Adidas Next Generation Tournament Finals: African Standouts
Breaking down standout African players at the world’s top youth event.
Every year, some of the globe’s top Under-18 basketball players assemble for the Euroleague’s youth counterpart, the Adidas Next Generation Tournament (ANGT).
For those unfamiliar with ANGT, there were four qualifier events throughout the year in Podgorica, Belgrade, Dubai and Paris, where notable youth clubs faced off in tournaments whose results determined the field for the finals, which took place in Berlin.
While we’ve updated our database with information gleaned throughout the year’s events, we’ve put together some of the standout African players specifically from the finals. Our team analyzed the play of these prospects and weighed them against expectations coming into the game.
Note: The ‘expectations’ portion of this is purely subjective and constantly reassessed. A player underperforming expectations does not mean they had a bad showing at the event.
EXCEEDED EXPECTATIONS ⬆️
Sayon Keita | FC Barcelona | 2008 | 6’11” | C | Mali
18.5 PPG | 9.5 RPG | 2.8 BPG | 0.8 SPG | 0.5 APG | 66.7% 2PT | 72.2% FT | 1.5 TPG | 27.8 PIR
Barcelona has an all-African stable of big men that command playing time and attention, the main one being Sayon Keita. The young center showed graceful fluidity in the halfcourt, finishing plays whether off a rebound or rolling to the rim. Defensively, his length and ability to get off his feet quickly were crucial in protecting the paint. He drastically upped his scoring and efficiency while decreasing turnovers from the qualifiers to the finals.
Hugo Yimga Moukori | INSEP | 2008 | 6’8” | F | France
14.0 PPG | 6.0 RPG | 0.8 APG | 1.4 SPG | 0.2 BPG | 55% 2PT | 30% 3PT | 81% FT | 1.4 TPG | 15.6 PIR
Hugo Yimga Moukori clearly plays with an uncommon hunger, evident from his last outing at the Paris qualifier. We expected his production to dip a bit due to the return of Nolan Traoré but that was far from the case. The young forward defends all over the floor and has a great mix of strength, size and toughness he used to score. He created his own mismatches, bullying opponents for offensive rebounds and finishing through contact.
Ismaila Diagne | Real Madrid | 2006 | 7’0” | C | Senegal
9.4 PPG | 8.0 RPG | 1.8 APG | 0.4 SPG | 1.0 BPG | 51.7% 2PT | 70.8% FT | 1.4 TPG | 16.6 PIR
Ismaila Diagne was key to Real Madrid’s championship run as his interior defense, rebounding and finishing were indispensable. He protected the rim, but the more intriguing pieces of his game were his ability to make plays with the pass as well as his overall mobility. He flashed the ability to make the right read when necessary.
Abdrahamane Kone | FC Barcelona | 2009 | 6’9” | F/C | Mali
10.0 PPG | 5.7 RPG | 0.3 APG | 1.0 SPG | 0.3 BPG | 84.6% 2PT | 80% FT | 1.0 TPG | 16.3 PIR
In a similar vein to Diagne, Abdrahamane Kone is not your classic big man. He’s definitely big, outweighing and out-muscling most opponents, but he also has light feet and soft hands, making for very interesting and impactful post play. Conditioning needs work but he showed an uncommon ability to make passes, save balls and get open-court steals too.
Cameron Houindo | INSEP | 2008 | 6’8” | F | France/Benin
5.2 PPG | 3.8 RPG | 1.0 SPG | 0.8 APG | 0.2 BPG | 50% 2PT | 0% 3PT | 71.4% FT | 1.6 TPG | 5.6 PIR
Cameron Houindo showed his athleticism throughout the tournament as a play finisher. His energy helped him produce despite low usage on a stacked squad. He outperformed his qualifier production in the finals and also shot slightly more efficiently.
Endurance Aiyahmenkhue | Ratiopharm Ulm | 2007 | Netherlands/Nigeria
5.0 PPG | 5.0 RPG | 0.5 SPG | 1.8 BPG | 44.4% 2PT | 33.3% FT | 1.2 TPG | 3.2 PIR
Admittedly, we did not have many expectations for Endurance Aiyahmenkhue coming in so his modest production was a welcome surprise for Ulm. He gave them another interior scoring option and also played good defense, collecting blocks on the ball.
Mohamed Diakite | INSEP | 2006 | 6’10” | F | France
6.2 PPG | 5.2 RPG | 0.8 APG | 1.0 BPG | 0.2 SPG | 31.2% 2PT | 20% 3PT | 66.7% FT | 1.0 TPG | 4.2 PIR
Mohamed Diakite is a long and athletic Swiss Army knife. You rarely see numbers that jump off the page from him but that’s because he prioritized the collective with his play, making connecting passes, securing key rebounds and defending the best players regardless of position. He definitely can score when called upon and showed some of that ability as well.
Mohamed Dabone | FC Barcelona | 2011 | 6’10” | C | Burkina Faso
11.3 PPG | 5.3 RPG | 0 APG | 1.3 BPG | 0.7 SPG | 61.9% 2PT | 100% 3PT | 71.4% FT | 0.3 TPG | 14.3 PIR
Mohamed Dabone showed why he’s a generational talent — no matter what generation that is. Despite controversy over his true age, Dabone outran, out-jumped and out-hustled many of his peers. He even flashed early shooting indicators too. His physical profile and raw athleticism should be enough to keep him on a lottery trajectory.
