Dokossi focused on helping to rebuild Central African Republic’s basketball

BENGUELA (Angola) – Central African Republic (CAF) opened their FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 African with two straight defeats, but Allan Dokossi remains upbeat about the future of the team.
The winners of the AfroBaskets 1974 and 1987 have spent the past three decades looking to return to their glory days.
A number of talented CAF players have come and gone, others like Dokossi feel on the mission to put their country’s name back on the top of the continent basketball scene.
It hasn’t been an easy ride for CAF though as the last edition of AfroBasket showed. CAF failed to move out of the Group after finishing 1-2.
Trying to secure one of the five tickets available for African teams for the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 in Indonesia, Japan and Philippines emerges as supreme chance to reinvent CAF’s basketball. 
“We’re trying to build back up the team,” the 21-year-old said.

“There are old and young guys. We are moving on. I know we will not win directly like some people want. It may take a long time to find the chemistry with the new guys on the team. So we have to build back up the team and hopefully it will be a great team.”
Dokossi debuted for CAF during the FIBA AfroBasket 2021 Qualifiers, but he didn’t play in the Final Round of the tournament in Kigali.
“Players like me who play in France have to help the players in the Central African Republic to bring back the team to when they won championships,” the 6’08m (2.05m) power forward said.
“It’s a huge honor to represent my country. I know my mom is watching me every game I play.”
Asked about the experience of playing alongside more experienced players and how the transition was going, the left-handed Dokossi noted: “We have our captain Max Kouguere, who will be there for some more years. Then you have me and (Evans) Ganapamo and kids like that who will pick up the team and build the team around us.” 
CAF last played at a major world competition at the Seoul Games 1988, and although it’s too early to measure the team’s chances in the African Qualifiers, Dokossi admitted that “It’s really tough to play in the qualification. There are some players who are missing and others not fully 100 percent. That’s tough. We need to figure out this. We have to give 100 percent in every game, even if we are not the favorite. We have to play with heart. We know the country is behind us.”
In the run-up to the game against host Angola, Dokossi promised to give his all. “I’m going to give 200 percent because it’s the last game. I want to go back to France with no regrets. Even if we don’t get a win. We don’t have anything to lose.”

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