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Yannick Nzosa

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Yannick Nzosa
Nzosa with Unicaja Malaga in 2022
No. 3 – Carplus Fuenlabrada
PositionCenter
LeaguePrimera FEB
Personal information
Born (2003-11-15) 15 November 2003 (age 21)
Kinshasa, DR Congo
Listed height2.08 m (6 ft 10 in)
Listed weight88.5 kg (195 lb)
Career information
NBA draft2022: 2nd round, 54th overall pick
Selected by the Washington Wizards
Playing career2020–present
Career history
2020–presentUnicaja
2022–2023→ Coosur Real Betis
2023–2024→ Movistar Estudiantes
2024–present→ Fuenlabrada
Career highlights and awards
Stats at Basketball Reference Edit this at Wikidata

Yannick Nzosa Manzila (born 15 November 2003) is a Congolese professional basketball player for Fuenlabrada of the Primera FEB, on loan from Unicaja Malaga. He was drafted by the Washington Wizards in the second round of the 2022 NBA Draft.

Early life and youth career

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Nzosa was born and raised in the suburbs of Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo.[1] He grew up playing association football as a goalkeeper. At age 12, Nzosa was discovered by a friend of a coach of local club New Generation, with whom he started his basketball career. One year later, he tried to enroll at Canterbury Academy in Las Palmas, Spain, with the help of former player Anicet Lavodrama, but was denied a visa.[2] In 2017, Nzosa began playing for Italian club Stella Azzurra Roma.[1] Teammates Paul Eboua and Jordan Bayehe helped him learn to speak Italian.[3] In February 2019, Nzosa played for Stella Azzurra's under-18 team at the Kaunas Tournament, a qualifier for the Adidas Next Generation Tournament (ANGT), and was named to the all-tournament team.[4]

For the 2019–20 season, Nzosa was loaned to Stella Azzurra's affiliated team, Roseto Sharks of the Serie A2 Basket.[5] On 6 September 2019, he was picked up from his hotel by his mentor, Joe Lolonga, prior to a preseason training session, without the consent of his club to travel to Málaga and join Spanish club Unicaja Málaga.[1] Stella Azzurra filed a police report against Lolonga, who had been unhappy with the club's training of Nzosa, for kidnapping.[6] Nzosa announced on social media that he was moving to Unicaja and denied reports that he had been kidnapped.[7] He trained with Unicaja Andalucía, the reserve team of Unicaja competing in the Liga EBA, but was not allowed to play in professional matches due to a dispute between Unicaja and Stella Azzurra over his rights.[8][9] In December 2019, he represented the club's under-18 team at the ANGT Valencia Tournament, earning all-tournament team honors.[10][11]

Professional career

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On 31 March 2020, Nzosa signed a five-year contract with Unicaja of the Liga ACB after FIBA Europe ruled in favor of the club in its dispute with Stella Azzurra.[12][13] The deal included a clause of about €1 million to allow him to leave for the National Basketball Association and the EuroLeague.[13] Stella Azzurra received €25,000 in compensation for his transfer.[14]

In the 2020–21 season, Nzosa joined Unicaja's senior team and immediately became a key player.[15] On 27 September, at 16 years and 10 months of age, he made his Liga ACB debut. In 18 minutes, he recorded 10 points, shooting 5-of-5 from the field, three rebounds and two blocks in an 81–78 win over Andorra. He joined Ricky Rubio and Luka Dončić as the only 16-year-olds in league history to score at least 10 points in a game, while becoming the second-youngest debutant in team history behind Pablo Sánchez.[16] Two days later, Nzosa made his EuroCup debut, going scoreless in nine minutes in a 96–88 win over Metropolitans 92.[17] On 3 October, he scored 10 points on 4-of-4 shooting in a 90–86 loss to Manresa, becoming the first under-18 player to score 10 or more points in their first two ACB games.[18] On 11 October, Nzosa recorded four rebounds, four blocks, three assists, three steals and two points in a 71–66 victory over Valencia. He surpassed Kristaps Porziņģis as the youngest player in league history with least four blocks in a game.[19] On 9 March 2021, Nzosa posted a season-high 16 points and four blocks in a 98–89 loss to AS Monaco.[20] He was named to the ACB All-Young Players Team.[21]

