Guerschon Yabusele

Guerschon Yabusele
Yabusele in 2013. He is a tall, black man with short hair and no facial hair, wearing a white sports jersey.
Yabusele with Roanne in 2013
No. 28 – Philadelphia 76ers
PositionPower forward
LeagueNBA
Personal information
Born (1995-12-17) 17 December 1995 (age 29)
Dreux, France
NationalityFrench / Congolese[1]
Listed height2.04 m (6 ft 8 in)
Listed weight123 kg (271 lb)
Career information
NBA draft2016: 1st round, 16th overall pick
Selected by the Boston Celtics
Playing career2013–present
Career history
2013–2015Chorale Roanne
2015–2016Rouen Métropole
2016–2017Shanghai Sharks
2017–2019Boston Celtics
2017–2018→Maine Red Claws
2019–2020Nanjing Monkey Kings
2020–2021ASVEL
2021–2024Real Madrid
2024–presentPhiladelphia 76ers
Career highlights and awards
Stats at NBA.com Edit this at Wikidata
Stats at Basketball Reference Edit this at Wikidata
Medals
Men's basketball
Representing  France
Summer Olympics
Silver medal – second place 2020 Tokyo Team
Silver medal – second place 2024 Paris Team
EuroBasket
Silver medal – second place 2022 Germany

Guerschon Yabusele (French pronunciation: [ɡɛʁʃɔn jabuzele]; GAIR-shun YAH-boo-ZELL-ay; born 17 December 1995) is a French professional basketball player for the Philadelphia 76ers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Standing at 2.04 m (6 ft 8+1⁄2 in), he primarily plays at the power forward position. Yabusele represents the French national team in international competitions, with whom he won silver medals at the 2020 and 2024 Olympics.

Yabusele was considered one of the best international prospects for the 2016 NBA draft.[2][3][4][5] Yabusele was drafted with the 16th overall pick by the Boston Celtics and played for them from 2017 to 2019, splitting time with Boston's NBA G League affiliate, the Maine Red Claws. While in Boston, Yabusele became a fan favorite despite playing few minutes and was nicknamed "The Dancing Bear."[6] Yabusele has also played in the Chinese Basketball Association and the lower-level French LNB Pro B. He signed with Real Madrid in 2021, and won a EuroLeague title in 2023.

Early life

Yabusele was born and raised in Dreux, France, to parents who emigrated from The Democratic Republic of Congo.[7] In his youth, Yabusele trained as a boxer.[8] He began playing basketball with the youth sections of Chorale Roanne Basket in 2012, competing with their under-21 team.[9]

Professional career

Chorale Roanne (2013–2015)

Yabusele joined the Chorale Roanne team in the LNB Pro B in 2013 and finished the season averaging 1.5 points per game in 8 appearances. The next season, he averaged six points, four rebounds, and 1.7 assists.[9]

Rouen Métropole (2015–2016)

Yabusele signed with Rouen Métropole Basket of the LNB Pro A, the top league in France, in the summer of 2015. He made the decision to help his NBA draft stock.[10] Yabusele wound up being one of 13 international underclassmen, and one of four Frenchmen, to officially enter their names for the 2016 NBA draft. He was projected to be either a late first round or early second round selection but surprised many by going 16th overall in the draft to Boston.[11][12] Yabusele joined the Boston Celtics for the 2016 NBA Summer League.[13]

Shanghai Sharks (2016–2017)

On 21 July 2016, Yabusele signed a deal with the Shanghai Sharks of the Chinese Basketball Association.[14] In 43 games for the Sharks, he averaged 20.9 points and 9.4 rebounds.[15] Yabusele was named a CBA All-Star for his production with the Sharks.

Boston Celtics / Maine Red Claws (2017–2019)

On 29 March 2017, Yabusele signed with the Maine Red Claws of the NBA Development League[15] and on 20 July, he signed with the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association.[16] He made his debut on 20 October, finishing with the statline of 3 points and 1 rebound in just 3 minutes of action in a 102–92 win against the Philadelphia 76ers.[17] During his rookie season, he received multiple assignments to the Maine Red Claws.[18] Yabusele's career highs all occurred during the 2017–18 season. His high in rebounds (6) came in a 111–104 win against the Chicago Bulls, his career high in assists (5) came in a 125–124 loss to the Washington Wizards, and his career high in points (16) came in a 110–97 win against the Brooklyn Nets.[19] On 10 July 2019, Yabusele was waived by the Celtics.

