Both experienced the Paris Olympic Games on a computer screen, in replay. In the middle of Euro U18, in Finland, Nolan Traore and Noa Essengue had a good excuse not to watch the Blues’ journey live. Barely four months later, they are now among the main players in qualifying for EuroBasket 2025. When it comes to building his squad for this FIBA window, Frédéric Fauthoux did not hesitate to call the two nuggets of the generation 2006. For tomorrow, of course. But also for today. Traore with Saint-Quentin (13.3 pts, 4.3 pds in BCL) like Essengue with Ulm (13.1 pts, 5.2 rebounds in EuroCup) are major elements of their club.
“When we start an adventure, we inevitably plan ahead”believes Frédéric Fauthoux. “We look at talented young players knowing that the whole world is following them and that if everything goes well and they realize their dream of playing in the NBA, they won’t be there for other windows. That’s the time or never to see them.” A speech imbued with realism. Traore and Essengue are the objects of all attention from NBA franchises. They appear in 5th and 18th position in the top 100 prospects established by the big man of scouting, Jonathan Givony (ESPN), and are therefore potential first round draft picks next summer.
In the meantime, the two kids don’t leave each other’s side for a moment. At the airport, at meals, in the hotel corridors, they live together, and in the greatest relaxation, a first which undoubtedly calls for many others. They had discovered international competitions side by side in U16 and destiny brought them together again in the A.
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The most silent, Nolan Traore, was promoted to starting leader by Frédéric Fauthoux on Thursday evening (10 pts, 3 wt). A position where he will not be able to escape the parallels with Tony Parker, also thrown into the deep end at 18… a few weeks after a U18 Euro. “We must not engage in comparisons”tempers Boris Diaw. “There always has been but they are two different players. The speed, the young age, the playing position, I understand but their temperament is different. Nolan must make his way.”
“We hope that his development will be identical to the hope we have of the basketball player he will become. It is logical to confront him today at the international level”adds his trainer. Andrew Albicy, the captain, did not hesitate to increase the defensive pressure during the first training sessions to challenge the newcomer. And if it sometimes destabilized him, the veteran quickly realized the obvious: his talent is immense. “What he is doing at the moment is very strong, incredible, he has a lot of responsibilities in Saint-Quentin and that will help us for the windows and for the future”develops Albicy. “For his age, he is very strong, athletic, and when he starts to take outside shots, it becomes very dangerous for everyone. He is discreet outside, he is not a big communicator but you feel that he has confidence in himself, that he is comfortable, even sometimes a little too much (laughs). Especially when I defend on him, he is sometimes a little too easy, he has already lost two or three balls. (laughs), but he will learn gradually and it will harden.”
Noa Essengue, for his part, had a complicated five minutes for his first steps against Cyprus in the first half and did not return to the game after that. Before taking the plane to Poitiers, Maxime Chiron, the assistant in charge of video work, deciphered some sequences with him. No doubt to emphasize the necessary harshness to be displayed in the international context. A level far removed from that which the Orléanais faced only a year ago. Upon its premature exit from Pôle France, in 2023, Essengue chose to join Ulm, in Germany. His first season was spent mainly in the reserve team in the third division while rehearsing his ranges with the pros. An incubator before the big exhibition. “Last year I found that I progressed a lot training with men”he judges. “And this season, the EuroCup allows young people to be highlighted. We saw it with Zaccharie Risacher. It’s a game which for me is closer to the NBA than the German championship. A broader game, where you can drive more easily, play counter-attacks. It suits me a little more.”
In the antechamber of the EuroLeague, Essengue has already made its mark. And during a pre-season match against the Portland Trailblazers, confirmed that his size, his immense segments and his versatility were attractions to which the NBA could not remain indifferent. Frédéric Fauthoux did not procrastinate when summoning him. “He is a player profiled for the very, very high level, modern, who can attack the circle, shoot three-pointers, complete. But he is not 18 years old so there is a whole evolution to follow.”
Thursday evening, Noa Essengue became the 9th youngest player in history to start for the Blues, although he will not become an adult until December. Discreet but important first steps, during a season that will change his life.
