Amanda Zahui B.

Amanda Zahui Bazoukou (born September 8, 1993), known professionally as Amanda Zahui B., is a Swedish basketball player for the Los Angeles Sparks of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). After playing basketball both in Sweden and collegiately with the Minnesota Golden Gophers, Bazoukou was drafted by the Tulsa Shock with the second overall pick in the 2015 WNBA draft.

Amanda Zahui B.
No. 34 – Los Angeles Sparks
PositionCenter
LeagueWNBA
Personal information
Born (1993-09-08) September 8, 1993
Stockholm, Sweden
NationalitySwedish
Listed height6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Listed weight184 lb (83 kg)
Career information
High schoolIgelstavikens Gymnasium
CollegeMinnesota (2013–2015)
WNBA draft2015 / Round: 1 / Pick: 2nd overall
Selected by the Tulsa Shock
Playing career2015–present
Career history
2015Tulsa Shock
2015–2016Adana ASKİ
2016–2020New York Liberty
2016–2017Nadezhda Orenburg
2017–2018USK Praha
2018–2019Sopron Basket
2019–2020Shandong Six Stars
2020Hatay BB
2020–2021Dynamo Kursk
2021–presentLos Angeles Sparks
2021–presentFenerbahçe
Career highlights and awards
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com

Early life

Zahui Bazoukou began playing basketball when she was 10. By 13, Sweden had added her to its 16-and-under national team where she averaged double-doubles in the European Championships.

Her surname is pronounced ZAH-wee B. She shortened Bazoukou to an initial so it would fit on her jersey and be easier for Americans to pronounce.

Her mother is Spanish-French and her father is from the Ivory Coast.[1][2]

College

Zahui B played three seasons for the Minnesota Golden Gophers. In February 2015, Zahui B recorded a career-high 39 points in a game against Iowa Hawkeye basketball team. She also recorded 29 rebounds in that game, the most ever by a player in the Big Ten Conference. The last NBA player to record at least 39 points and 29 rebounds in a game was Moses Malone in October 1979.[3]

Minnesota statistics

Source[4]

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high
Year Team GP Points FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2013-14 Minnesota 34 514 54.3% 33.3% 65.4% 11.6 1.4 0.7 3.1 15.1
2014-15 Minnesota 33 621 55.5% 26.1% 78.3% 12.9 1.1 1.4 4.1 18.8
Career 67 1135 54.9% 26.9% 72.8% 12.2 1.3 1.0 3.6 16.9

Professional career

Zahui B was drafted second overall by the Tulsa Shock when she was only a sophomore. She was 21 years old.[5]

In 2016, she was transferred to the Russian Nadezhda Orenburg where she became the highest scoring player.[6] Her name Zahui caused some stir due to its similarity with an obscene word in Russian. In 2017 the team decided to use the name Bazoukou instead.[7][8]

Career statistics
Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game  RPG  Rebounds per game
 APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game  BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game
 TO  Turnovers per game  FG%  Field-goal percentage  3P%  3-point field-goal percentage  FT%  Free-throw percentage
 Bold  Career high ° League leader

WNBA

Source[9]

Regular season
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG TO PPG
2015 Tulsa 3109.7.361.333.7502.40.30.20.60.63.4
2016 New York 33111.3.449.118.7873.20.40.30.71.15.0
2017 New York 2905.3.400.250.7501.10.30.20.20.52.2
2018 New York 29015.9.500.344.6053.00.70.40.41.67.7
2019 New York 242323.3.468.319.8526.30.91.11.41.38.6
2020 New York 212025.3.353.340.6948.51.90.91.22.69.0
2021 Los Angeles 302723.8.429.280.7675.11.00.61.21.89.2
Career 7 years, 3 teams 1977115.7.428.312.7434.00.70.50.81.36.2

Playoffs
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG TO PPG
2015 Tulsa 206.0.000.000–1.50.00.00.50.00.0
2016 New York 106.01.000––2.00.00.00.00.02.0
2017 New York 101.0–––1.00.00.00.00.00.0
Career 3 years, 2 teams 404.8.250.000–1.50.00.00.30.00.5

Personal

On June 7, 2021, WNBA.com published an op-ed written by Zahui B., titled "What Does Pride Mean to Me?", in commemoration of Pride Month. Zahui B. described herself as having a "personal journey of finding myself", and publicly came out as a lesbian. She wrote, "I celebrate my body, my mind and my sexuality. I am confident and open to the fact that I was made to love women. I was created to celebrate the beautiful women on this earth. To love the most powerful creature on this earth, the woman." Zahui B. stated that she has a family who has "always been accepting and supportive" regarding her sexuality.[10]

References
  1. "Amanda Zahui B.: U women's basketball's marvelous mystery". Star Tribune. Retrieved 2017-08-30.
  2. "Gophers women's basketball adds 6-5 Swedish center Amanda Zahui B." Twin Cities. 2012-05-09. Retrieved 2017-08-30.
  3. "Watch Minnesota's Amanda Zahui B.'s record-setting night in win over Iowa". btn.com.
  4. "NCAA Statistics". web1.ncaa.org. Retrieved 2017-08-30.
  5. "Jewell Loyd and Amanda Zahui B. Are Top Two Picks in W.N.B.A Draft - The New York Times". nytimes.com.
  6. Amanda Zahui will pull Nadezhda up (in Russian)
  7. The Nadezhda's basketball player changes family (in Russian)
  8. The family of the Russian Basketball rising star was changed (in Russian)
  9. "Amanda Zahui B. WNBA Stats". Basketball Reference. Sports Reference. Retrieved 21 September 2021.
  10. Zahui B., Amanda (7 June 2021). "What Does Pride Mean To Me? Written By Amanda Zahui B." WNBA. Retrieved 13 June 2021.
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