Oumar Ballo (basketball)

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For the association football player, see Oumar Ballo (football).
Oumar Ballo
No. 21 – Arizona Wildcats
PositionCenter
LeaguePac-12 Conference
Personal information
Born (2002-07-13) 13 July 2002 (age 19)
Koulikoro, Mali
NationalityMalian
Listed height7 ft 0 in (2.13 m)
Listed weight260 lb (118 kg)
Career information
High schoolCanterbury Academy
(Las Palmas, Spain)
College
Career highlights and awards
  • WCC All-Freshman Team (2021)
hide
Medals
Men's basketball
Representing  Mali
FIBA Under-19 World Cup
Silver medal – second place 2019 Greece Team
FIBA Africa U18 Championship
Gold medal – first place 2018 Mali Team
FIBA Africa U16 Championship
Gold medal – first place 2017 Mauritius

Oumar Ballo (born 13 July 2002) is a Malian college basketball player for the Arizona Wildcats of the Pac-12 Conference. He previously played for the Gonzaga Bulldogs. Listed at 7 feet 0 inches (2.13 m) and 260 pounds (118 kg), he plays the center position.

Early life and career[]

Ballo grew up in Koulikoro, Mali playing football as a goalkeeper but shifted his focus to basketball due to his exceptional height.[1][2] His mother and brother, who had moved to France at age 15 to play the latter sport, encouraged him to switch to basketball.[1] As a child, Ballo idolized National Basketball Association (NBA) player Shaquille O'Neal.[3]

High school career[]

When he was 11 years old, Ballo began training with coach Mohamed Diarra in his hometown, eventually earning an invitation from Canterbury Academy, a British private school in Las Palmas, Spain.[4] He enrolled as a full-time student, despite not knowing Spanish or English, and started practicing basketball three times per day.[1] In May 2017, Ballo was named most valuable player (MVP) of the Spanish Under-16 Championship after helping Canterbury finish in third place, behind bigger clubs like Barcelona and Real Madrid, and leading the tournament in rebounds.[1][5] In 2018, he averaged 15.1 points, 10.8 rebounds, and 2.3 blocks per game at the Spanish Junior Championship, earning MVP honors.[6]

In October 2018, Ballo moved to NBA Academy Latin America, a training center in Mexico City sponsored by the NBA, CONADE, and Mexican Basketball Federation.[5][7] He missed a large portion of the 2018–19 season with an ankle injury.[8] In February 2019, Ballo played at the Basketball Without Borders camp at 2019 NBA All-Star Weekend in Charlotte, North Carolina, where he was one of the youngest participants.[9]

Recruiting[]

In 2019, Ballo reclassified from the 2020 recruiting class to the 2019 class and was subsequently rated a four-star recruit by 247Sports and a five-star recruit by Rivals.[10][11] On 23 February 2019, he verbally committed to Gonzaga over offers from Arizona and Baylor, among others.[12][9]

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Oumar Ballo
C 		Koulikoro, Mali NBA Academy Latin America (MX) 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 245 lb (111 kg) Feb 23, 2019 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals:5/5 stars   247Sports:4/5 stars    ESPN: N/A   ESPN grade: —
Overall recruiting rankings:   Rivals: —  247Sports: 66  ESPN: —
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "Gonzaga 2019 Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved September 12, 2020.
  • "2019 Gonzaga Bulldogs Recruiting Class". ESPN.com. Retrieved September 12, 2020.
  • "2019 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved September 12, 2020.

College career[]

On 28 October 2019, Ballo was ruled an academic redshirt for the 2019–20 season by the National Collegiate Athletic Association.[13] As a freshman, he averaged 2.5 points and 1.5 rebounds per game, earning West Coast Conference (WCC) All-Freshman Team honors. After the season, Ballo transferred to Arizona to play for head coach Tommy Lloyd, who had recruited him to Gonzaga.[14]

National team career[]

Ballo played for Mali at the 2017 FIBA Under-16 African Championship in Vacoas-Phoenix, Mauritius. He averaged 14.4 points and 12.8 rebounds per game, winning the gold medal while making the tournament All-Star Five.[15] Playing for Mali at the 2018 FIBA Under-17 World Cup in Argentina, Ballo averaged 20.6 points and a tournament-high 16.9 rebounds per game and was named to the All-Star Five.[16] On 7 July 2018, he recorded 32 points and a tournament-record 32 rebounds in a 110–108 triple overtime loss to the Dominican Republic.[17] Ballo won a gold medal with Mali at the 2018 FIBA Under-18 African Championship in Bamako, Mali. He averaged 8.5 points and six rebounds per game.[18]

