CMR - Kadji boosts Cameroon's AfroBasket squad

YAOUNDE (AfroBasket/FIBA Basketball World Cup) - Kenny Kadji is the latest player to join Cameroon's men's national, the country's basketball federation confirmed to FIBA.com on Tuesday.

The former University of Miami Hurricanes standout is expected to arrive in Cameroon later this week following a busy summer with NBA teams.

The Cameroonian showed his skills and athleticism at the NBA Draft Combine but went undrafted. A few weeks later, he played for the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA summer league, and remained unsigned.

However, later this month he could wear the colors of Cameroon for the first time ever.

Although the country's national team started their preparations in early July, the late arrival of the 25-year-old boosts the squad ahead of the 16-team AfroBasket taking place in Abidjan, Cote d'Ivoire later this month (20-31 August).

The 2.11m forward with an outstanding ability to shoot from behind the arc and protect the rim, joins one of the best Cameroon's squads of the past six years.

Kadji's national team debut coincides with the returns of both Sacramento Kings new recruit Luc Mbah a Moute and Brice Vounang, who led Cameroon in scoring in 2007 with 12.3 points per game.

Last spring, in his senior year, Kadji helped the Hurricanes to the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) regular season title and ACC tournament title as they made it to the NCAA tournament Sweet 16.

In two seasons with the Hurricanes, he averaged 12.4 points, 6.1 rebounds and 1.4 blocks.

Early this week, the Cameroonian team returned to the capital city of Yaounde for the remainder of their AfroBasket preparations following a two-week training camp in China, that involved six games against Canada, New Zealand and the host nation.

This is the fourth consecutive appearance of Cameroon at AfroBasket since 2007 after a 15-year drought.

In that tournament they finished runners-up - the country's best finish in the competition's history - following an 86-72 defeat to hosts Angola.

Since then, Cameroon finished fourth in Libya in 2009, before they crashed out in the Quarter-Finals against Angola of the 2011 AfroBasket held in Madagascar and finished seventh.

Now, head coach Lazare Adingono has put together their most talented team that includes among others, both Gaston Essengue and Christian Bayang, the only two players who have not missed an AfroBasket since 2007.

Cameroon will take on two of their neighbor countries in Nigeria and Republic of Congo, before they square off against Mali in Group D in Abidjan.

The top three teams at AfroBasket 2013 will qualify for the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup to be staged in Spain.

Head coach Adingono and his assistant Lumumba Monikang are currently working with 15 players, including: Alfred Aboya, Christian Bayang, Luc Mbah A Moute, Brice Vounang, Jérémy Nzeulie, Yannick Atanga, Frank Tchoubaye, Charles Sibetcheu, Yves Mekongo, Hans Ntamack, Gaston Essengue, Michel Ipouck, Pitard Gedeon, Aldo Curti and Steve Missi.

FIBA