CONAKRY (Guinea) - Ever since Guinea won the African Championship for Junior Men - as the U18 African Championship was known - in 2000, they have never finished on the podium of a major continental tournament again.

Can they clinch a podium spot next month in Madagascar? 

They can, judging by the quality of players that they have at their disposal.  

Guinea won the historic title as hosts of the tournament 22 years ago, but they failed to defend and participate in the following two editions. When Guinea returned in 2006 in Durban, South Africa, they won 3 of the 5 games to finish fifth.

But missing the following five editions of the U18 African Championships before returning in 2018 left some uncertainty in the air.

Team: Guinea
FIBA Ranking: 42nd (World); 5th (Africa)
Last participation at FIBA U18 African Championship: 2020 (4th place)
Best results at FIBA U18 African Championship: Champions of Africa (2000) in a tournament known as African Championship for Junior Men.
How they qualified for the 2022 FIBA U18 African Championship: Guinea secured their place in the 21st edition of the FIBA U18 African Championship by virtue of finishing fourth in the 2020 edition of the tournament held in Cairo.
World: Guinea have never played at a FIBA Youth World Cup tournament.
History/Qualification: This is expected to be Guinea's third straight appearance in the tournament since 2018.

Player to watch out for:  Two potential fits for Guinea are Ibrahima Diallo and Thierno Sylla, who featured for Guinea in window 3 of the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 African Qualifiers in July in Abidjan. Diallo, a 170 cm point guard, contributed 4.3 points in 15 minutes off the bench.

If available, this will be Ibrahima's second U18 African Championship appearance, having featured for his country in the 2020 edition of the tournament in Cairo where he contributed 6.2 points and 2.8 rebounds per game while Guinea finished fourth.

Sylla, a 2.08m center, had limited playing time in Abidjan, but he should be a massive presence if healthy and available for Madagascar 2022. 

Head coach: With over a decade of experience in African basketball, Zeljko Zecevic has been the head coach of Guinea Men's and Youth teams for the the last four years. 

Known for his intensity - and emotional attitude - during games, the Serbian has mirrored the progress of Guinea basketball over the past few years. 

Outlook: The question mark about Guinea is whether or not they can capitalise from the talent group of players that they have. Two years ago, Guinea caused a huge upset in Cairo after beating Mali, who would eventually win the 2020 FIBA U18 African Championship.

The talent is there, the coaching experience is also there. Now, it's down to Zecevic and his team to improve from the fourth place achieved two years ago.

FIBA