From April 2021, Nzosa was sidelined for five months with athletic pubalgia and was cleared to play by September.[22][23] His play declined in the 2021–22 season, and he fell from a potential top-five pick to a late-second-round selection in the 2022 NBA draft, according to draft projections.[24] He was selected with the 54th overall pick by the Washington Wizards, while remaining under contract with Unicaja.[25] For the 2022–23 season, Nzosa was loaned to Real Betis Baloncesto.[26]

On 29 August 2024, Nzosa signed with Carplus Fuenlabrada of the Primera FEB on loan from Unicaja.[27]

Personal life

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Nzosa's father works in China, while his mother lives in a village in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.[1] His parents are divorced.[28] He has four sisters and one brother.[3] Nzosa's legal guardian is Joe Lolonga, a family friend and technical director of the Democratic Republic of Congo Basketball Federation. Lolonga facilitated his move to Stella Azzurra in 2017 and has acted as his mentor and manager.[29]

Nzosa speaks French, Lingala, Portuguese, Italian and Spanish, and is learning to speak English.[30] He is in the process of becoming a naturalized Spanish citizen and eligible to play for the national team.[31] He idolizes NBA player Giannis Antetokounmpo.[32]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d Nigro, Giuseppe (9 September 2019). ""Yannick è stato rapito". La fuga a Malaga (col mentore) del talento Nzosa". La Gazzetta dello Sport (in Italian). Retrieved 3 April 2020.
  2. ^ Puertas, José Manuel (29 September 2020). "Yannick Nzosa: frenesí y vértigo de un portero de Kinshasa, por José Manuel Puertas". Kia en Zona (in Spanish). Retrieved 29 September 2020.
  3. ^ a b Maggitti, Luca (8 September 2019). "Il ratto di Yannick Nzosa". Roseto (in Italian). Retrieved 3 April 2020.
  4. ^ "Kriisa named MVP of ANGT Kaunas". Euroleague Basketball Next Generation Tournament. 10 February 2019. Retrieved 3 April 2020.
  5. ^ Maggi, Alessandro (10 September 2019). "Il "caso" Yannick Nzosa, il prospetto scippato alla Stella Azzurra Roma". Sportando (in Italian). Retrieved 3 April 2020.
  6. ^ María Noguera, Jesús (18 September 2021). "Nzosa y el consejo de su madre: "Tu momento llegará"". Málaga Hoy (in Spanish). Retrieved 18 September 2021.
  7. ^ Rapone, Marco (9 September 2019). "Nzosa in fuga, Roseto perde un talento". il Centro (in Italian). Retrieved 14 September 2020.
  8. ^ Olías, José Manuel (8 September 2018). "El Unicaja echa las redes sobre Yannick Nzosa". Málaga Hoy (in Spanish). Retrieved 3 April 2020.
  9. ^ Fernández, Emilio (31 March 2020). "FIBA Europa resuelve a favor del Unicaja el caso de Yannick Nzosa". La Opinión de Málaga (in Spanish). Retrieved 3 April 2020.
  10. ^ "MVP Montero heads ANGT Valencia all-tourney team". Euroleague Basketball Next Generation Tournament. 29 December 2019. Retrieved 3 April 2020.
  11. ^ "Nzosa, elegido en el quinteto ideal del Adidas Next Generation". Málaga Hoy (in Spanish). 29 December 2019. Retrieved 3 April 2020.