Amadou Traore | Real Madrid | 2007 | 6’10” | F/C | Mali
Amadou Traore earned every minute of his, displaying palpable energy on both sides of the ball. With a big man group as deep as Real Madrid’s, he finds his way on the court because of his hustle and athletic play. Traore finished through contact, correctly gambled on steals and rebounded voraciously.
MET EXPECTATIONS ↔️
Nolan Traoré | INSEP | 2006 | France/Mali
24.8 PPG | 6.5 APG | 3.5 RPG | 1.5 SPG | 60.5% 2PT | 31.6% 3PT | 80.6% FT | 3.8 TPG | 25.8 PIR
This might come as a surprise given Traoré’s incredible performance, but at this point his stock and expectations are about as high as possible. Traoré rejoined his old squad right after putting together historic performances in France’s top league’s playoffs.
He mixed his devastating first step with a change of pace that often left defenders stuck. Despite leaning more toward scoring than playmaking, his decision-making remained consistent as he found teammates in scoring spots or kept it himself when sensing an advantage. Shooting and turnovers are still areas of improvement but he clearly shined in this event.
Dame Sarr | FC Barcelona | 2006 | 6’6” | G | Italy/Senegal
18.0 PPG | 6.8 APG | 6.5 RPG | 0.5 SPG | 0.2 BPG | 40% 2PT | 28.6% 3PT | 66.7% FT | 3.0 TPG | 16.5 PIR
Dame Sarr has always been a scorer and he continued to show that skill. Off cuts, drives and even spotting up from the perimeter, Sarr was key to Barcelona’s dominance despite efficiency issues. He made plenty of plays for others as well, dishing assists out of the pick-and-roll and generally playing more on the ball and sharing initiation duties.
Abdramane Siby | Mega MIS Belgrade | 2006 | 7’0” | C | Mali
14.8 PPG | 11.8 RPG | 2.8 BPG | 1.5 SPG | 2.2 APG | 63.2% 2FG | 0% 3PT | 55% FT | 2.0 TPG | 24.9 PIR
More of the same from the Mega rim protector, as he completely locked down the paint and corralled missed shots. The center has truly been one of the more consistent prospects in Europe over the past two seasons and showed natural instincts on the defensive end. He upped his already good rebounding and assist numbers from the qualifiers.
Abubaki Yarmah | Overtime Elite | 2006 | 6’7” | G/F | United States
5.0 PPG | 3.3 RPG | 1.7 APG | 2.0 SPG | 0.7 BPG | 1.0 TPG | 25% 2PT | 28.6% 3PT | 50% FT | 6.0 PIR
Abubaki Yarmah was expected to ease his way in as his college recruitment begins to pick up and he moves from one tier to another. He showed good playmaking and shooting flashes, knocking down perimeter shots and making connective passes. He was a factor defensively as well.
Christopher Ebunangombe | INSEP | 2007 | 6’5” | G | France
0.5 PPG | 1.8 APG | 0.2 SPG | 50% 2PT | 0% 3PT | 0.5 RPG | 1.2 TPG | -0.2 PIR
Christopher Ebunangombe barely produced and rarely gets a chance to despite his obvious talent. Playing behind two older skilled point guards means less opportunity but a wealth of development opportunities. With Traoré’s return to INSEP, Ebunangombe didn’t produce as well as in the qualifiers as expected but still flashed the decisive playmaking that first intrigued us.
UNDERPERFORMED EXPECTATIONS ⬇️
Noa Essengue | Ratiopharm Ulm | 2006 | 6’9” | F/C | France/Cameroon
16.8 PPG | 12.5 RPG | 3.0 BPG | 1.8 SPG | 1.0 APG | 45% 2PT | 6.2% 3PT | 56% FT | 3.0 TPG | 20.5 PIR
Ratiopharm Ulm struggled generally, and Noa Essengue was no exception. Despite that, he showed good defensive flashes and attacked the basket aggressively no matter what defensive stopper was at the rim. Percentages suffered but it was encouraging seeing him continue to make plays on the glass.
Sidi Gueye | Real Madrid | 2007 | 6’10” | F/C | Senegal
6.2 PPG | 4.8 RPG | 1.0 APG | 0.6 SPG | 0.4 BPG | 53.8% 2FG | 0% 3PT | 75% FT | 2.2 TPG | 6.6 PIR
Sidi Gueye seemed to be heating up as the Podgorica qualifier progressed, upping his scoring with each passing game. Though he is clearly not a focal point of Real Madrid’s offense, we expected more of the same. He still played well, getting to the basket via drives, cuts, and post-ups while also finding room for midrange jumpers and using his imposing frame to carve out rebounding space.
Moustapha Diop | Overtime Elite | 2006 | 6’10” | F/C | Senegal
2.0 PPG | 3.0 RPG | 0.7 SPG | 0.7 BPG | 0.3 APG | 37.5% 2PT | 1.3 TPG | 1.7 PIR
As one of the top big men in his class in the US, Moustapha Diop showed some of the creativity and versatility that got him his ranking. Adjusting to his new team and drastically different opponents took time but he had an encouraging showing as he worked hard down low for offensive rebounds, paint points and a few blocks.