Ismaël Bako

Ismaël Bako (born 10 October 1995) is a Belgian professional basketball player for Virtus Bologna of the Italian Lega Basket Serie A (LBA) and the EuroLeague. Standing at 208 cm (6 ft 10 in), he plays at the center position. He started his career in 2012 with Leuven Bears and transferred to Antwerp Giants in April 2017.

Ismaël Bako
Bako with Leuven in 2017
No. 7 – Virtus Bologna
PositionCenter
LeagueLBA
EuroLeague
Personal information
Born (1995-10-10) 10 October 1995
Leuven, Belgium
NationalityBelgian
Listed height208 cm (6 ft 10 in)
Listed weight103 kg (227 lb)
Career information
NBA draft2017 / Undrafted
Playing career2012–present
Career history
2012–2017Leuven Bears
2017–2019Antwerp Giants
2019–2021ASVEL Villeurbanne
2021–2022Manresa
2022–presentVirtus Bologna
Career highlights and awards

Professional career

Leuven

Bako started his career with Leuven Bears in the Pro Basketball League, making his debut in 2012. He was named the BLB Young Player of the Year of the 2016–17 season, after averaging 8.0 points and 4.1 rebounds per game.[1]

Antwerp

In April 2017, he signed with Antwerp Giants.[2] In the 2018–19 season, Bako won the Belgian Basketball Cup with the Giants. He was named the Belgian Cup Most Valuable Player.[3] In the same season, the team reached the Final Four of the Basketball Champions League. Antwerp finished in third place after defeating Brose Bamberg in the third place game. Bako was named to the Basketball Champions League Star Lineup.

ASVEL

On 3 July 2019, Bako signed a two-year contract with LDLC ASVEL of the French LNB Pro A and the EuroLeague.[4] He averaged 3.8 points and 2.1 rebounds per game. On June 12, 2020, he re-signed with the team for an additional season.[5] During the 2020-21 season Bako averaged 5.6 points and 3.6 rebounds per game. He parted ways with the team on 11 July 2021.[6]

Baxi Manresa

On July 24, 2021, Bako signed a two-year deal with Baxi Manresa of the Spanish Liga ACB.[7] On September 5, 2021, won the Catalan League and won the MVP of the competition.

Virtus Bologna

On July 13, 2022, Bako signed with Virtus Bologna of the Lega Basket Serie A and the EuroLeague.[8] On 29 September 2022, after having ousted Olimpia Milano in the semifinals, Virtus won its third Supercup, defeating 72–69 Banco di Sardegna Sassari and achieving a back-to-back, following the 2021 trophy.[9]

National team career

Bako has been a member of the Belgian national basketball team since 2016. At 21, Bako was the youngest member of the squad that played at EuroBasket 2017.[10]

Awards and accomplishments

Club
Manresa
ASVEL
Antwerp Giants

Individual

References
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ismaël Bako.
  1. "Ismaël Bako Young Player of the Year". Euromillionsbasketball.be. 2017-05-15. Retrieved 2017-05-15.
  2. "Ismaël Bako naar Port of Antwerp Giants". Gazet van Antwerpen. Retrieved 22 March 2019.
  3. "Fysieke kracht geeft doorslag: Giants doorbreken hegemonie en pronken met beker". www.msn.com. Retrieved 22 March 2019.
  4. "ASVEL acquires Ismael Bako". Eurohoops. 3 July 2019. Retrieved 16 July 2019.
  5. "LDLC Asvel extends Ismael Bako". Sportando. June 12, 2020. Retrieved June 12, 2020.
  6. "Norris Cole, Ismael Bako officially leaves Asvel". Sportando. 11 July 2021. Retrieved 11 July 2021.
  7. "Ismael Bako officially signs with Baxi Manresa". Sportando. July 24, 2021. Retrieved July 24, 2021.
  8. "Ismaël Bako è un nuovo giocatore di Virtus Segafredo Bologna!" (in Italian). 2022-07-13. Retrieved 2022-07-14.
  9. "Supercoppa, trionfa la Virtus Bologna! Canestro decisivo di Mickey, Sassari cede 72-69". Gazzetta dello Sport. 29 September 2022.
  10. "Dit zijn onze 12 Lions voor Eurobasket 2017 - detail - Basketbal Vlaanderen". basketbal.vlaanderen. Retrieved 2017-09-06.
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