1 Skal Labissiere

Skal Labissiere was born on March 18, 1996, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti to Lesly and Ema Labissiere.  Labissiere played one season of college basketball for Kentucky during the 2015-2016 season.

His basketball journey began at the Collège Canado-Haïtien, a junior-senior high school in Port-au-Prince1. During the 2010 Haiti earthquake, his family’s home collapsed with Labissiere, his mother, and his brother inside. All three survived but remained trapped under debris for three hours. His legs were pinned, causing them to go numb, and Labissiere was unable to walk for a few weeks after. A few months following the earthquake, Labissiere moved to Memphis, Tennessee, to live with Gerald Hamilton, who ran the Reach Your Dream Foundation that brings international athletes to the United States as young prospects.

Skal Labissiere attended Evangelical Christian School in Memphis and started to play varsity basketball as an eighth-grader. In 2014, he left the school his senior year and enrolled at Lausanne Collegiate School, also located in Memphis. However, because of the move, he was ruled by TSSAA as ineligible to play basketball at Lausanne for the season. Instead, Labissiere played for Hamilton’s Reach Your Dream Prep Academy team, where he averaged 26 points, 12 rebounds, and 4.5 blocks per game.

Labissiere played one season of college basketball for Kentucky during the 2015-2016 season. He was a forward and played in 36 games, starting in 18 of them. He averaged 6.6 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 0.3 assists per game.  He was a two-time SEC Freshman of the Week selection and was ranked among the top 10 in blocks per game among all SEC players.   He posted 12 points on 6-of-10 shooting with six blocks in his NCAA Tournament debut vs. Stony Brook and led the team with six blocks as UK broke an NCAA Tournament record with 15 total blocks in that game.  Skal Labissiere erupted for a career-best 26 points on 10-of-12 shooting in the second game of the season vs. NJIT.  He led the team in blocks 12 times.

His performance at Kentucky led to him being selected by the Phoenix Suns in the first round of the 2016 NBA draft, 28th overall.

After his time at Kentucky, Skal Labissiere’s professional career began with the Sacramento Kings. He has since played for several teams, including the Portland Trail Blazers, Westchester Knicks, Cangrejeros de Santurce, Mexico City Capitanes, and Stockton Kings.

Labissiere’s journey from Haiti to the NBA is a testament to his resilience and dedication to the sport. His story continues to inspire many young athletes around the world.