Basketball has spawned a universe of stars. Luminaries like Michael Jordan, Shaquille O’Neal, LeBron James and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar have thrilled spectators with their speed, power, aggression and grace.
Players from as far afield as Tanzania, Senegal, Cameroon and the Congo have lived the dream of the NBA. Who can forget Haseem Thabeet, Gorgui Dieng, Luc Mbah a Moute and Serge Ibaka… and the All-African impression they’ve made on the US basketball league?
In players like
Chonga Chona,
Mumba Mwansa and
Simukwela Lubinda, Zambia has a coterie of talented pretenders to the NBA throne. From South Africa to Sudan, there’s a legion of young men whose pin-point passing, defensive skills and rebound prowess has the potential to propel them to the summit of the sport.
Right now, the rising stars of slum-dunk are born and bred Americans. They’re young, eager and built for the big time of the
NBA.
Here are three young men who coaches, pundits and former NBA All-Stars believe have the right stuff to follow in the footsteps of giants:
Donovan Mitchell
Image Source: ftw.usatoday.com
Donovan Mitchell is the shooting guard for Utah Jazz. At just 22-years of age the super talented New Yorker has already appeared on the cover of Slam magazine. His scoring stats in a qualified season are so impressive, only the likes of Shaquille O’Neal and Michael Jordan have racked up better numbers.
In his rookie season Mitchell made it into the NBA All-Rookie First team, bagged the Slam Dunk Contest and chased several NBA records. The 37 points he scored against the Memphis Grizzlies was an NBA Summer League record for 2017.
In a match-up against the New Orleans Pelicans, Mitchell became the first NBA rookie in six years to score 40 points in a game. When he replicated his heroics against the Phoenix Suns, he pulled off a feat last achieved more than two decades previously.
His 55 points in the first two post-season games saw him shattering Michael Jordan’s record and with a lucrative multi-year sponsorship deal with Adidas under his belt, Donovan Mitchell is clearly destined for big things!
Jayson Tatum
Image Source: weei.radio.com
Star small forward for the Boston Celtics,
Jayson Tatum is young, talented and exciting. He shone during the summer league and on debut recorded a 14 point and 10 rebound double-double against the Cleveland Cavaliers. In December 2017 he scooped up the Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month award and went on to be named in the NBA All-Rookie First Team.
In the 2018 NBA playoffs Tatum scored a career high of 28 points against the Philadelphia 79ers. In so doing he became the first Celtic rookie to reach the milestone of 25 points or more in the play offs since Larry Bird.
By the end of the playoffs he’d recorded more than 20 points in ten games, an achievement matched by only one other rookie in the history of the NBA… and that was none other than Kareem Abdul-Jabber!
Devin Booker
Image Source: si.com
Devin Booker is the points scoring machine of the NBA. The shooting guard of the Phoenix Suns made his NBA debut at 18 years of age. Despite his youth, Booker has already made a mark on the history of the sport.
The 1.98-meter giant from Michigan is the fifth youngest player ever to score a double-double. He’s also the third youngest player, after Kevin Durant and LeBron James, to record a 30-point game and reach 4,000 points in the NBA!
The only aspect of Booker’s game that could have a negative effect on his rise to super stardom is his average defensive skills.
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