After a promising breakout campaign in the 2024 Paris Olympics with France, Guerschon Yabusele earns his way back into the NBA once more after he agreed to sign a contract with the Philadelphia 76ers en route to the 2024-25 NBA season. Now the French forward brings his talent back to the NBA with the hopes of helping the Sixers conjure a promising playoff campaign in the coming season.

Yabusele once played for the Boston Celtics from 2017 to 2019 and was selected as the 16th overall pick in the 2016 NBA Draft. The French forward would go on to play in the EuroLeague over the next few years and the Liga ACB under Real Madrid’s banners and has been one of the most decorated players in French basketball.

The Sixers get a reliable player in Yabusele, who has been one of the most impeccable scorers for France, and it cannot be denied that the forward is expected to play a huge role in shoring up the squad’s rebounding and paint-scoring department. That should definitely give him a bigger value than he had before with Boston.

A Journey of Development for Yabusele

In his two seasons with the Celtics, Yabusele averaged 2.3 points, 1.4 rebounds, .4 assists, and .2 steals per game. He shot 44.2% from the field, including 32.3% from three. The forward also played two playoff campaigns with the team, joining the Celtics in their runs in 2018 and 2019 back then.

Yabusele would then go on to bring his talents to the EuroLeague, first playing for French club ASVEL from 2019 to 2021, where his scoring volume and minutes increased after his first season. Yabusele later joined Real Madrid in the 2021-22 season and won the EuroLeague title a season later. In the recent 2023-24 season with the Blancos, Yabusele averaged 14.2 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 1.0 assists. The forward also posted career highs in shooting splits at 57/46/87 in 27 games, which says a lot about his impressive game development over the years.

Now, Yabusele takes on a bigger campaign in his career after signing that $2.1 million minimum deal with the Sixers. He is expected to come off the bench for the team and can quite be a promising addition should he be given more minutes in the coming season.

A Promising Performance in the Olympics

Yabusele was one of the best standouts in the 2024 Paris Olympics. He played for France with a boatload of minutes and was crucial in their push to a silver medal finish in the game. Of course, the United States took over the final, but his massive poster dunk over Olympic MVP LeBron James was quite something to remember – a souvenir in one of the best games of his career.

In the 2024 Olympics alone, Yabusele averaged 14 points per game for France. He indicated he was waiting for a second chance in the game, and now that he’s finally got it, it is time for him to make the most of his second stint in the NBA now more than ever.

So far, joining a contender that has a strong need for a spark off the bench can be quite the key to success for Yabusele. Who knows, maybe he can get a bigger role in the forward spot in the season.