Ivorian star point guard Souleyman Diabate started his 2023 Basketball Africa League (BAL) journey on a high note after helping his Petro de Luanda side beat Uganda’s City Oilers 89-71 Thursday, April 27 to record their first victory at the Nile Conference which is underway in Cairo, Egypt. The 35-year-old, who spent 15 years playing outside of Africa, is now a household name in the BAL, having won the trophies for the first two editions with Zamalek and US Monastir. He is chasing the third with Petro de Luanda which he joined six months ago. The Angolan champions finished third during the inaugural BAL season before coming up short last season when they lost to US Monastir in the final. They now consider Diabate, the only player to have won two BAL titles with two different clubs in as many seasons, as a key asset in their 2023 BAL silverware. ALSO READ: Ivorian star point-guard Diabate joins US Monastir ahead of BAL 2022 During the BAL season one, the Ivorian scored 12 points – including 2-for-3 from three-point range to help Zamalek beat Petro de Luanda in the semi-finals. Eventually, he would come off the bench to contribute 14 points and help Zamalek beat US Monastir to clinch his first-ever BAL title. Diabate entered the history books the following year after helping US Monastir beat Petro de Luanda during the 2022 BAL final to become the only player with two BAL titles. Can he repeat his BAL success with Petro de Luanda? Without a doubt, Diabate is confident he can bring the championship to Petro just like he did for Zamalek and Monastir. “I am playing for Petro de Luanda, and the goal is to win,” he said. “My personal goal is to go for a (BAL) three-peat. I am ready to give everything to be part of the history of Petro de Luanda and the BAL.” “I am happy to be the only one, and I hope to keep winning (BAL titles), and I keep working hard to keep winning.” Can Petro finally win the BAL? “This is a great team,” Diabate spoke of Petro de Luanda. Together with his team mates, Diabate hopes to put up a great performance at the Nile Conference and the entire BAL tournament. Only four teams will progress to the eight-team playoffs in Kigali in May, joining Rwanda Energy Group (REG), Stade Malien, ABC Fighters and AS Douanes who qualified from the Sahara Conference in March. Petro de Luanda also boasts a number of key players that can contribute greatly to their title bid, including the experienced Angolan forward Carlos Morais and seasoned South Sudanese center Ater Majok.
