’ lives often.

Despite South Sudan winning its independence six years after the civil war, violence has remained a way of life in Africa’s youngest country. In the last decade alone, the United Nations estimates that ongoing violence in South Sudan has claimed thousands of lives and driven nearly four million people from their homes. While many remain displaced inside the country, 2.3 million have fled to neighbouring nations in a desperate bid to reach safety.

Many have ended up in the Kakuma refugee camp.

Established in 1992, Kakuma – the Swahili word for ‘nowhere’ – has grown to become one of the world’s largest refugee camps. Located in the northwestern region of Kenya, the camp is home to more than 160,000 refugees and asylum seekers fleeing persecution, violence, and war. There are more than 19 nationalities living in Kakuma with more than half of the population being South Sudanese.

Existence in the sprawling camp is a struggle – substandard housing, inadequate water and sanitation, defective infrastructure from power supply to roadways.

“Life was tough there,” Jongkuch said.

Many of Kakuma’s refugees have become long-term, permanent residents, yet hope remains for many to leave the camp for third-country resettlement. That was the dream of the Jongkuch family two decades ago.

During their time there, many countries reached out to help refugees living in the camps. The Jongkuch family counted themselves among the lucky – they won a lottery that allowed them to come to Canada.

“We were looking to get somewhere, anywhere. Canada was it, but it was completely by chance,” Jongkuch explained.

He arrived in Canada as a toddler, along with his mother, father, and cousin. His sisters would be born here. Family members continue to arrive, still escaping the violence in South Sudan; a cousin landed in Canada four years ago.

Still, Jongkuch has aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents all there today. He feels the weight of his luck.

“Some of my family went; some of my family were left behind – 90 per cent of my family are still there to this day.”

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The Jongkuchs landed in Kipps Lane, a London, Ontario neighbourhood 12,000 kilometres – and a world away – from anything the family had known.

“Going to school was difficult, even with ESL programs. That’s hard as a kid. You are trying to learn in school at the same time you are trying to learn English. Plus, we had nobody here. We were a first-generation family who had nothing, knew nobody,” said Jongkuch, whose father was the only one in the home who could speak English. “Trying to settle into a way of life was hard. We didn’t know the city. We didn’t know the culture. We didn’t know the society.

“It’s hard to explain how hard that was. Managing through that was difficult for my parents. It was hard to find our way and settle in, but we eventually found it.”

For Jongkuch, sports became his entry into the culture.

When the family moved to northwest London, he met a group of friends who got him into football, soccer, baseball. A nature athlete, he excellent at each. It was a teacher who pushed the lanky lad into basketball, playing with the Gold Medal Basketball program in Grade 7 and 8. While football had the stronger pull, a back injury brought him back to hoops.

In high school, he attended Saint André Bessette Catholic Secondary through Grade 12, then Saunders Secondary for the first semester and St Joseph’s Catholic for the second semester of Grade 13. Playing for London Basketball Academy (LBA) during that time, coaches Angelo Provenzano and Dave Sewell were drawn to him – maybe not to the raw product in front of them, but to the player’s potential.

“They saw I loved the game, but I had a long way to go,” Jongkuch said.

He was given a spot on the team so he could train, but the coaches promised nothing more. Their advice: “There are no guarantees, but keep working hard and see where life takes you.”

“Here’s a guy who was always a bit of a freak athlete, but was so raw in some of the things he did. He is still so young to the game,” Sewell said. “He has such a good IQ for a guy who got into the game so late. Athleticism. Phenomenal footwork. Ability to read the court. He can finish above the rim with the best. He’s extremely mature.”

“He picks up things so quickly – except shooting, Sewell continued with a laugh. “He’s been working on that for a little bit.”

At LBA, Jongkuch saw his playing time increase as his skills grew. Talk soon turned to the possibility of a scholarship to play in university. It was a bit far-fetched for him to even consider. Even as late as his senior year of high school, he had no aspirations to play college basketball.

“But once he started taking the game seriously, he started to see he could make that next jump,” Sewell said. “I don’t think he thought he could make that jump. But he has shown he can.”

In Grade 13, Jongkuch played a full season and drew some attention. But not enough to realize his next-level dreams immediately. As the weeks clicked by – silence.

“I had zero D1 offers to play basketball. I had zero offers from any university in Canada,” he said. “I was more than happy to go to Western, get my degree, then get a job from there.”

In June 2018, the University of Northern Colorado invited Jongkuch for a visit to the 10,000-student campus situated in Greeley, Colo., among the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. On the spot, he received an offer to join the basketball program.

“It had to be one of the last offers to a D1 player in the country,” Jongkuch laughed.

His family was thrilled at the possibility of continuing his education in The States. Playing hoops was one thing; turning that opportunity into a degree was a dream realized for the family.

“Basketball was a way out – not in the sense I didn’t have a way out. But it was like the Holy Grail. We didn’t have a lot of money. Paying for school would have been hard. This was a way, a way to help my family, a way to become a better person, a way to explore the world.”

(Photo courtesy Dave Sewell).

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Admittedly, Northern Colorado is not an elite program. Playing in the Big Sky Conference, the Bears have only played one game in one NCAA tournament in their history – a 68-50 loss to San Diego State in 2011.

No NBA player has ever been drafted out of Northern Colorado. There are no active NBA players from the school, and only one alumnus, Mike Higgins, has ever played a game in the NBA. (Higgins played 18 with three different teams from 1989-91).

