Siriman Kanouté (born 25 September 2001) is a Malian professional basketball player. He has starred for the Malian national junior teams on several occasions and trains with French club SLUC Nancy Basket.

Siriman Kanouté
No. 4 – SLUC Nancy
PositionPoint guard
LeagueLNB Pro B
Personal information
Born (2001-09-25) 25 September 2001 (age 22)
Bamako, Mali
NationalityMalian
Listed height1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Career information
Playing career2020–present
Career history
2020–presentSLUC Nancy
Career highlights and awards
Medals
Men's basketball
Representing  Mali
FIBA Under-19 World Cup
Silver medal – second place 2019 Greece Team
FIBA Africa U18 Championship
Gold medal – first place 2018 Mali
FIBA Africa U16 Championship
Gold medal – first place 2017 Mauritius

Early life and career edit

Kanouté grew up playing both football and basketball. He learned how to play basketball from his father, a former player, and soon began playing the sport for the club AS Real Bamako. In 2018, Kanouté signed a four-year contract with SLUC Nancy Basket in France.[1]

Professional career edit

On 23 April 2021, Kanouté made his professional debut for SLUC Nancy, as he recorded 2 minutes in a LNB Pro B game against Saint-Chamond Basket.[2] Over the 2020–21 season, he played in a total of 33 minutes in which he had 9 points and 8 assists.[3]

National team career edit

Junior teams edit

Kanouté made his national team debut with the Malian under-16 team at the 2017 FIBA Under-16 African Championship in Vacoas-Phoenix, Mauritius.[4] On 15 July 2017, he recorded a career-high 50 points and 11 steals in a 165–23 victory over Mauritius.[5] Kanouté averaged a tournament-high 24.8 points, 4.5 steals, and 4.2 assists per game, leading Mali to their first gold medal at the tournament and earning most valuable player (MVP) honors.[6][7] He joined Mali at the 2018 FIBA Under-17 World Cup in Argentina. On 30 June 2018, Kanouté recorded 37 points, tied for fourth-most in a game in tournament history, six rebounds, and five assists in an 89–77 loss to Serbia.[8][9] He averaged a tournament-high 24.6 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 3.9 steals per game.[10]

Kanouté played for the Malian national under-18 team at the 2018 FIBA Under-18 African Championship in Bamako. He averaged a team-high 14.3 points, 5.4 assists, and 4.4 rebounds per game, leading his team to its first gold medal at the tournament.[11][12] Kanouté posted 10 points, six rebounds, and five assists against Senegal in the finals and was named tournament MVP.[13] He later took part in the 2019 FIBA Under-19 World Cup in Heraklion, Greece.[14] In seven games, Kanouté averaged 15.4 points, 5.1 assists, and 2.4 steals per game, helping Mali capture an unlikely silver medal, the best performance by an African team at the tournament.[15][16] He was named to the All-Star Five with teammate Oumar Ballo.[17]

Senior team edit

Kanouté was selected for the Mali senior team at age 19 to play at AfroBasket 2021. There, Kanouté led his country both in scoring and assists, with 14 points and 3.7 assists per game.[18]

Personal life edit

Kanouté's father Séga Kanouté played basketball for AS Real Bamako and the Malian senior national team.[19] Séga is a board member on the Mali Basketball Federation and coaches both the AS Real women's basketball team and Malian men's national junior teams.[20]

References edit

  1. ^ "Basket-ball malien : Qui sont Oumar Ballo et Siraman Kanouté, les deux prodiges de l'équipe nationale cadette ?" (in French). maliweb. 20 July 2018. Retrieved 6 July 2019.
  2. ^ "Siriman Kanoute Game Logs, Nancy Basket, International Stats, Events Stats, Awards - RealGM". basketball.realgm.com. Retrieved 3 September 2021.
  3. ^ "Siriman Kanoute Game Logs, Nancy Basket, International Stats, Events Stats, Awards - RealGM". basketball.realgm.com. Retrieved 3 September 2021.
  4. ^ "Afrobasket U16: Siriman Kanoute, la nouvelle pépite du basket africain marque 50 points en seul match" (in French). News Basket Beafrika. 18 July 2017. Retrieved 4 July 2019.
  5. ^ "Star in the making Kanoute scores 50 points as Mali chase continental glory". FIBA. 17 July 2017. Retrieved 4 July 2019.
  6. ^ "Siriman Kanoute seeking experience at FIBA U17 Basketball World Cup". FIBA. 4 August 2017. Retrieved 4 July 2019.
  7. ^ "Siriman Kanoute's profile - 2017 FIBA U16 African Championship". FIBA. Archived from the original on July 6, 2019. Retrieved 4 July 2019.
  8. ^ "Siriman Kanouté (37pts), 4e plus haut total de points de l'histoire de la Coupe du Monde U17" (in French). BasketMali. 2 July 2018. Retrieved 5 July 2019.
  9. ^ "Overall Men's U17 World Championship Records". USA Basketball. 24 September 2012. Archived from the original on September 7, 2015. Retrieved 5 July 2019.
  10. ^ "Siriman Kanoute (MLI)'s profile". FIBA. Retrieved 5 July 2019.
  11. ^ "Siriman Kanoute (MLI)'s profile". FIBA. Retrieved 5 July 2019.
  12. ^ "Mali win first-ever FIBA U18 African Championship". FIBA. 2 September 2018. Retrieved 5 July 2019.
  13. ^ "Siriman Kanoute named FIBA U18 African Championship 2018 MVP". FIBA. 3 September 2018. Retrieved 5 July 2019.
  14. ^ "U18 African MVP Kanoute to lead Mali charge at U19 World Cup". FIBA. 12 June 2019. Retrieved 6 July 2019.
  15. ^ "Siriman Kanoute (MLI)'s profile". FIBA. Retrieved 7 July 2019.
  16. ^ "Does Mali have one more surprise left to capture U19 World Cup throne?". FIBA. 6 July 2019. Retrieved 7 July 2019.
  17. ^ Skerletic, Dario (7 July 2019). "Team USA beats Mali, claim the FIBA Under 19 Basketball World Cup 2019". Sportando. Retrieved 7 July 2019.
  18. ^ "Mali National Basketball Stats - RealGM". basketball.realgm.com. Retrieved 3 September 2021.
  19. ^ "Séga Kanouté : Une référence pour le basketball malien" (in French). maliweb. 15 August 2017. Retrieved 6 July 2019.
  20. ^ "Basketball bloodlines run thick - and successful - at U19 World Cup". FIBA. July 1, 2019. Retrieved July 6, 2019.