Nanjing Monkey Kings (2019–2020)

On 17 August 2019, Yabusele signed with the Nanjing Monkey Kings, returning to the CBA for the 2019–20 season.[20]

ASVEL (2020–2021)

On 25 February 2020, Yabusele signed with ASVEL of the French LNB Pro A.[21] Yabusele re-signed with the team on 1 June.[22]

Real Madrid (2021–2024)

On 12 July 2021, Yabusele signed a one-year contract with Spanish powerhouse Real Madrid of the Liga ACB and the EuroLeague.[23] On 9 January 2022, he signed a three-year contract extension with Real Madrid, keeping him until the end of the 2024–25 season.[24] On 29 August 2024, he left Real Madrid.[25]

Philadelphia 76ers (2024–present)

On 29 August 2024, Yabusele signed with the Philadelphia 76ers.[26] On 10 November, Yabusele scored a career–high 20 points with 8 rebounds in a 107–105 victory over the Charlotte Hornets.[27]

National team career

Junior team

Yabusele played for the France under-18 team at the 2013 FIBA Europe Under-18 Championship and later with the under-20 team at the 2014 FIBA Europe Under-20 Championship and the 2015 FIBA Europe Under-20 Championship.

Senior team

He played with Les Bleus at the 2020 Olympics, where he won a silver medal, as well as at EuroBasket 2022, once again winning silver. He also played at the 2023 World Cup.[28]

He played a key role in France's campaign at 2024 Olympics. Despite having a minor role in the preliminary round, he led the team to a quarter-final victory over Canada with 22 points and 5 rebounds.[29] He then scored 17 points on 7-for-11 shooting, as well as 7 rebounds, to lead France to a semi-final win over Germany, to qualify for their second straight Olympic final.[30][29] In the final against the United States, Yabusele scored 20 points, including a baseline poster dunk on LeBron James, before eventually losing and finishing with a silver medal.[31] After the tournament, he was named to the tournament's All-Second Team.[32]

Career statistics

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field-goal percentage  3P%  3-point field-goal percentage  FT%  Free-throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  PIR  Performance Index Rating
 Bold  Career high

NBA

Regular season

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2017–18 Boston 33 4 7.1 .426 .324 .682 1.6 .5 .1 .2 2.4
2018–19 Boston 41 1 6.1 .455 .321 .682 1.3 .4 .2 .2 2.3
Career 74 5 7.1 .442 .323 .682 1.4 .4 .2 .2 2.3

Playoffs

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2018 Boston 12 0 4.0 .111 .000 .400 .9 .3 .2 .0 .3
2019 Boston 4 0 3.5 .500 .000 .571 .5 .3 .0 .3 2.0
Career 16 0 3.9 .231 .000 .500 .8 .3 .1 .1 .8

EuroLeague

† Denotes seasons in which Yabusele won the EuroLeague
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG PIR
2019–20 ASVEL 2 1 23.0 .429 .400 — 3.5 — 2.5 1.0 8.0 6.5
2020–21 30 26 25.1 .465 .384 .714 4.2 1.2 .8 .6 11.0 11.0
2021–22 Real Madrid 36 34 27.6 .502 .402 .789 4.8 1.7 1.0 .3 11.9 13.5
2022–23† 29 16 23.8 .510 .421 .710 4.0 1.3 .8 .3 9.7 11.4
2023–24 27 13 23.6 .565 .461 .868 4.9 1.0 .8 .2 10.5 14.2
Career 124 90 25.2 .504 .411 .770 4.4 1.3 .9 .3 10.8 12.4

