7.1 points and 3.7 rebounds as France finished third.
Lost chance for generational triple
Back at the FIBA U20 European Championship for the 2018 summer, Diawara was going for history - albeit without the likes of Ntilikina, Doumbouya, Tillie and Mokoka. The 1998-born France group was hoping to become just the third generation to win the U16/U18/U20 continental triple after the Yugoslavia/Serbia 1987-born generation (with Milos Teodosic, Milenko Tepic, Nikola Dragovic, Marko Durkovic, Branko Jereminov, Dragan Labovic and Nenad Zivcevic) and the Lithuania 1992-born generation (with Edgaras Ulanovas, Evaldas Aniulis, Vytenis Cizauskas, Rolandas Jakstas, Deividas Pukis, Dovydas Redikas and Tautvydas Sabonis - Jonas Valanciunas did not play U20 after winning the U16 and U18 tournaments).
"It meant so much for our generation and France too. We knew that not many generations did it before so it was our main goal: to make history," Diawara remembered.
France lost twice in the group stage but then beat Montenegro and Spain to reach the Semi-Finals, where they lost to Israel with Yovel Zoosman and Deni Avdija and eventually finished fourth after losing to hosts Germany in the Third Place Game.
"It was a bit frustrating for me because the year before with the 1997 generation we lost to Israel in the Semi-Finals too. And then with my generation we lost again against them," said Diawara, who averaged 10.3 points, 5.1 rebounds, 1.9 assists, 1.1 steals and 1.1 blocks in the tournament in Germany. "With the 1998 generation we played against Germany for third place, I remember we had the game under control, but we lost at the end. It was a close game. So there was a lot of frustration but it was a very good experience."
Meeting Okobo
The U20 European Championship in 2017 in Crete led to a major move for Diawara. Playing a year younger, Diawara played alongside one of the big leaders of the 1997 generation, Okobo. And the Bordeaux native had been playing with Pau-Lacq-Orthez since 2015. Okobo's breakout season with Pau came in 2017-18 after which he was drafted by the Phoenix Suns with the first pick of the second round of the 2018 NBA Draft.
"I met Elie when I did the U20 European Championship with the 1997 group and he was a cool guy. The year he got drafted he had a big year in ProA with Pau. He was an example for all the young guys because he had a lot of responsibilities and he was playing a lot," Diawara said.
Diawara thought Pau-Lacq-Orthez could be the answer for him too so he moved to the club in 2018.
"I was looking to follow the same path Elie had taken the season before. He had a terrific season and proved to everybody he could go to the next level," he said.
Diawara and Okobo talked a few times while the latter was in Phoenix and they worked out a few times at Pau when Okobo came back from the United States.
"He gave me some advice to improve my game and we did some one-on-one too," Diawara said.
Move after tough season
Diawara was happy to have a change of scenery after playing the 2017-18 season with Hyers-Toulon, who struggled to just a 7-27 record and last place, being relegated to the ProB. He was actually on loan with Hyers-Toulon from ASVEL Villeurbanne with the goal of getting more playing time.
"It was a tough season because I was kind of by myself over there, so I had to grow faster. The struggles of the team didn't help me but I learned a lot in the end," said Diawara, who averaged 2.8 points and 1.8 rebounds in the season.
Instead of a relegation fight, Diawara was heading to a team in Pau-Lacq-Orthez that had reached the playoffs the previous three seasons - albeit exiting in the first round each campaign.
Last season Diawara averaged 5.5 points and 2.5 rebounds and helped Pau-Lacq-Orthez get back to the playoffs once again - though once again the team was bounced in the first round. That led Diawara to putting his name in the NBA Draft, though he eventually pulled it back out.
"Putting my name in the draft was the main goal since I arrived at Pau, and after the season it was time," he said. "I had some good feedback but with my agent we decided to pull it out because we thought it would be better for me to go back one year to Pau and we had the Basketball Champions League so it would be better to show myself."
With Pau-Lacq-Orthez already having been eliminated from the playoffs, Diawara has one more game in the BCL to showcase his skillset on the European club landscape.
"Individually my goal is really to take the next step, to prove that I can go to the next level, to show my progress," he said.
Progress that is being made because he followed the path of Elie Okobo.
http://www.championsleague.basketball/19-20/news/diawara-looking-to-follow-okobos-path-at-pau
FELIPE DOS ANJOS
Born April 30, 1998, Brazil, Bilbao Basket, Spain
Felipe Dos Anjos moved from his native Brazil to Spain in 2012 at age 14 and joined Real Madrid. He played for the Spanish giants' youth ranks and helped the club win the 2015 Euroleague Basketball Adidas Next Generation Tournament title alongside Luka Doncic. Dos Anjos played on loan with Burgos in 2017-18 and made his Spanish ACB debut. He signed before the 2020-21 season with Bilbao Basket. This article was published on the website for the 2016 ANGT Finals.
Tower of power Dos Anjos leads Madrid to Berlin
Felipe Dos Anjos headlines a list of five U18 Real Madrid players who will take the floor at the Euroleague Basketball Adidas Next Generation Tournament for the second season in a row. He is joined by fellow centers Samba Ndaye and Domagoj Proleta, guard Miki Fons and forward Ignacio Ballespin to make Los Blancos a serious contender to repeat as tournament champ next week in Berlin. Of them all, no player has come from farther away than the 2.18-meter Dos Anjos.
A native of Brazil, the long, lanky Dos Anjos has come a long way since leaving his homeland to join Real Madrid's youth system. He had already shown so much promise as a youth with Brazilian club Esporte Clube Pinheiros that Madrid welcomed him in 2012 at age 14 - a year younger than compatriot and three-time All-EuroLeague center Tiago Splitter was when he moved to Baskonia in 2000.
Dos Anjos worked his way up Madrid's youth ranks year by year and reached a highlight in his adopted hometown last season by winning the 2015 ANGT title - the first in the club's history. Although the Sao Paolo native was a non-factor in the final against U18 Crevena Zvezda Telekom Belgrade, he played a major role in getting Madrid to that spot. Dos Anjos collected 11 points, 12 rebounds and 2 blocks in the final group game at the ANGT Finals against U18 VEF Riga and averaged 5 points, 6 rebounds and 2 blocks at the ANGT Finals. He had averaged 8.2 points, 6.4 rebounds and 2.2 blocks at the 2014-15 ANGT Qualifying Tournament - L'Hospitalet.
This season, Dos Anjos has not only dominated on the junior scene but has more than held his own on one of Madrid's related senior teams. He collected the MVP trophy from the ANGT L'Hospitalet this season after starring with 9.8 points, 6.6 rebounds and 1.6 blocks while shooting 77 percent from the field. And for Madrid's second team in the EBA this season, he has posted 9.7 points, 7.4 rebounds and 1.4 blocks, including making 3-of-7 three-pointers in his last four games.
Dos Anjos knows nothing except winning in the ANGT thus far - winning all 14 of the games his team has played over the past season and a half. And the Brazilian doesn't want to stop that streak in Berlin.
"My expectation is the same as at the ANGT L'Hospitalet. If we keep working hard, we will win the ANGT," Dos Anjos said. "We work hard every day on the court and off and we
