Emoni Bates appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated at 15, while LeBron James was featured in Slam Magazine before his junior year of high school. Zion Williamson began going viral for his vicious dunks at 16, and Victor Wembanyama debuted in the EuroCup at 15.
But even this century’s most-celebrated basketball phenoms failed to find fame as quickly as Mohamed Dabone, who turned 14-years-old on Tuesday with a physique and skillset so advanced that he’s viewed as a potential No. 1 overall pick in an eventual NBA Draft.
Of course, there is plenty of time for others to catch up. If Dabone really possesses a 2011 birthday — and there are plenty of doubters — it will be 2030 before he’s draft eligible.
Dabone, who is already 6-foot-11, is heralded as a fledgling combination of Giannis Antetokounmpo and Victor Wembanyama. A summertime headline in the Wall Street Journal dubbed Dabone, “The 13-year-old who might be the NBA’s next great unicorn.”
The Burkina Faso native joined FC Barcelona’s senior team in Europe’s top pro division this season. Though he’s playing primarily for the organization’s U22 team for now, he logged preseason action with the main team last month, becoming the youngest player to ever play for a EuroLeague squad.
Here’s one clip of what a 13-year old Dabone did in his first appearance for a Barcelona squad that features several former NBA players on its roster.
Why Mohamed Dabone’s age is a question
Dabone’s combination of age and physical gifts (he purportedly owns a 7-4 wingspan) are such an unfathomable pairing that his birthday has become a topic of debate within the basketball universe.
NBA Draft Room, an online repository for mock drafts and prospect profiles, suggested last year that, “his real age might be unknown.”
That Dabone hails from a poverty-stricken West African nation only adds to the skepticism over his true age. Burkina Faso ranked 185th of 193 countries in the 2023-24 Human Development Index from the United Nations. In a nation of approximately 23 million, over 25% have no birth certificate, according to a World Bank study.
Skeptics suggest Dabone could really be much older than 14. They see his frame, his game and his age and can’t reconcile them. One easy theory is that Dabone was assigned a 2011 birthday by handlers seeking a lucrative finder’s fee for introducing a rare phenom to the international basketball community.
But CBS Sports has learned there is at least some supporting documentation to back up Dabone’s purported birthday of Oct. 21, 2011. Dabone was able compete in the May Adidas NextGen session with Barcelona’s u18 squad only after passing the organization’s age verification procedures, according to a EuroLeague official.
“All clubs participating in our competitions are required to submit official documentation for the registration of each player,” the EuroLeague official told CBS Sports. “One of the mandatory documents is the player’s official passport. Accordingly, the date of birth of Mohamed Dabone published on our website has been taken directly from his passport.”
RealGM, the well-respected online media outlet covering international basketball, used the Adidas NextGen information to build its profile of Dabone. Thus, the Oct. 21, 2011 birthdate for the budding star has become disseminated more widely in recent months.
The verification of Dabone’s birthdate through a passport comes after a different online profile for Dabone enhanced suspicion that he may be older than advertised.
Prior to the EuroLeague’s vetting of Dabone’s age for the Adidas NextGen event, skeptics latched on to a FIBA 3×3 profile for a “Dabone Mohamed Samsoundine,” who has a listed age of 18 as of this week.
The profile once featured a photo of Dabone but no longer does. It also lists Dabone as being from Togo, which neighbors Burkina Faso to the south. However, a FIBA representative told CBS Sports that anyone can create a profile and enter personal details for the organization’s 3×3 platform without providing supporting documentation.
“Only players seeking to compete in FIBA 3×3 Pro Circuit or 3×3 National Team Competitions must undergo a verification process, which includes submitting an official passport,” the FIBA official said. “Since Mohamed Dabone has not participated in any of these competitions, his 3×3 profile has not been verified, and FIBA cannot confirm the accuracy of the listed information.”
Cutting through the clutter
In summary, a passport for Dabone exists and lists his birthday of Oct. 21, 2011. If there is conflicting documentation to suggest that he’s actually four years older, it was not provided when his FIBA 3×3 profile was created.
Both believers and skeptics on Dabone’s age can agree on one thing, though: he is destined for the NBA as soon as he can legally get there. The problem for Dabone is that he’ll have to wait so long.
“Whether he is 12, 13 or 16 he’s a special talent with athletic ability that is off the charts,” NBA Draft Room’s assessment surmised last year.
Longtime scout Rafael Barlowe, now of the Mavericks, summed up Dabone’s situation last year for his website by cutting through the age-related clutter to paint a picture of a future star.
“While there is considerable chatter regarding Mohamed Dabone’s age, with few believing he was born in 2011, his talent and physical tools are undeniable,” Barlowe wrote.
Dabone’s film suggests the comparisons with Antetokounmpo and Wembanyama aren’t far off base. They are all versatile forwards with rare combinations of size and skill. Barlowe identified Dabone as a “high-ceiling athletic big with tremendous upside” and noted his strengths as an athletic lob threat and defensive anchor.
Given the promise Dabone has already shown, it’s likely a disadvantage to him that he must wait until 2030 to be draft-eligible. Dabone will be physically ready much sooner, but he will be forced to delay the beginning of his NBA earnings window until the year he — legally — turns 19.