New beginnings for Luol Deng
Deng On Lockout, Playing Overseas
PANEVEZYS, Lithuania — As midnight chimed, gunfire rang out through the night air, accompanying the chorus of horns from every car. Young men clambered onto their roofs as they passed by, singing songs and chanting in unison, wildly sharing a moment that many never felt would arrive in their lifetime.
Luol Deng would not have been anywhere else as the party began. History was being made, and shaped, on July 9 as the world’s newest country celebrated its independence. The Republic of South Sudan was born after an almost 30-year labor, one accompanied by a brutal civil war that saw 2 million people lose their lives and twice that number disappear into exile.
“It was something that I’ve been waiting for my whole life,” admitted the Chicago Bulls forward. “A lot of lives have been lost, and they’ve finally got what they fought for. It was very emotional.”
Deng, now 26, was displaced as a child, first to Egypt, then to the United Kingdom, where his family members were allowed to settle as political refugees. His father, Aldo, had been Sudan’s minister of transportation before being imprisoned following a military
Read more: http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/page/Deng-110903/eurobasket-luol-deng-helps-great-britain
Category: South Sudan News
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