2023-10-07 14:00:26
GironaYves Pons has become one of the great names of Básquet Girona, the team that leads the Endesa League in a surprising way. The story of the pivot wing has juice. After being born in Port-au-Prince (Haiti), he grew up in Cité Soleil, a neighborhood with many economic difficulties and overpopulation. Its origin was an illegal settlement that grew out of control. His biological mother gave him to an orphanage because she could not take care of the child, who was also sick. He was only three years old. “I don’t remember much about that time,” confess.
Babeth and Jean-Claude, a French couple, adopted him when he was four and a half years old. Raised in Fuveau, his social environment changed completely. From extreme poverty he grew up in an environment of great artistic sensitivity. His grandfather, a musician and conductor, taught him to play the saxophone. His mother, who was a jazz dancer, introduced him to the world of dance. “She was like the Michael Jordan of dance,” he says. From the age of six to eleven, Yves performed regularly in different auditoriums and stages. The player believes that his ability to jump is related to this stage of his life, when he acquired great flexibility and elasticity. “I think dance helped me to have the ability to jump that I have,” he continues.
The pivot wing of Básquet Girona also practiced judo. Surprised by his results in some championships in the area, his coach at the time compared him to Teddy Riner, one of the French Olympic athletes with a better record. The boy also became fond of photography (he has an Instagram account with almost 50,000 followers) and cooking. Their specialty is pancakes.
“When I arrived in France, I had no idea what sport was. Choosing a discipline was really random. No one in my family played any sports, but because I was quite tall a lot of people told me I should play basketball,” he recalls. His progress led him to the INSEP Academy in Paris, where some players have come out of the NBA like Boris Diaw, Ronny Turiaf or Tony Parker.
An ex-NBA with Euroleague experience
Pons’ statistics have helped Básquet Girona, who host Real Madrid this Sunday, win their first three games in the ACB. The 24-year-old power forward is averaging 11.3 points and 5.7 rebounds per game. Salva Camps, the coach who has been able to optimize his production, uses it for an average of 26:08 minutes per match.
The match between Básquet Girona and Madrid will be the showcase for the Girona club’s new anthem. The song has been created by Els Amics de les Arts. During the break of the match, the Catalan group will perform the national anthem for the first time. “I am very happy to be in Girona. I try to bring a winning mentality and a lot of energy to the court. It will be a great season”, warns the player, who has starred in some of the most spectacular plays in the first games.
Pons has a French passport and arrived at Basketball Girona from LDLC Asvel, a team with which he played in the French league and the Euroleague. His career also includes experience in the United States. From 2017 to 2021 he was part of the Tennessee Volunteers, in the NCAA. The following season, 2021-22, he made his NBA debut with the Memphis Grizzlies, a franchise with which he played 12 games. His participation was complemented by the Memphis Hustle of the G-League.
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