Ex-Celtics First-Round Pick Sends Message To NBA After Olympics

Olympic basketball provides players all around the world with an opportunity to represent their respective countries and compete for a medal.

The global stage also allows competitors to showcase their talents to the sport’s top flight.

NBA evaluators surely took in this year’s Summer Games in Paris with thoughts of potentially adding players who currently are out of the league. Former Celtics first-round pick Guerschon Yabusele, as he made clear via X on Sunday, is hoping he made a good enough impression in the Olympics to receive another look in the NBA.

“Been waiting for a 2nd chance.. I’m ready,” Yabusele posted.

Yabusele, the 16th overall pick in 2016, initially signed with the Celtics in July 2017 and appeared in a combined 74 games with Boston between two seasons before he was waived in July 2019. The 28-year-old continued to play professionally in China and in his native France, and he’s been with Real Madrid since 2021.

A 6-foot-8 forward, Yabusele was one of the best players on a Team France roster that included the likes of Victor Wembanyama and Rudy Gobert. Yabusele averaged 14 points per game — second on the team behind Wembanyama — across France’s six-contest Olympics run that ended with a loss to Team USA in the gold medal match.

A return to Boston probably is unlikely for Yabusele, as the reigning NBA champions are returning virtually their entire roster from a season ago. But the talented forward seemingly has earned the opportunity to at least work out for another team(s) in the league.