Babacar Sané (born 19 September 2003) also known as Younq Ossoko is a Senegalese

professional basketball In professional sports, as opposed to amateur sports, participants receive payment for their performance. Professionalism in sport has come to the fore through a combination of developments. Mass media and increased leisure have brought larger a ...

player for the

Iowa Wolves The Iowa Wolves are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Des Moines, Iowa, and are affiliated with the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Wolves play their home games at the Wells Fargo Arena and compete in the Western ...

of the

NBA G League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is a professional basketball league in North America that serves as the Minor league#Basketball, developmental league of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The league comprises 31 teams; as of ...

. Internationally, he plays for the Senegal national team. Standing at , he plays as

small forward The small forward (SF), also known as the three, is one of the five Basketball position, positions in a regulation basketball game. Small forwards are typically shorter, quicker, and leaner than Power forward (basketball), power forwards and Cent ...

Early life

Born in the city of

Ziguinchor Ziguinchor (; ; ) is the capital of the Ziguinchor Region, and the chief town of the Casamance area of Senegal, lying at the mouth of the Casamance River. It has a population of 214,874 (2023 census). It is the eighth largest city of Senegal ...

, Sané grew up in

Bignona Bignona is a town with commune status located in the Ziguinchor Region of Senegal ( Casamance). It briefly appears in the 2004 Spanish movie '' Binta and the Great Idea.'' Its population in 2023 was 28,642. Notable people * Landing Savané, p ...

, where he was discovered by the

NBA Academy Africa The NBA Academy Africa is a basketball team and academy operated by the National Basketball Association (NBA), located in Saly, Senegal. Opened in 2017, the academy offers both education and basketball training. Several alumni of the program have p ...

after playing in the SEED Project Hoop Forum.

Professional career

DUC (2022)

In May 2022, Sané played for

Dakar Université Club Dakar Université Club, commonly referred to as Dakar UC or simply DUC, is a Senegalese Association football, football club based in Dakar, which competes in the Ligue 2, the second division of Senegalese football. They used to play in the Ligue ...

in the

2022 BAL season The 2022 BAL season, also known as BAL Season 2, was the second season of the Basketball Africa League (BAL). The season began on 2 March 2022 and ended with the Finals on 28 May 2022. The group phase was played in the Dakar Arena in Dakar and ...

as part of the BAL Elevate program in which one player from the NBA Academy was assigned to a roster. On 5 March, he made his BAL debut in a 70–85 loss to

SLAC SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, originally named the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center, is a federally funded research and development center in Menlo Park, California, United States. Founded in 1962, the laboratory is now sponsored ...

and had 8 points and 3 rebounds in 21 minutes. He averaged 4 points off the bench in 10.9 minutes per game.

NBA G League Ignite (2022–2024)

On 26 October 2022, Sané signed with the

NBA G League Ignite The NBA G League Ignite was a developmental basketball team in the NBA G League. Originally based in Walnut Creek, California, with home games planned to have been played at the Ultimate Fieldhouse for their first two seasons before moving to Hende ...

. On 18 January, Sané scored 17 points and grabbed 18 rebounds, a franchise record for most rebounds in a game. He was named to the G League's inaugural Next Up Game for the 2022–23 season.

Salt Lake City Stars (2024–2025)

After going undrafted in the

2024 NBA Draft The 2024 NBA draft was the 78th edition of the National Basketball Association's annual NBA draft, draft. Unlike recent years, the 2024 draft took place over two nights. This was the first NBA draft to be held on multiple nights since the draft ...

, Sané signed with the

Utah Jazz The Utah Jazz are an American professional basketball team based in Salt Lake City. The Jazz compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference. Since the 1991–92 season, the ...

on 14 August 2024, but was waived on 26 September. On October 28, he joined the

Salt Lake City Stars The Salt Lake City Stars are an American minor-league professional basketball team. They are a member of the NBA G League, based in the Salt Lake City suburb of West Valley City, Utah, and are affiliated with the Utah Jazz. Before the 2016–17 ...

Iowa Wolves (2025)

On February 2, 2025, Sané was traded to the

of the

in exchange for

Jaedon LeDee Jaedon Herbert LeDee (born July 25, 1999) is an American professional basketball player for the Salt Lake City Stars of the NBA G League. He played college basketball for the Ohio State Buckeyes, the TCU Horned Frogs, and the San Diego State Aztec ...

US Monastir (2025–present)

In May 2025, Sané joined Tuinisian champions US Monastir for the

2025 BAL season The 2025 BAL season, also known as BAL Season 5, will be the 5th season of the Basketball Africa League (BAL). The season will begin on 5 April and end on 14 June 2025 with the final. The playoffs and finals will be held in Pretoria, South Africa, ...

, his second appearance in the BAL.

National team career

Sané played for the Senegal U18 national team at the 2020 FIBA U18 African Championship in Egypt, averaging 14 points per game, and winning a silver medal. He also played in the 2019 FIBA U19 World Cup. On 25 February 2022, he made his debut for the senior Senegal national team in a 2023 FIBA World Cup qualifier against

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

References

External links

RealGM profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sane, Babacar 2003 births Living people 21st-century Senegalese sportsmen DUC Dakar players NBA Academy Africa players NBA G League Ignite players Salt Lake City Stars players Senegalese expatriate basketball people in the United States Senegalese men's basketball players Shooting guards Small forwards Sportspeople from Ziguinchor US Monastir basketball players