  12. ^ "Malaga to officially incorporate youngster Yannick Nzosa". EuroHoops. 31 March 2020. Retrieved 3 April 2020.
  13. ^ a b Calderón, Juan (2 April 2020). "El Unicaja blinda a Yannick Nzosa como a una estrella". Diario Sur. p. es. Retrieved 15 September 2020.
  14. ^ Calderón, Juan (10 September 2020). "En Estados Unidos ya preparan el salto de Yannick Nzosa a la NBA". Diario Sur (in Spanish). Retrieved 15 September 2020.
  15. ^ María Noguera, Jesús (30 January 2021). "Yannick Nzosa, una luz en el túnel". Málaga Hoy (in Spanish). Retrieved 11 September 2021.
  16. ^ Calderón, Juan (27 September 2020). "Yannick Nzosa, ha nacido una estrella". Diario Sur (in Spanish). Retrieved 27 September 2020.
  17. ^ Gallardo, Antonio (29 September 2020). "El Unicaja se estrena con victoria en la Eurocup". Diario AS (in Spanish). Retrieved 29 September 2020.
  18. ^ Fuentes, Alberto (4 October 2020). "Yannick Nzosa, el niño de los récords". La Opinión de Málaga (in Spanish). Retrieved 4 October 2020.
  19. ^ "Nzosa supera a Porzingis, el más joven en poner cuatro tapones en un partido ACB". Marca (in Spanish). 12 October 2020. Retrieved 12 October 2020.
  20. ^ "Mar 9, 2021 - AS Monaco Basket 98 at Unicaja 89". RealGM. 9 March 2021. Retrieved 18 September 2021.
  21. ^ "Mejor Quinteto Joven de la Liga Endesa 2020-21". Liga ACB. 26 April 2021. Retrieved 11 September 2021.
  22. ^ Manuel Olías, José (2 September 2021). "Un 'fichaje' Yannick llamado Nzosa". Málaga Hoy (in Spanish). Retrieved 18 September 2021.
  23. ^ Ángel Gutierrez, Miguel (4 September 2021). "Tras cinco meses, Nzosa vuelve con fuerza". Málaga Hoy (in Spanish). Retrieved 18 September 2021.
  24. ^ Noguera, Jesús María (18 June 2022). "El panorama de Yannick Nzosa". Málaga Hoy (in Spanish). Retrieved 23 June 2022.
  25. ^ Robbins, Josh (13 July 2022). "Wizards summer-league diary: Yannick Nzosa visits, Delon Wright excited for opportunity". The Athletic. Retrieved 18 July 2022.
  26. ^ "Acuerdo con el Unicaja Málaga para la cesión de Yannick Nzosa". realbetisbalompie.es (in Spanish). 3 August 2022. Retrieved 3 August 2022.
  27. ^ "Yannick Nzosa, nuevo pívot para el Fuenlabrada". BaloncestoFuenlabrada.com (in Spanish). 29 August 2024. Retrieved 29 August 2024.
  28. ^ Calderón, Juan (17 September 2021). "Las confesiones de Nzosa: "Hubo un momento en el que pensé en volver a Italia porque no jugaba"". Diario Sur. Retrieved 18 September 2021.
  29. ^ Solé, Gerard (8 September 2019). "Nuevas informaciones de la situación de Nzosa, el joven talento que ha dejado Stella Azzurra". Gigantes del Basket (in Spanish). Retrieved 3 April 2020.
  30. ^ Calle, Franklyn (10 May 2021). "2022 NBA Draft Prospect Yannick Nzosa is Ready to Make the Congo Proud". Slam. Retrieved 11 September 2021.
  31. ^ Manuel Olías, José (23 October 2020). "La FEB y el Unicaja trabajan para que Yannick Nzosa pueda jugar con España". Málaga Hoy (in Spanish). Retrieved 11 September 2021.
  32. ^ María Noguera, Jesús (10 February 2021). "El otro Nzosa: estudiante brillante, aficionado al ajedrez y una rutina de 1.000 tiros al día". Málaga Hoy (in Spanish). Retrieved 11 September 2021.
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