Nevertheless, this was the biggest stage Jongkuch had ever played on – a long way from home and all he had known in the Forest City.

“I was totally new to the whole situation. New to college basketball,” he said. “I was just trying to stay afloat when I got to Colorado. I was trying not to upset anybody, working hard, and trying to make my way through. I was happy to be there and was going to try everything I could to stay there.”

Jongkuch found inspiration in teammates who ended up playing at the professional level. Guys like Jordan Davis, Kai Edwards, Bodie Hume, and Jonah Radebaugh, who all ended up on pro rosters somewhere. Jongkuch took note of how hard they worked.

“I know that if I didn’t do what they’re doing, the coaches were going to notice and think I was slacking. I didn’t want that perception of me. I had to do what they were doing or even more,” he explained. “Once I started working, I fell in love with the work so much that it didn’t feel like work anymore. I enjoyed it. Still do. If you told me growing up that eventually I would get to play basketball 10 hours a day, well, this is easier than anything growing up.”

Jongkuch played in 119 games during his four-year collegiate career, starting 107 times. He averaged 8.9 points and 8.6 rebounds per game in his final season for Northern Colorado (2021-22), which finished 22-16 and lost in the Big Sky title game and the College Basketball Invitational semifinals.

The Bears' leading rebounder his last two seasons, Jongkuch ranked second in the Big Sky Conference as a junior and third his senior season. As a junior, he averaged a career-best 10.1 points while pulling down 8.0 rebounds per contest.

(Photo: Zamani Feelings / Temple University).

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In May 2022, Jongkuch signed with Temple University as a graduate transfer with one season of eligibility remaining.

“Kur is a developing player who improved his play during the course of a great career at Northern Colorado,” said Temple head coach Aaron McKie. “He is also a great person as well and will fit right into our culture.”

At Temple, Jongkuch has his best shot for exposure. But going from a sleepy mountain college town to taking the floor in Philadelphia, one of the toughest sporting cities in the world, can be a bit of a culture shot. In the AAC, he’s playing bigger, faster, stronger opponents than he has ever seen.

“It’s a learning curve,” he explained. “It feels a bit like starting from square one. It has been fun, but it has also been challenging. I am trying to grow here, expand myself, see how far I can reach, try new things, learn.”

He continued, “There are some big name schools, big name players on our schedule. But that prepares you. It gives you a drive. Even though I might not have a big name like they do, I get to compete against them. It gives me the drive to prove everyone right who has been on my side, who has supported me. I want to show people all the work they put in with me was worth it.”

So far this season, the 6-9, 220-pound forward has seen limited action as a member of a rotating cast of Owl big men – scoring 14 points and pulling down 30 rebounds in 12 games (he played a season-high 21 minutes Saturday night). Nevertheless, his exposure is continuing to grow at the right time. Last summer, he was a member of Canada’s Under-23 men’s basketball team that competed in the inaugural GLOBL Jam.

“Hopefully, I can play basketball as long as possible and see where it takes me,” Jongkuch said. “Anything I can accomplish from here on out is like playing with house money. I am going to put my head down and work as hard as I can. Hard work got me to Colorado. Hard work got me to Temple. I am hoping hard work can get me to the next level.”

(Photo: Zamani Feelings / Temple University).

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South Sudan has a proud history of hoops. Jongkuch hopes to add to it.

Boasting tallest people in Africa, the country’s biggest basketball export – in so many ways – was Manute Bol, a 7-7 centre and cultural icon who was drafted by the Washington Bullets in the second round of the 1985 NBA Draft. (Georgetown star Patrick Ewing went No. 1 in a draft NBA commissioner David Stern totally didn’t rig for the struggling New York Knicks to get the generational talent.)

The second player of African origin to play in the league, Bol became a novelty for North American fans and an inspiration for his home country in the 1980s and early 1990s. Upon retirement, he was actively involved in the liberation war of South Sudan, while still paving the way for generations of future Sudanese players.

One of those players was Luol Deng. The former Duke Blue Devil was a first-round selection of the Phoenix Suns in the 2004 NBA Draft. Deng went on to a 15-year NBA career, mainly with the Chicago Bulls, and now leads the South Sudan Basketball Federation as its president. Deng has Africa’s youngest country on the verge of qualification to the 2023 FIBA World Cup.

Thanks to his work, rosters around the world, from college to the pros, are filling up with South Sudanese hoops talent. Jongkuch follows many in the D1 ranks.

“If you had told me going into my senior year of high school that I would play Division I basketball, I would have told you that you were crazy,” Jongkuch said. “Coming from South Sudan, coming to Canada, some of my family made it, some of my family didn’t, but I somehow got the chance to make it, to win the lottery, to have coaches that help me, all of that, it’s unbelievable.”

He stresses that responsibility also comes with his opportunity. He knows the eyes of South Sudanese kids are on him. He hopes to one day return to help create similar opportunities for the generations who follow.

“I would like to give kids opportunities like I have had. I was lucky to turn nothing into something. Basketball has helped me travel the world, meet people I never would have met, go places I never would have gone,” he explained. “Basketball can connect people from all different parts of the world. That makes it even better. That makes it an even more meaningful experience for the people of South Sudan. I want to help show them that the world is bigger than what they know of it.”