Prep School Basketball Recruiting: What Every Athlete and Family Needs to Know
Prep school coaches don’t usually end up coaching at the Olympics. But Joe Mantegna isn’t your typical prep coach. He’s the head coach at Blair Academy and just got back from helping South Sudan make basketball history.
We touched on this topic when we sat down for an interview with Joe. His unique journey from leading a prep school program to standing on the Olympic sidelines reveals powerful insights into recruiting, leadership, and building something bigger than yourself. If you’re a player, parent, or coach looking for proven ways to grow, this is one you’ll want to hear.
From Blair Academy to the Olympic Stage: How It All Started
Cory: Now the reason we’re having you on here is you just got back from a pretty interesting trip overseas. Why don’t you tell us where you were?
Joe: So, I was fortunate enough to be at the Paris Olympics with the South Sudan Men’s National Basketball Team. We were the second African country ever to win an Olympic game. It was an exciting summer, full of learning and great pinch-yourself moments for sure.
Cory: How did you get associated with the South Sudanese team?
Joe: The president of South Sudan basketball is Luol Deng, who was my first recruit to Blair Academy in 1999 when I got here. The head coach of the national team is my other 1999 recruit, Royal Ivey, who’s now an assistant with the Houston Rockets. And one of my former players, Marial Shayok, was our leading scorer. So, it was kind of a Blair Academy family affair.
Joe Mantegna joins the South Sudan national team staff at the Paris Olympics, helping guide the historic program to international success.
Olympic-Level Progress from the Bottom Up
Cory: Take us back—you mentioned the stat that you had a really low ranking in Africa, and now you’ve got a high ranking worldwide. Explain that to me.
Joe: When this process began four and a half years ago, we were the 83rd-ranked team in Africa. We had to go through pre-qualifiers to get to the qualifiers for Afro Basket. We even lost a pre-qualifier to Kenya. The only reason we advanced was because Algeria got COVID. That’s how we even got started.
Cory: So how many teams were in Africa?
Joe: Not many more than 83. We were at the bottom of the barrel. This was South Sudan’s first time having a national team. No team has ever gone from where we were to now top 25 in the world and winning an Olympic game. It’s completely unprecedented at the FIBA level.
What Makes a Championship Culture: Leadership, Funding, and Purpose
Blair Academy’s varsity basketball team celebrates a championship win with the trophy at center court.
Cory: What do you attribute that to? Can it be replicated?
Joe: I mean, South Sudan is the tallest nation in the world. We have more seven-footers per capita than anywhere. That helps. But really, Luol Deng funded the program for the first two years out of his own pocket. Millions of dollars. The government didn’t see the vision at first. Once we got it going and did it first-class, they got behind us.
Joe: Luol brought belief. Royal brought toughness and leadership. We had NBA players, NBL players, guys playing all over Europe and the Middle East. There was a talent base that started seeing the vision. Slowly, they got on board. It was good leadership, individual funding, and talented players playing for something bigger than themselves.
Coaches and players celebrate together after winning a major prep school tournament title.
What Prep Coaches Can Learn from the Global Game
Cory: What are you going to take from this and incorporate into your coaching at Blair Academy?
Joe: When you prepare for Euro League coaches—guys coaching Serbia, Australia, China—you learn a lot. The game is different, but I stole stuff every step of the way. From how pros stretch, train, shoot. I was asking questions at team meals, grabbing ideas. I’m 55, coming up on 500 wins, and I’m still hungry to learn.
Joe: I told my assistants and told Royal: the day I stop being curious and trying to get better is the day I should pack it up. I’m a far better coach now than when this process started.
Inside the Role of a Coach at the Olympic Level
Four Blair Academy athletes sign their letters of intent to play college basketball at NYU, Amherst, and other top schools.
Cory: What was your specific role for the team?
Joe: I became sort of the chief of staff. Early on, Royal hadn’t had much head coaching experience, so I helped with game management, substitutions, fouls to give—all that stuff. But by the World Cup and Olympics, he didn’t need me as much. That’s a sign of growth, and I was proud of him.
Joe: I was there to serve Luol, serve Royal, serve the players—whether it was rebounding, managing scouts, or just adding value. That’s the same thing I tell my assistants at Blair: add value wherever you can, from sweeping the court to drawing up a game-winner.
Closing Thoughts: From Prep to the World Stage
Cory: Anything else you want to mention that we didn’t cover.
Joe: Our team was a window into what can happen when people want to be part of something bigger than themselves. We talked about “cause over self,” and I’ve never been part of a group that embodied that more.
Joe: We had one bad practice in 36 days. One. That’s the culture you want to build. Effort, unselfishness, talent—if you get those aligned, you can max out a group. And that’s what we did.
Prep School Lessons from the Olympics: The Takeaway
You don’t get from 83rd in Africa to beating Olympic teams without the right people, vision, and culture. Joe’s story proves what’s possible when leadership and purpose align. If you’re a player or parent looking to level up, or a coach building something of your own, let’s talk about how prep school can be the right bridge. Reach out anytime—we’re here to help.
If you’re looking into prep school, reach out to us at PREP Athletics. We’re here to help you explore your potential and make choices that align with your athletic and academic future. We’ve also got a long list of resources to get you started in the right direction, so check out our latest prep basketball updates on YouTube or our podcast to dive deeper.