References

  1. ^ "Guerschon Yabusele , (France) - Basketball Stats, Height, Age". FIBA Basketball. Retrieved 16 November 2024.
  2. ^ Vecenie, Sam. "NBA Draft Prospect Rankings". CBS Sports. Retrieved 9 March 2016.
  3. ^ "Guerschon Yabusele". DraftExpress.com. Retrieved 9 March 2016.
  4. ^ "Guerschon Yabusele". NBADraft.net. Retrieved 9 March 2016.
  5. ^ "A list of international players who might tempt the Sixers". The Philadelphia Inquirer. 5 February 2016. Retrieved 9 March 2016.
  6. ^ "Guerschon Yabusele Reportedly Getting Waived Leads To Some Wild Twitter Reactions | Boston Celtics | NESN.com". 10 July 2019. Retrieved 11 January 2020.
  7. ^ Wang, Kevin (8 March 2017). "Meet Guerschon Yabusele, the Celtics' big, French 'dancing bear'". ESPN.com. Retrieved 18 October 2018.
  8. ^ "Phoenix Suns Pre-Draft Workouts Day 9: A Diamond in the Rough?". BrightSideOfTheSun.com. 3 June 2016. Retrieved 29 August 2024.
  9. ^ a b "Guerschon Yabusele". Eurobasket.com. Retrieved 9 March 2016.
  10. ^ Lacoste, Alexandre. "Guerschon Yabusele Trois Ans À Rouen". BeBasket.fr (in French). Archived from the original on 7 July 2015. Retrieved 9 March 2016.
  11. ^ "DraftExpress - Guerschon Yabusele DraftExpress Profile: Stats, Comparisons, and Outlook". DraftExpress.com. Retrieved 29 August 2024.
  12. ^ "Boston Celtics 2016 Draft Results". NBA.com. 24 June 2016. Retrieved 24 September 2016.
  13. ^ "Celtics Announce 2016 Summer League Roster". NBA.com. 1 July 2016. Retrieved 1 April 2017.
  14. ^ "上海正式签下绿军首轮秀亚布塞莱". ShanghaiSharks.cn (in Chinese). 2 August 2016. Archived from the original on 21 April 2019. Retrieved 8 August 2016.
  15. ^ a b "Celtics First-Rounder Guerschon Yabusele Joins Maine Red Claws". NBA.com. 29 March 2017. Retrieved 1 April 2017.
  16. ^ "Boston Celtics Sign Guerschon Yabusele". NBA.com. 20 July 2017. Retrieved 15 April 2018.
  17. ^ "Irving, Horford lead Celtics past 76ers for 1st win". ESPN.com. 20 October 2017. Retrieved 15 April 2018.
  18. ^ "2017-2018 Maine Red Claws Transactions History". RealGM.com. Retrieved 15 April 2018.
  19. ^ "Guerschon Yabusele Stats". Basketball-Reference.com. Retrieved 13 December 2020.
  20. ^ "Guerschon Yabusele signs with team in Chinese Basketball Association". 985TheSportsHub.com. 17 August 2019. Retrieved 29 August 2024.
  21. ^ Carchia, Emiliano (25 February 2020). "Guerschon Yabusele signs with Asvel". Sportando.basketball. Retrieved 25 February 2020.
  22. ^ Carchia, Emiliano (1 June 2020). "Guerschon Yabusele re-signs with Asvel". Sportando.basketball. Retrieved 1 June 2020.
  23. ^ "Yabusele, new Real Madrid player". RealMadrid.com. 12 July 2021. Retrieved 12 July 2022.
  24. ^ "Comunicado Oficial: Yabusele". RealMadrid.com (in Spanish). 9 January 2022. Retrieved 9 January 2022.
  25. ^ "Comunicado Oficial: Yabusele". RealMadrid.com (in Spanish). 29 August 2024. Retrieved 29 August 2024.
  26. ^ "Philadelphia 76ers Sign Guerschon Yabusele". NBA.com. 29 August 2024. Retrieved 29 August 2024.
  27. ^ "Guerschon Yabasele drops 20 points Sunday". fantasypros.com. Retrieved 3 December 2024.
  28. ^ "Guerschon YABUSELE at the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023". FIBA.basketball (in Italian). Retrieved 8 August 2024.
  29. ^ a b ""Dancing Bear" Yabusele is France's "Knockout King"". FIBA.basketball. 8 August 2024. Retrieved 8 August 2024.
  30. ^ "France defense bottles up Schroder and Franz". FIBA.basketball. 8 August 2024. Retrieved 8 August 2024.
  31. ^ "It's Steph's world: Curry's hot shooting gets USA another gold". FIBA.basketball. 10 August 2024. Retrieved 11 August 2024.
  32. ^ "Gilgeous-Alexander, Bogdanovic, F. Wagner, Yabusele, Antetokounmpo named to Paris 2024 All-Second Team". FIBA.basketball. 10 August 2024. Retrieved 11 August 2024.