May 2011 Basketball Wiretap

Scouts Rave About Biyombo Amid Age Concerns

Apr 10, 2011 4:34 AM

Bismack Biyombo's triple-double in the Nike Hoop Summit increased his already growing momentum heading into the 2011 NBA Draft.

"He runs the floor, he defends and he's cat-quick,'' said an NBA scout of Biyombo. "His offensive skills need to be developed, but his athleticism screams out.''

"He's Ben Wallace, basically,'' said another NBA executive.

A half-dozen NBA scouts and executives told Sports Illustrated that they had concerns if he was older than his listed age of 18. Biyombo is physically more mature and also exhibited leadership skills to suggest he is older than his age.

He began his professional career in Yemen in 2009, and then moved to the Spanish fourth division in 2009-10. He quickly worked his way up to Spain's ACB, the top national league in Europe, where he is currently averaging 6.4 points, 5.1 rebounds and 2.3 blocks in 14 games with the club Fuenlabrada.

"The way I play here, I play everywhere,'' he said following the Hoop Summit. "In the ACB I play with a lot of smart guys, I play with a lot of strong guys, and when I step on the court I just want to kill them.''

His favorite players are Kevin Garnett and Kevin Love.

"Kevin Garnett is intense player -- every time he's not on the floor, his team is missing him,'' said Biyombo. "I want to (play) defense as a team. I want to help everybody on my team and I want to win the game ... That's what I heard from my first coach, that the good offense is defense. If I block a lot of shots then it's good offense. If I get a lot of rebounds, then it's good offense.''

Ian Thomsen/Sports Illustrated

Tags: Bismack Biyombo, High School, High School Nike Hoop Summit, NBA, NBA NBA Draft, NBA Draft General

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USA Defeats World Select 92-80 In 2011 Nike Hoop Summit

Apr 10, 2011 4:30 AM

Bismack Biyombo had the first ever triple double in a Nike Hoop Summit game, scoring 12 points to go with 11 boards and 10 blocks.

But Team USA was victoriously, defeating the World Select Team by a 92-80 final.

"A lot of time people are saying I can't be so young, that I am much older,'' said Biyombo, the 6-foot-9, 243-pound forward/center from Congo who is listed as 18 years old. "It is not the first time I hear this, but I really don't care.''

Austin Rivers scored a game-high 20 points for Team USA.

Anthony Davis and Michael Gilchrist, incoming Kentucky freshmen, each had 16 points.

Ian Thomsen/Sports Illustrated

Tags: Austin Rivers, Bismack Biyombo, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Anthony Davis, High School, High School Nike Hoop Summit

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