Evans Ganapamo, a leader in the making for Central African Republic

PARIS (France) - There is something about Evans Ganapamo, and the more he suits up for the Central African Republic (CAF) the more he appears to be a leader in the making for his country.

He first played for CAF back in 2018,  when "Les Fauves" were looking for a ticket to the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 although they fell short.

And, in the build-up to the third and final window of the FIBA AfroBasket 2021 Qualifies next week in Monastir, Tunisia, Ganapamo is looking to becoming impactful. 

He made quite an impression in last November's second window of the Qualifiers, where he paced the Central African's scoreboard with averages of 17 points and 2.7 rebounds per game. 

Ganapamo is adamant about his side's chances of helping CAF advancing to the FIBA Africa's flagship for the tenth straight time.

But he is also aware that he will have to sharpen his skills even more if he wants to grab precious victories on their way to the Kigali Arena, home to this year's FIBA African Championship in August.

But more than this, the  2.01m (6ft 7in) is convinced that CAF need to bring their A-game to outplay Group A opponents Tunisia, DR Congo and Madagascar.

"We're going to Tunisia with one goal in mind: getting one of the tickets to the FIBA AfroBasket. We have our strengths and weaknesses and we need to work on that if we want to be in Rwanda," says the 26-year-old, speaking to FIBA.basketball.

The former African champions are currently on a 1-2 run in their group, and the task seems somehow huge.

They lost to DR Congo and reigning African champions Tunisia, while they took the best of Madagascar in the First Round of the Qualifiers campaign.

Unquestionably optimistic, Ganapamo admits that the Central Africans have to right some wrongs along the way: "We were so close to getting the better of DR Congo," he recalled. "And this is something we must not let happen again," adds the Ganapamo, who plies his trade for Paris Basketball in France's PRO B.

But he also knows that the toughest game of all will be against Tunisia, except that this time, CAF shall not feel the pressure of winning. "They will be playing home. They will need to win to please the fans. So, the pressure's on them," he added.

But still, Ganapamo feels that his side could make a strong statement if they could beat  Tunisia. "We need to stay in the game till the fourth quarter. If this happens, then, anything can happen. They have experience for them, but we can impose athleticism to that, better transitions or r even set the pace of the game. These are the things that we need to focus on."

Evan Ganapamo made his CAF debut in the third window of FIBA Basketball World Cup African Qualifiers in Dakar, Senegal in June 2018

There's a reason why Ganapamo wants to see CAF feature at the next FIBA AfroBasket.

For this country, who boasts two continental titles and 19 appearances at the continental high mass, getting there a 20^th time would secure them a place in history books. "Central Africa has quite some history with FIBA AfroBasket. We want to go on with this tradition," he reiterated.

Ahead of next week's games, Ganapamo feels like the Central African squad are on a mission, and he wants to give something to the Central African people. "It's an honor to wear the national jersey. We want to make it for the people back home, who look up to us for some joy and comfort in hard times," he concludes.

FIBA