Nigerian women's basketball players Promise Amukamara and Sarah Ogoke are disputing Liz Cambage's comments regarding the latter's alleged use of a racial slur aimed at the Nigerian national team.
Back in 2021, Cambage allegedly used racial slurs toward the Nigerian squad during a scrimmage in Las Vegas ahead of the Olympics, calling them “monkeys” and telling them to “go back to your third-world country."
Cambage subsequently denied that she made the comments, before withdrawing from the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.
During a recent interview with Bleacher Report's Taylor Rooks, Cambage once again shot down the accusations.
"I don't really lean towards racially backed insults," Cambage said. "That's not how I go. I'm very pro-Black. I did not say these [things] to these girls. The truth looks a lot worse for other organizations involved, than using me as a scapegoat."
Even more, Cambage said Nigeria has asked her to suit up for them given her background of having roots in Nigeria.
"We're filing for me to leave the Australian national team so I can represent Nigeria," Cambage said. "I've been in cahoots. I've been talking with them since all of this happened. This is what I mean. People don't know the truth."
Nigeria's Promise Amukamara hopped on Twitter to share her rebuttal, calling Cambage's remarks untrue.
"I'm sorry but this is false, Lol," Amukamara wrote.
"She called us Monkeys & told us to go back to our country," she continued in a series of tweets. "Yes she said that! Literally everyone from both teams have the same story BUT her, so y'all do the math! The only person she has been in 'cahoots' w/ was the former coach of our National team & he's no longer the coach, so there's that!"
Team member Sarah Ogoke also weighed in, tweeting about Cambage, “Just open mouth and be talkin waaaa. Na lie abeg. We are not recruiting you and you definitely spewed racist profanities against us during our scrimmage.”
She added that the interview remarks are "all cap."
ESPN’s Colin Udoh threw water on Cambage’s claim as well. He contacted the Nigeria Basketball Federation, tweeting that he was told, “1. There was actually a racist slur used which caused that game to be stopped. 2. They are NOT in any talks with Cambage about representing Nigeria.”
Udoh then ran down the particulars he was told, which you can read below. The thread wraps with him writing, "The very exact words used were 'it would be easier for an elephant to pass through the eye of a needle, not even a camel' than for Cambage to play for Nigeria. The first, last and only time that conversation happened was when Liz herself brought it up in 2021."
