Boston’s Tacko Fall talks cleaning up African recruiting on 60 Minutes

Boston Celtics two way center Tacko Fall appeared on CBS’ 60 Minutes to talk about his desire to clean up the pipeline for African recruits.

Boston Celtics two way center Tacko Fall appeared on the popular CBS television news show 60 Minutes Sunday to discuss how he wants to change the pathway for African prospects such as he once was.

Fall, who came to the United States from Senegal at age 16 to play a sport he’d only just recently started playing, spoke no English and had few contacts in a strange land far from home.

As is the case with many such recruits, his interests as a person took a backseat to what his potential promised his handlers even if they did try to look after him to an extent.

Without a well-thought-out plan in place for Fall’s development, he nearly lost his visa after being shuttled across four different states as his recruiters found they needed to change his high school.

Wanting to help others avoid the deceptive practices that could have derailed his now-blossoming basketball career before it started, the Senegalese big man hopes to get involved in transforming the process for such prospects in the future to get to the NCAA and NBA levels.

To that end, he spoke with 60 Minutes’ Jon Wertheim extensively on the topic. When asked how his recruiters framed his move to the U.S., it actually had less to do with sports, and more the doors playing them would open for him.

“[T]he biggest thing they told, and that was why my mom actually agreed to send me here, was [I´] be able to pursue [my] education … then it was a no brainer for her. But in the back of their mind they saw a lot of potential in me … [a]s a basketball player. When I went to Houston, having no experience in basketball too, that was really tough … 7-foot-2.

But I didn’t know what I was doing on the basketball court. I had no idea. I didn’t even know if I belonged in there. Some [of] it was a tough time getting adjusted to that. Just playing every day, working out, practicing, having the regimen. And it was also tough mentally, not having my mom, not having my family around.”

The two way Celtics fan favorite is hopeful his newfound platform provides him with an opportunity to make the bumpy ride to where he is today a little less so in the future, noting “one of my goals is … to have made that transition as good as possible for the next ones that are coming.”

Fall has a fairly detailed idea of what needs to happen for that, and it isn’t just throwing some money at a problem, or a marketing campaign. In fact, he’s viewing in a very macroscopic perspective.

“[I]t starts with us,” he began.

“For us to have made it this far, we’re ambassadors. How we compose ourselves on the court, how we play, how we act off the court is going to show that if they go and invest in Africa, you’re going to have more kids like us that are going to come.”

“They’re going to work hard. They’re going to do things the right way,” he added.

The UCF product is aware his own story is far from the worst of the abuses dealt with by some of his peers also hailing from the continent of Africa. And he has them in mind when he thinks of what needs to change.

“[These abuses are] something that we have to fight a lot,” noted Fall. “We, as Africans, you just can’t allow your kin to be treated unfairly.”

“[There’s] been many times where I feel like some people have been taken advantage of …they bring them here, then that’s it. Then they’re just left for their own. And if things don’t work out, then they are pretty much screwed. It’s getting better.”

“I feel like now that they know what’s going on, people are being more careful… especially now with the NBA being involved. And it’s only going to keep getting better,” he continued.

Fall has taken an active role in helping the NBA Global Academy based in Africa, and in general with the development of the sport in his native continent.

And, on hold for the moment due to the coronavirus pandemic, a new joint venture between the NBA and FIBA, the Basketball Africa League (BAL) represents yet another pathway to the Association that Fall should be able to help leverage in his quest to diminish the role of ethically-dubious recruiters.

And even though he had trying moments far from the family and friends he’d known his whole life, he has no regrets for having taken the risk.

But his desire to pay it forward is a strong one — a desire he’s put sweat equity into before even inking his first full NBA contract.

And his gregarious nature and magnetic personality can make you forget about the 7-foot-5 frame that caught the attention of those recruiters all those years ago.

But Fall won’t forget about those who come after, a point of view the world could use so much more of today.

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