# Ismaël Bako

Ismaël Bako (born 10 October 1995) is a Belgian professional basketball player for UNICS Kazan of the Russian VTB United League. Standing at 208 cm (6 ft 10 in), he plays at the center position. He started his career in 2012 with Leuven Bears and transferred to Antwerp Giants in April 2017.

## Professional career
### Leuven

Bako started his career with Leuven Bears in the Pro Basketball League, making his debut in 2012. He was named the BLB Young Player of the Year of the 2016–17 season, after averaging 8.0 points and 4.1 rebounds per game.

### Antwerp

In April 2017, he signed with Antwerp Giants. In the 2018–19 season, Bako won the Belgian Basketball Cup with the Giants. He was named the Belgian Cup Most Valuable Player. In the same season, the team reached the Final Four of the Basketball Champions League. Antwerp finished in third place after defeating Brose Bamberg in the third place game. Bako was named to the Basketball Champions League Star Lineup.

### ASVEL

On 3 July 2019, Bako signed a two-year contract with LDLC ASVEL of the French LNB Pro A and the EuroLeague. He averaged 3.8 points and 2.1 rebounds per game. On 12 June 2020 he re-signed with the team for an additional season. During the 2020-21 season Bako averaged 5.6 points and 3.6 rebounds per game. He parted ways with the team on 11 July 2021.

### Baxi Manresa

On 24 July 2021 Bako signed a two-year deal with Baxi Manresa of the Spanish Liga ACB. On 5 September 2021 he won the Catalan League and won the MVP of the competition.

### Virtus Bologna

On 13 July 2022 Bako signed with Virtus Bologna of the Lega Basket Serie A and the EuroLeague. On 29 September 2022, after having ousted Olimpia Milano in the semifinals, Virtus won its third Supercup, defeating 72–69 Banco di Sardegna Sassari and achieving a back-to-back, following the 2021 trophy. However, despite good premises Virtus ended the EuroLeague season at the 14th place, thus it did not qualify for the playoffs. Moreover, the team was defeated in the Italian Basketball Cup final by Brescia. In June, after having ousted 3–0 both Brindisi and Tortona, Virtus was defeated 4–3 by Olimpia Milan in the national finals, following a series which was widely regarded among the best in the latest years of Italian basketball. On 25 August 2023 Bako parted ways with the Italian powerhouse.

## National team career

Bako has been a member of the Belgian national basketball team since 2016. At 21, Bako was the youngest member of the squad that played at EuroBasket 2017.

## Career statistics
### EuroLeague

| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG | PIR |
| 2019–20 | ASVEL | 24 | 2 | 11.0 | .508 | — | .818 | 2.1 | .3 | .3 | 1.0 | 3.8 | 4.8 |
| 2020–21 | ASVEL | 27 | 3 | 14.4 | .600 | — | .878 | 3.6 | .4 | .5 | .8 | 5.6 | 7.4 |
| 2022–23 | Bologna | 34 | 0 | 15.5 | .670 | — | .877 | 2.6 | .4 | .5 | .6 | 6.1 | 6.9 |
| Career | Career | 85 | 5 | 13.9 | .606 | — | .865 | 2.8 | .4 | .5 | .8 | 5.3 | 6.5 |

## Personal life

Bako was born in Belgium to a Beninese father and Belgian mother.

## Awards and accomplishments
### Club
#### Manresa

* Lliga Catalana de Bàsquet: (2021)

#### ASVEL

* LNB Pro A: (2021)
* French Cup: (2021)

#### Antwerp Giants

* Belgian Cup: (2019)

### Individual

* Lliga Catalana de Bàsquet Final MVP: (2021)
* All-Champions League First Team: (2019)
* Belgian Cup MVP: (2019)
* Belgian League Young Player of the Year (2017)