The University of Utah men’s basketball team was able to put another winning season under their belt this year, which would not be possible without their sixth man, Keba Keita. The 6-foot-8 sophomore from Bamako, Mali, has steadily improved in his two years at Utah and looks to make a big leap in his junior year, as teammate Branden Carlson will be graduating and leaving a huge vacancy on the team. Despite being an incredible athlete and one of the most lethal shot blockers in the entire country, Keita never planned on pursuing a career in basketball until an unexpected journey led him over 6,000 miles away from home, here, to Salt Lake City.
His Path to Utah
Basketball was not always the sport for Keita, as he originally played volleyball in Mali. After the Keita family decided to make the move to Utah, Keita decided to pursue basketball as his primary sport and never looked back.
Keita began attending Wasatch Academy during his junior year and was slated to graduate in the class of 2022. Keita showed flashes of greatness early on in his high school career but was still a very raw prospect with a lot to prove. After his senior year, Keita held four offers, one of them being the U. Keita fell in love with the prospect of staying in Utah, near his family, and decided to take his talents to Salt Lake City.
In only his second year living in the United States, Keita started to acclimate to the American lifestyle and loved the thought of attending a historic school with a deep-rooted basketball history.
Initial Improvements
Playing just two years of American basketball before going to play at a Power Five Division One school is quite an adjustment for someone whose main focus had been volleyball for many years. Despite his lack of experience, Keita arrived on campus his freshman year, ready to put in the work in order to thrive as a collegiate basketball player. Keita worked tirelessly to improve his free throw shooting, which he identified as one of his weaknesses. Freshman year, Keita shot 42.1% from the free throw line and was able to up those numbers to 56.1% his sophomore year, which shows Keita’s commitment to consistently improving his game.
In Keita’s freshman year, he averaged 3.0 points, 3.4 rebounds and 0.7 blocks per game in just 10.5 minutes per game. Keita played very well throughout year one — considering his lack of experience — and was encouraged by what he was able to accomplish in his freshman year.
Sophomore year was a different story for Keita, as he looked to make an impact in the Utah rotation. In his second season, Keita has made massive strides, averaging 8.3 points, 5.4 rebounds and 1.1 blocks a night as a key piece in the Utah rotation.
As one of the youngest players on the Utah roster, Keita looks to continue his improvement this offseason in order to take over as one of the veteran leaders in his third year as a Ute. Keita not only showed his ability to improve in every aspect of his game but also the ability to adapt to American basketball after only his fourth year of organized basketball in the States. The desire and passion to become a great basketball player is one of the many reasons why he is extremely coachable and a great guy to have around a rebuilding Utah program.
What Basketball Means to Keita
Keita will enter his junior season next year, where he will take on a more defined role as Utah loses Carlson. Keita has worked extremely hard to get this opportunity as a Division I starter, and he will look to make a massive impact next year alongside Lawson Lovering.
The Keita family includes one more son — Keita’s older brother, Noumory, who plays professional volleyball in South Korea. Keita is very close with his family and wants to be able to support them by eventually playing basketball professionally. Keita would like his brother to play basketball with him, but he knows that he’s has fallen in love with the game of volleyball and is thriving in it.
Throughout Keita’s journey to the U.S., he has stayed humble and dedicated to perfecting his craft. The ability to not become complacent separates him from other basketball players, and his continued dedication should pay dividends in the near future. With two more years of college eligibility remaining, Keita will have time to polish his game and make the jump to the professional level. Catch Keita next year for the Utes as the team makes the move to the Big 12 conference.
