“Wasn’t Thinking About Going to the NBA”: Pelicans Rookie Yves Missi Speaks About Journey from Cameroon to New Orleans

With injuries ravaging the frontcourt of the New Orleans Pelicans camp, the franchise has been forced to use rookie big man Yves Missi more often than expected to begin the season. While getting consistent minutes and a starting job as a first-year player is impressive in its own right, Missi’s path to the NBA is in and of itself truly one of the league’s most unique stories.

The 6-foot-11, 235-lb center didn’t view himself as a basketball player until 2019 when he decided to pursue the sport after growing up as a soccer player in Cameroon. After moving to the United States in January of 2021, Missi finished the last two years of his high school career before receiving a scholarship from the Baylor Bears.

“I mean, I wasn’t thinking about going to the NBA overseas. It was like a dream… as a kid, you don’t see that you’re going to reach it. But like, okay, let’s build on my dream, and then this happened, so,” Missi said about his unexpected journey to the NBA.

“I started by playing soccer when I was younger and really started getting into basketball at the end of 2019… It was like a dream as a kid but you don’t think you’re gonna reach it… Then it happened”

— Yves Missi on his journey from Yaoundé, Cameroon to the NBA pic.twitter.com/7e3Nsdhyqi

— Pelicans Film Room (@PelsFilmRoom) November 26, 2024

In his one-and-done with Baylor, he quickly proved himself to be a sound rebounder and a shot-blocker capable of anchoring a defense in the NBA. The then 19-year-old averaged 10.7 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 1.5 blocks per game over 34 contests in his freshman year.

His efficient inside scoring and defensive instincts helped propel the Bears forward in the 2023 Men’s NCAA Tournament, where the team succumbed to Clemson in the second round.

Despite leaving college as a young and mostly unknown prospect outside of his lone collegiate season, Missi showed enough talent to prompt the Pelicans’ top brass to select him 21st overall in the 2024 NBA Draft. Quite the accomplishment for a kid from Cameroon with less than five years of playing experience under his belt.

Missi has taken advantage of a heightened role

Missi has played just 17 games in his short career, starting 11 of them. But so far he has provided dividends to NOLA for showing faith in him as a rookie. His offense remains limited, and his role continues to be a work in progress, but Missi has provided the same defensive intensity and rim-protection that he did during his college season.

The 20-year-old’s consistency has been a bright spot for a Pelicans team currently sitting at the bottom of the West with a ghastly 4-14 record. Missi’s 7.5 points, 7.3 rebounds and 1.1 blocks are all impressive marks for a rookie center, especially one missing his top teammates.

The Pelicans’ season may continue to be bumpy the rest of the way. But Missi is showing his value to the team in this tough time, which may be rewarded later on.