Ballo competed at the 2019 FIBA Under-19 World Cup in Heraklion, Greece, missing the first two games due to visa issues.[19][20] In five games, he averaged 17.6 points, 11.8 rebounds, and 3.8 blocks per game, leading Mali to a silver medal, the best performance by an African team at a global basketball tournament.[20] Ballo was named to the All-Star Five with teammate Siriman Kanouté.[21]

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  Bold  Career high

College[]

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2019–20 Gonzaga
Redshirt Redshirt
2020–21 Gonzaga 24 0 6.3 .629 .000 .552 1.5 .1 .2 .3 2.5

Personal life[]

Ballo's mother and father stand 1.96 m (6 ft 5 in) and 2.03 m (6 ft 8 in) respectively. His older brother, Drissa, who stands 2.08 m (6 ft 10 in) and weighs 118 kg (260 lbs), plays professional basketball in France.[1]

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e Givony, Jonathan (2 August 2017). "Mali's Oumar Ballo has a little Shaq and a lot of potential in his game". ESPN. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  2. ^ "Basket-ball malien : Qui sont Oumar Ballo et Siraman Kanouté, les deux prodiges de l'équipe nationale cadette ?" (in French). Maliweb.net. 20 July 2018. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  3. ^ ""Target" Ballo shooting for Quarters, inspire young Malians". FIBA. 4 July 2018. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  4. ^ Weiss, Dick (23 February 2019). "Gonzaga adds African star Oumar Ballo to Class of 2019". BlueStar Media. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  5. ^ Jump up to: a b "Oumar Ballo, perla formada en España, se va a la NBA Academy de América Latina" (in Spanish). Gigantes del Basket. 11 October 2018. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  6. ^ Hidalgo, Luis (16 May 2018). "Te presentamos a Oumar Ballo: MVP del Campeonato de España junior… ¡con solo 15 años!" (in Spanish). Kia en Zona. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  7. ^ "NBA Academy Latin America". National Basketball Association. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  8. ^ Givony, Jonathan (12 February 2019). "International prospects to show skills during All-Star Weekend". ESPN. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  9. ^ Jump up to: a b Givony, Jonathan (23 February 2019). "Oumar Ballo, 16-year-old Malian center, commits to Gonzaga". ESPN. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  10. ^ Daniels, Evan (7 February 2019). "International star Oumar Ballo sets official visit to Gonzaga". 247Sports. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  11. ^ "Oumar Ballo, 2019 Center". Rivals. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  12. ^ Meehan, Jim (23 February 2019). "Mali center Oumar Ballo orally commits to Gonzaga". The Spokesman-Review. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  13. ^ Meehan, Jim (28 October 2019). "Gonzaga freshman center Oumar Ballo ruled academic redshirt for 2019-20 season". The Spokesman-Review. Retrieved 18 May 2020.
  14. ^ Scheer, Jason (19 April 2021). "Oumar Ballo transferring to Arizona". 247Sports. Retrieved 20 April 2021.
  15. ^ "Mali coach Kane brings back historic U16 champions for U17 camp". FIBA. 8 June 2018. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  16. ^ "USA's Jalen Green wins U17 World Cup MVP, tops All-Star Five". FIBA. 9 July 2018. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  17. ^ "Mali big man Ballo shatters U17 World Cup rebound record by 10!". FIBA. 7 July 2018. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  18. ^ "Oumar Ballo (MLI)'s profile". FIBA. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  19. ^ Cassini, Andrea (29 June 2019). "FIBA U19 World Cup: 5 Underdogs To Keep An Eye On". Sporting News. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  20. ^ Jump up to: a b "Does Mali have one more surprise left to capture U19 World Cup throne?". FIBA. 6 July 2019. Retrieved 7 July 2019.
  21. ^ Skerletic, Dario (7 July 2019). "Team USA beats Mali, claim the FIBA Under 19 Basketball World Cup 2019". Sportando. Retrieved 7 July 2019.

External links[]

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