Adama Bal faring well for France in FIBA U20 European Championships

Arizona has a lot of unknowns going into its second season under Tommy Lloyd, most of that due to massive roster turnover. The only certainties are tied to expectations with returning rotation players from 2021-22.

And then there’s Adama Bal, who saw very little time during his freshman year yet found himself playing meaningful minutes in the Pac-12 and NCAA tournaments. That tiny glimpse of his skillset made the future looking very promising for the French wing.

That’s continued this summer, as Bal has been a key contributor to his home country’s play in the FBIA U20 European Championships.

Bal scored 15 points in both of France’s classification games, wins over Croatia and Turkey, to secure fifth place in the tournament. Overall he average 9.6 points over seven games, shooting 43.8 percent overall and 37.9 percent from 3-point range.

The 6-foot-6 Bal appeared in 23 games for the UA last season, making 13 of 27 shots including 8 of 17 3s. He had a career-high seven points in the regular-season finale against Cal, then in the Pac-12 title game win over UCLA hit a pair of triples in the first half when the Wildcats were dealing with massive foul trouble.

Bal is unlikely to crack Arizona’s starting lineup, what with Pac-12 Sixth Man of the Year Pelle Larsson still around and the Wildcats adding three guards—two veteran transfers and reclassifying 4-star prospect Kylan Boswell—but his minutes figure to go up if he’s able to carry over what he did with the French squad.