Sekou Doumbouya

Sekou Oumar Doumbouya (born 23 December 2000) is a French professional basketball player for Chorale Roanne Basket of the LNB Pro A.

He plays both the small forward and power forward positions.

Born in Conakry, Guinea, Doumbouya grew up in Paris, France and began his career with local club CJF Les Aubrais when he was 13.

In the following year, he attended INSEP and played for amateur team Centre Fédéral.

In turn, Doumbouya became the first player born in the 2000s to play in the top three French leagues.

He made his 2015–16 season debut on 26 September 2015, recording 12 points, five rebounds, and three steals against Aurore de Vitré.

His professional career started in 2016, when he joined Poitiers Basket 86 in the second-tier league of France, remaining with the team for two seasons.

He helped France win the gold medal at the 2016 FIBA Europe Under-18 Championship, finishing as his team's leading scorer.

Doumbouya was born in Conakry, Guinea.

As a one-year-old, he moved to France with his mother M'Mah Marie, three siblings, and one cousin, settling in a small apartment in Fleury-les-Aubrais.

His father, who was unable to receive a visa, remained in Guinea as a member of its military.

In the absence of his father, Sekou became a leader for the rest of his family, often advising his siblings.

Doumbouya grew up playing football as a striker but was eventually hindered by his extraordinary height.

At age 12, he began playing pick-up basketball after a friend introduced him to the sport.

At that age, he was discovered by local basketball coach Benoist Burguet, who helped start his basketball career and later became his trainer.

By age 13, when Doumbouya stood 2.02m, he was playing youth basketball with his local club CJF Les Aubrais, the basketball sports section of Collège Condorcet.

In May 2016, Doumbouya represented French sports institute INSEP at the under-18 2015–16 Adidas Next Generation Tournament, averaging 14 points, 3.7 rebounds, and three assists while being one of the youngest players at the event at age 16.

After the season, he was dismissed from INSEP for disciplinary reasons.

At age 14, Doumbouya moved to the renowned French sports institute INSEP in Paris and joined its affiliated club Centre Fédéral de Basket-ball, a member of the Nationale Masculine 1 (NM1), the amateur third-tier division of French basketball.

On 8 March 2016, he scored a season-high 23 points in a loss to Vendée Challans.

Doumbouya finished the season averaging 10.6 points, 3.3 rebounds, 1.2 assists, and 1.4 steals per game.

On 26 August 2016, at age 15, Doumbouya signed his first professional contract with Poitiers Basket 86 of the LNB Pro B, the second-tier French league.

At the time, he revealed his hopes to play in the National Basketball Association (NBA) within the following three years.

In the season, Doumbouya saw regular playing time despite his lack of experience, being coached by Ruddy Nelhomme and playing alongside veterans like Jeff Greer.

While with Poitiers, he attended private school to work towards his diploma, and tried to model the focus he saw in former NBA player Michael Jordan with the help of a sports psychologist.

On 17 September 2016, Doumbouya made his professional debut, playing 13 minutes in an LNB Pro B Leaders Cup victory over Boulazac.

In his first Pro B season game on 14 October 2016, he scored two points in six minutes off the bench against Étoile Charleville-Mézières.

He scored double figures for the first time on 20 January 2017, in an 81–63 loss to Fos Provence, posting a team-high 16 points on 7-of-11 shooting.

In his next game, a defeat to Lille Métropole, Doumbouya scored a season-high 21 points and nine rebounds, shooting 3-of-3 from the three-point line.

He finished the season averaging 6.8 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 0.8 assists in 16.9 minutes per game.

Doumbouya, on 29 June 2017, signed a three-year contract extension with Poitiers.

On 29 September, he notched a double-double of 15 points and 12 rebounds in a 76–71 win over Hermine Nantes at the LNB Pro B Leaders Cup.

Doumbouya debuted in the 2017–18 Pro B season against Denain Voltaire on 13 October 2017, recording seven points and four rebounds in 16 minutes.

On 22 December, he scored a season-best 19 points and eight rebounds in a loss to Saint-Chamond.

In 2018, Doumbouya moved to the first division by signing with Limoges CSP.

Doumbouya eclipsed that mark on 2 February 2018, in a career-high 26-point effort against UJAP Quimper 29.

In 28 games, he averaged 8.5 points, 4.1 rebounds, and one assist in 23.2 minutes per game, en route to earning Pro B Best Young Player honors.

After one season, he was selected by the Pistons with the fifteenth pick in the 2019 NBA draft.

In his rookie season, he was the youngest active player in the NBA.

Doumbouya is a member of the youth sections of the France national team.