Last week, Baylor commit Tounde Yessoufou became a viral sensation after clips of him practicing for the Nike Hoops Summit surfaced and left fans feeling like they had seen a mirror image of Minnesota Timberwolves rising star Anthony Edwards.
Baylor’s Tounde Yessoufou On Path To Make NBA History
At 6-foot-6 and 210 pounds, Yessoufou’s build, athleticism, movements were reminiscent of the 23-year-old three-time All-Star. He even wears a No. 5 jersey. Now that he has everyone’s attention, he’s showing the same gusto that Edwards is known for as well.
Baylor commit Tounde Yessoufou is a freak athlete
@ToundeYessoufou @nikehoopsummit pic.twitter.com/wUPrieIxM9
— B/R Hoops (@brhoops) April 10, 2025
When the ball finally tipped off for the Nike Hoops Summit, Yessoufou was able to make a number of winning plays, even scoring the bucket that sent the game to overtime.
6’5” Tounde Yessoufou of Benin — a Baylor commit — stole the show playing for the World team. “Little Ant” did everything on the floor including sending the game to OT on a coast-to-coast drive with 4 seconds left pic.twitter.com/SlBaTFN0WH
— Trysta Krick
(@Trysta_Krick) April 13, 2025
Tounde Yessoufou getting the steal from help defense and gets the easy bucket
— Mike O (@coolguy551_) April 13, 2025
TOUNDE YESSOUFOU IS COLD
SENDS THE GAME TO OVERTIME pic.twitter.com/jtk3Q6PQ9J
— Mike O (@coolguy551_) April 13, 2025
By the final buzzer, he had amassed 24 points, three assists, and two steals. He was efficient as well, going 9-19 from the floor and 2-5 from 3. One performance doesn’t make an NBA player, but Yessoufou looks like he’s on the verge of making NBA history.
One Of A Kind
There have been 67 players who hail from Africa that have played in the NBA. None of those trailblazers have come from Benin, a small country nestled between a tinier Togo and the well-known Nigeria. Now Yessoufou, who immigrated from Benin to the United States just before he began high school, has the chance to be the first.
A five-star high school recruit out of St. Joseph High School, Yessoufou is ranked 15th overall in the ESPN 100 for the Class of 2024. While receiving offers from programs like UConn and Kentucky, the 18-year-old chose the Bears because “it felt like family,” per Kenny Cress of the Santa Maria Times.
“I felt the energy, felt the brotherhood,” he’d add.
With the Bears set to lose VJ Edgecombe to the 2025 NBA Draft, Yessoufou could start from Day 1. A player who became California’s all-time leader in scoring in February before winning the McDonald’s All-American Dunk Contest in March, he’s truly an extremely gifted player.
When he was just a freshman, he averaged 26.4 points, 12.3 rebounds, 2.1 steals, and 2.9 blocks per game. As a sophomore, he averaged 27.8 points, 10.7 rebounds, 3.7 steals and 1.3 blocks per game. As a junior, he averaged 32.3 points, 10.2 rebounds, 2.6 steals and 1.3 blocks per game. Then, as a senior, he averaged 28.1 points, 8.3 rebounds, 3.4 steals, and 1.1 blocks per game.
A superior athlete who’s diligently developing his guard skills, Yessoufou looks like every bit of a two-way force. On film and on paper. All else considered equal, the sky is the limit for him, in college.. and the pros.
© Pamela Smith-Imagn Images
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