The curtains have long been drawn on all international competitions and players have now returned to their respective clubs for a new season. 2018-2019 is set to be another highly exciting one which will give the chance to some of Europe’s rising stars to continue their development and even shine in the continent’s best leagues. Let’s see in which clubs and which leagues the most promising 2001-2002 born European players can be found and how their seasons have looked like so far.
FRANCE
Kendra Chéry – Lyon ASVEL Féminin (LFB/ECW)
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Part of the trio of CFBB players who forewent their last CFBB year (with Rupert and Fauthoux), Kendra Chéry, who over the summer claimed a silver medal at the Worlds U17 in Minsk and took part to the Basketball Without Borders Europe Camp in Belgrade, joined the ambitious Tony Parker’s side Lyon ASVEL Féminin, a team competing in LFB and EurocupWomen (ECW). In a deep roster that includes the likes of 2018 WNBA champion Alysha Clark, former Chicago Sky and Brasil NT member Clarissa Dos Santos, France NT member Marième Badiane or Canada NT member Michelle Plouffe to name just a few, Chéry is being given her chance. The super athletic and explosive forward played in all five games so far, LFB & ECW, even starting at one occasion in LFB. She is averaging 10 minutes per game in both competitions. Scored 5 points in consecutive games to open the season in French League. With a long and rich season ahead of her in demanding leagues and given the quality of the cast around her at practice, it is hard not to expect a major improvement in Chéry’s game this year and going into next summer’s Euro U18.
Marie Pardon – Lyon ASVEL Féminin (LFB/ECW)
Marie Pardon is taking the most of Lyon ASVEL Féminin and BEL NT starting PG Julie Allemand’s absence early in the season, indeed the FRA U17 NT member and Lyon youth academy player gets valuable court time at the senior level as the back-up option in LFB and ECW. Averages over 9 minutes per game for almost 2apg and only 6 turnovers in 5 games.
Iliana Rupert – Tango Bourges Basket (LFB/ELW)
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Iliana Rupert is just one out of two players in this watch list to be on ELW rosters, the second being Braine’s Maxuella Lisowa-Mbaka, but unlike Lisowa-Mbaka who plays for an underdog and will hardly see court time this season, Rupert is planned as a full member of the Tango Bourges team, a powerhouse in both French League and EuroLeague. The MVP + champion of the 2017 U16 Euro and 2018 U17 Worlds silver medalist is already playing at the highest level possible in Europe. For her first ELW game she spent 11 minutes on the floor for 2 points and 2 blocks. In LFB her season high is already of 8 pts in 11 min. With Olympians Elodie Godin, Nayo Raincock-Ekunwe and Katherine Plouffe to learn from in the paint not to mention other teammates such as Marine Johannes or Cristina Ouvina, Rupert has the best conditions to take a significant step forward in her promising career.
Marine Fauthoux – Tarbes (LFB/ECW)
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Third CFBB player and U17 Worlds silver medalist to join an ambitious club is PG Marine Fauthoux who opted for the 2018 LFB front runners and ECW bond Tarbes Basket. Her coach, also at the head of the SWE NT, coach Gomez didn’t hesitate a second in trusting her to be the club’s back-up PG behind another FRA NT hopeful: rising star Tima Pouye. Fauthoux has 4 LFB games and one ECW game under her belt where she averages around 19mpg. It didn’t take her long to reach the double digits for the first time as she collected 15pts in her last LFB outing. In her sole ECW game to this day, she contributed with 6pts-4reb-2as for the W.
Zoe Wadoux – CFBB (LF2)
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The sharp-shooter has not yet played this season but on the opening night of European competitions last week, where her U17 team mates Rupert, Chéry and Fauthoux did their continental debuts, Wadoux was not too far from the heart of the action as she was honored to throw the initial jump-ball during the ESBVA-Ekaterinburg ELW game, where she was surrounded by the likes of Torrens, Vandersloot, Vadeeva, McBride etc.
Janelle Salaun – CFBB (LF2)
With the highly regarded class of 2018 gone, the CFBB needs new leaders to emerge in order to carry the team through another LF2 season. Wadoux will definitely be one of them. Alongside her will most probably be Janelle Salaun, the ever improving tall SG/F. A latecomer to the game, she is catching up surely and nicely. Still somehow quiet this summer at U17 & U18 level where her impact could have been bigger, she is a real prospect thanks to her size, her IQ and her shooting skills. Averages so far 15ppg in France’s second division while shooting 62% from FG3… Muscling up her game and getting confidence will be two of her main goals this season.
