Majak Wenyin explains why Michigan State fans will 'love' Kur Teng (SP)

For Majak Wenyin, the path wasn’t always easy, but the vision was clear. He wanted to help people like him get more opportunities.

Wenyin is the founder of So Elite Basketball, a training and mentorship program that works primarily with kids from the South Sudanese community. He is also the cousin and trainer of recent 2024 four-star Michigan State men’s basketball commit, Kur Teng.

While Teng was born and raised in the Manchester, New Hampshire area, Wenyin and his family, including Teng’s parents, left South Sudan (a country that would later gain its independence in 2011) because of war and came to the United States as refugees.

Wenyin came over as a youth and went to elementary school, middle school and high school in Manchester before going to junior college. Wenyin then started So Elite Basketball in New Hampshire about six years ago and has had a lot of success since. The program is tight-knit with those who are in it, and has grown to several locations throughout the United States since, and now operates in four different states.

“I work heavily with kids in the South Sudanese community, which is where me and Kur’s (family) are from, we're both from South Sudan,” Wenyin said. “But I grew up in Manchester, New Hampshire, which is where Kur is from. Around 2017, I started a program called So Elite Basketball, working with a lot of the kids in the South Sudanese community in Manchester, New Hampshire at that time. And from there on, we ended up expanding to five different branches. So now we have a branch in Manchester, New Hampshire; Nebraska – Omaha and Lincoln; North Carolina – High Point; and Dallas, Texas. So we work with a lot of kids in the South Sudanese community in those areas.”

Wenyen Gabriel was part of the So Elite program and is currently with the Los Angeles Lakers, playing in 68 games thus far during the current 2022-2023 season. He played collegiately at Kentucky, and was a five-star and top-15 prospect out of high school. Another So Elite alum, Akok Akok, was a four-star recruit coming out of high school and started his career at Connecticut before transferring to Georgetown for the 2022-2023 season.

Teng is likely to be the next So Elite trainee to make a name for himself – in East Lansing and beyond. He has been part of the programs since he was pre-teen.

While Wenyin notes that Teng is quiet and a “big introvert for sure,” he also mentioned that his younger cousin is a great person and is a lot of fun to be around once he comes out of his shell.

“Kur has been one of those kids that's been with our program since he was in middle school,” Wenyin said. “(Our relationship) is great. Obviously, I’ve known him since he was born. He’s always been a great kid, he’s easy to enjoy (being around), he’s easy to get along with. When he really knows you, he opens up. He’s actually pretty funny, pretty laid back.”

Teng has been dedicated to honing his craft since a very young age. He could be described as a “gym rat,” always looking to improve himself and his game. Work ethic will never be an issue, which makes Teng what Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo would refer to as an “OKG – our kind of guy.”

“He works hard, super hard,” Wenyin said about Teng. “He’s always been dedicated to the gym since he was young. Never really had work ethic issues with him. I remember even when he was younger, I just would tell him other things to do, like make sure you're doing a hundred pushups a day, make sure you're doing this, and make sure you're running a mile a day. He always did it without me having to be on him about him. But he just has one of the best work ethics I've seen for sure.”

Teng is a standout shooting guard for Bradford Christian Academy in Haverhill, Massachusetts and for Mass Rivals. Vin Pastore is the head coach at Bradford Christian, and the director and head coach of Mass Rivals.

Wenyin sees similarities in the coaching styles of Pastore and Izzo – two coaches who may be tough on their players when it’s called for, but who absolutely get the most out of their athletes, and are beloved by them for it.

“He's a tough coach,” Wenyin said about Pastore. “I think he brings the best out of kids, he really teaches kids how to play hard. And Kur, he's always been talented since he was young, but I think Vin brought that motor out of him. I think he just taught Kur how to play hard and efficient all the time. I think that's when (Teng) really started getting noticed, was on the national circuit (with Mass Rivals).”