Watch: Pelicans' 20YO Cameroonian sensation Yves Missi looks back at his journey in an inspirational video

With the 21st pick in the NBA draft, the New Orleans Pelicans selected Yves Missi from Cameroon. As he gets ready to begin his pro career, the young forward looked back at his improbable journey.

On Monday night, Missi posted a video on X (formerly Twitter) detailing his life in basketball. It started out with him playing by himself on a hoop on the side of the road. After a series of clips from Missi slowly growing his game in Cameroon, it ended with Adam Silver calling his name on draft night.

Upon being discovered overseas, Yves Missi played one season of college basketball at Baylor. The 6-foot-10 forward showed two-way potential, averaging 10.7 points, 5.6 rebounds and 1.5 blocks.

Now with the Pelicans, the forward prospect joins a team loaded with talent. New Orleans made a big upgrade days after the draft by acquiring Dejounte Murray from the Atlanta Hawks. Their roster is still headlined by All-Stars Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram.

Missi now joins the growing list of NBA players to be produced from Cameroon. Among the most notable names are former MVP Joel Embiid and Indiana Pacers forward Pascal Siakam.

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Yves Missi speaks on representing Cameroon in the NBA

After he was selected by the New Orleans Pelicans in the NBA draft, Yves Missi was asked about representing his country in the league. The forward prospect is grateful to be part of the select few that have made it this far in the sport.

"It's definitely special, there's only five people in the history of Cameroon that went to the legue," Missi said. "Being able to count me as one of them is crazy. Now six out of like 30 million people, just insane."

With a trio of All-Star-level talents, the Pelicans are a team looking to make noise in the Western Conference right now. Despite only being a rookie, Missi feels he's someone who can help from day one. The main thing that he intends to bring to New Orleans is energy.

"I feel like I can impact winning from day one. Just being able to play defense, to be able to be a threat on offense as well," Missi continued. "Just someone who will bring energy all the time."

Over the past few years, the Pelicans have tried to add as much size and length to the roster as possible. Yves Missi fits that mold as he stands at 6-foot-10 and prides himself on the energy he brings to the floor.

For the Pelicans, Missi is someone who can provide rim protection and physicality around the basket on defense. When it comes to the offensive end, he is at his best playing above the rim as a constant lob threat.