Serena Kessler – CFBB (LF2)
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SF Serena Kessler will be the third go-to player for CFBB this year in LF2. After a very promising U16 Euro, Kessler looks ready to pursue her development alongside fellow youth NT members. She is already making her impact felt over the league with a solid 14,5ppg in over 25mpg. Scary fact knowing she is only 16 years old…
India Farcy – BLMA (NF2/U18)
Has seen her name on a LFB scoresheet as she filled the bench for the LFB and ECW bond side BLMA but didn’t see any court-time. Yet sharing the locker room with Seattle Storm’s Sami Whitcomb, Minnesota Lynx’s Endene Miyem or Maryland’s Diandra Tchatchouang can only be a boost for her career. The U16 FRA NT PG who stayed only one season at CFBB plays mostly with the U18 team and the reserve senior team in NF2 where she posted 20+ points games multiple times already this season.
TURKEY
Goksen Fitik – Cukurova (KBSL/ECW)
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The recent MVP of the Basketball Without Border Europe Camp in Belgrade is starting her second season at the senior level with KBSL side Cukurova following a solid summer with the TUR U18 and U20 NT. After solely playing in Turkey’s top tier last year, 2018-2019 sees Fitik make her ELW and ECW debuts. Indeed she took part in the two qualifying games for ELW played by Cukurova against Nadezhda Orenburg and will play the whole season in ECW after the loss of the qualifier. So far she averages 13mpg in both leagues and has Chicago Sky’s Astou Ndour and UKR NT ace Alina Iagupova as prominent teammates, providing plenty of talent to look up to to learn more skills.
Sude Yilmaz – Galatasaray (KBSL/TKBL/ECW)
The exciting G/SF who impressed in Kaunas at the U16 Euro where she made the All-Tournament Team after leading her team to the Semi-Finals is another one of the prospects who did their debuts in both KBSL and ECW. While she gets the most court-time with Galatasaray’s reserve team (28mpg 8ppg in TKBL), Sude Yilmaz did already take part in two KBSL games and one ECW match. With TUR NT legend Isil Alben and Las Vegas Aces’ Moriah Jefferson as teammates, it will not be long until we see Yilmaz impact the youth game again next summer.
Melek Uzunoglu – Besiktas (KBSL/ECW)
Good news to see Melek Uzunoglu’s name on scoresheets at the beginning of this season since last time we saw her she sustained a bad ankle injury in the first seconds of the Euro U16 Semi Finals versus Spain in Kaunas that left her sidelined for the rest of the tournament. She is another player who gets the chance to compete at the highest level from the very beginning of her career. She plays for the Istanbul side of Besiktas alongside Indiana Fever’s Kelsey Mitchell, FRA’s Olympian Olivia Epoupa and NGR’s World Cup standout Evelyn Akhator in Turkey’s KBSL and also in ECW. Her season high so far is 10pts on 2/4FG3 and she averages over 13mpg after 3 games in KBSL and 7mpg in ECW
Derin Erdogan – Istanbul University (TKBL)
Derin Erdogan might be playing in a less prestigious club and league than her two fellow U16 NT teammates but she is taking the most out of more consequent playing time. In TUR’s TKBL, after 3 games she averages over 16ppg-5rpg-3apg in almost 26mpg for Istanbul University’s reserve team. Istanbul University also playing in KBSL, it is not excluded at some point in the season to see Erdogan play in the second best league in the world after the WNBA.
BELGIUM
Maxuella Lisowa-Mbaka – Castors Braine (Div 1/ELW)
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The exciting guard, 2017 U16 Euro Div B MVP, coming off an average U18 Euro, is yet to experience court time with her club this season but will certainly be glad to already be practicing with a ELW side on a daily! The Basketball Without Borders Europe Camp invitee will take any opportunity available this season to show all the talent we believe she has.
Tesse Kapenga – Deerlijk (Div 1)
The 2002 born lefty stretch PF who already played four Div. 1 games last season is back in Belgium’s top division with Deerlijk. After showing quality and talent in Kaunas at U16 Euro she is ready to take another step forward in her development with her first full senior season. At just 16 she is already averaging 24mpg and posted a season high of 11pts so far.
ITALY
Ilaria Panzera – GEAS San Giovanni (Serie A1)
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After being crowned Champion at this year’s U16 European championship and nearly missing on a second consecutive All-Tournament Team appearance, Ilaria Panzera discovers this season Italy’s Serie A1 for the 1st time. It is her second season at senior level with her Milano side (GEAS San Giovanni) following accession from Serie A2 to A1 last season. So far, after 4 games, she gets decent court time, averaging over 11mpg for 3ppg and 1apg. Worth to be mentioned, she is yet to turn the ball over after the initial 4 games!
Giulia Natali – Vigarano (Serie A1)
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Impressive at the U17 Worlds in Minsk where she finished as ITA’s lead scorer with almost 14ppg on her way to a 5th position finish, she climbed on the highest step of the podium one month later in Kaunas, Lithuania during the U16 Euro. Became the youngest player to ever be invited to a preliminary camp with the Italian senior NT at just 15, dethroning Cecilia Zandalasini along the way, Giulia Natali is onto her second season in Seria A1 with Vigarano where she plays alongside fellow U16 teammate and U16 Euro MVP Caternia Gilli. So far this season she has already doubled her last season’s averages playing a solid 16mpg compared to 8mpg last year.
