On a sticky July afternoon in Cameroon, beads of perspiration dot a young boy's brow as he paces outside the Yaoundé Sports Palace, plotting his entry. The expansive, asymmetric dome with a sharply pointed roof was a diplomatic gift from the People's Republic of China, plunked into the city of Yaoundé like a spaceship from another galaxy. The 10-year-old, named Arthur, yells to the guard out front but is told that family and friends are not allowed inside. "But I want to see my brother!" the boy says, his infectious grin creasing his round, sun-kissed face. "You can just let me in, OK?
More than a decade ago, Luc Mbah a Moute created a path, which Joel Embiid took and Pascal Siakam followed. This is the untold story of the rise of Cameroonian ball.