Caterina Gilli – Vigarano (Serie A1)
The reigning U16 Euro MVP and champion, just as her teammate Giulia Natali, is on her second season at senior level in Serie A1 with Vigarano. After 4 games she spends an average of 15mpg on the court for a 2,3ppg-3,5rpg return. In just the second game of the season against ITA’s reigning champions and ELW side Schio she posted a fantastic 4pts-9reb in 18min against the likes of Jantel Lavender, Olbis Futo Andre and Sandrine Gruda in the opponent’s frontcourt rotation…
HUNGARY
Reka Dombai – Vasas Akademia (Div 1)
The title for the most impressive beginning of the season must be handed without a doubt to Reka Dombai! Having impressed again this summer at the U17 Worlds and U16 Euro, the 2002 born G/SF is lighting it up in the highly competitive Hungarian League. After 3 domestic games, including match-ups against ECW sides Szekszard and Györ, Dombai is averaging a fantastic 16ppg (on 50%Fg2) 6rpg and 4,7apg in almost 34mpg. Definitely one of the top prospects of her generation in Europe at the moment, if not the best.
Angelika Kiss – Miskolc (Div 1/ECW)
The Hungarian center comes off a very promising U17 Worlds this summer and gets now to continue her progression in HUN’s Div 1 and ECW with Miskolc. While still just a rotation coming off the bench, she still stepped on the court in all of her club’s games this season. Her ECW season high is 10min and 2pts while in Hungary’s top division she already posted 7pts in 19min in her third game.
SPAIN
Helena Pueyo – Segle XXI (LF2)
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Mama Dembele – Segle XXI (LF2)
Paula Fraile – Segle XXI (LF2)
Nerea Hermosa – Segle XXI (LF2)
Gisela Sanchez – Segle XXI (LF2)
Marta Garcia – Segle XXI (LF2)
After just one game into the season for Segle XXI in SPA’s LF2, it is too early to get a clear idea or trend about things, but so far, besides for Paula Fraile who didn’t play, the other five prospects who shone at U16 & U17 level this summer have had solid debuts : Pueyo 10pts-4reb in 31min ; Dembele 14pts in 26min ; Hermosa 3pts-4reb in 22min ; Sanchez 10pts in 17min and Garcia 13pts in 24min on 3/4FG2 and 2/2FG3.
Raquel Carrera – Celta Vigo (LF2)
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Raquel Carrera who played both at the Worlds U17 and Euro U18 this summer picked up things where she left them last season with her LF2 Celta Vigo side. After 3 games she already averages 11ppg-8rpg-4apg-3,3spg in 28mpg. While during the whole last season she posted just 2 double-doubles, she already almost tied this feat in 3 games this year posting 16-10 on the season opener and 11-9 last week. Work in progress!
GREECE
Ionna Chatzileonti – Proteas Voulas (Div 1)
The U16 Euro div. B MVP will debut this season at the senior level in Greece’s top division for Proteas Voulas. She is yet to step on the court after one game into the season.
ISRAEL
Lior Garzon – Maccabi Raanana (Div 1)
The exciting SF who clinched an All-Tournament Team spot at this year’s U18 Euro Div B after displaying great shooting skills is onto her first season at senior level in the Israeli league and the least you can say is that it didn’t take her long to transfer her youth level numbers to the senior level. On her debut she posted a terrific 21pts-5reb in 36min going 5/8 from FG3.
FINLAND
Awak Kuier – Helmi (Div 1)
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3rd season at the senior level for Awak Kuier, the Finnish dunking sensation. A FIN NT regular already, a Basketball Without Borders Europe Camp invitee and an All-Tournament Team member at this year’s U18 Euro div. B, she is bringing big numbers again so far in the season. A night she is worth almost 14ppg on over 50%FG2 and almost 40%FG3 to which she adds over 8rpg in slightly under 33mpg. Looking forward to the next FIBA European Championship qualifying window to evaluate better her improvement at the senior international level and maybe a dunk in official competition?
CROATIA
Nika Mühl – Tresnjevka 2009 (Div 1/WABA)
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Basketball Without Borders Europe unofficial MVP frontrunner to Goksen Fitik, Nika Mühl is back in Croatia and WABA league with her Tresnjevka 2009 side and she picked up things where she left them in this great all-round versatility kingdom of hers! High versatility and multiple impact sources become Mühl’s trademark. This season is no different, the 17 year old averages 9,5ppg-7rpg-6,3apg-4,5spg but also 5,5topg in 33mpg after 4 games in CRO league. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see her name for the first time on the CRO NT preliminary roster at least for this November’s Euro qualifying window. Wait and see…
