Alfred Aboya

Alfred Aboya
Born	(1985-01-02) January 2, 1985 Yaoundé, Cameroon
Occupation(s)	Basketball player, coach
Years active	2005–present
Known for	Collegiate basketball at UCLA; coaching Cameroon men's national basketball team

Alfred Aboya Baliaba (born January 2, 1985) is a former professional basketball player from Cameroon who has transitioned into coaching. During his collegiate career with the UCLA Bruins, he contributed to three appearances in the Final Four tournaments and was a member of UCLA's most victorious class, accumulating 123 wins.

Originating from Cameroon, Aboya moved to the United States for prep school before enrolling at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), where he completed his bachelor's degree in three years while competing in four seasons with the Bruins. His professional journey commenced in France and extended through stints in Japan, Venezuela, Turkey, Libya, and the NBA Development League (now G League) in the United States.

Early life

Alfred Aboya was born in Yaoundé, Cameroon to parents Kedi Kofane Angele and Baliaba Aboya Casimir. After finishing high school in Cameroon, he attended Tilton School in New Hampshire for prep school. Coach Scott Willard recruited him after seeing a photograph of Aboya dunking, as part of Tilton’s initiative to increase its international student population and expand its English as a Second Language offerings. Although initially not fluent in English, Aboya excelled athletically in basketball and another sport.

Despite already holding a high school diploma, Aboya remained at Tilton for two years to prepare for higher education in America. By his senior year, he had evolved into a formidable center, drawing recruitment attention from programs such as Georgetown and UCLA. During a visit to the West Coast, he connected with fellow Cameroonian player Luc Richard Mbah a Moute, who had grown up nearby in Yaoundé.

College career

Aboya enrolled at UCLA in the fall of 2005 alongside teammate Mbah a Moute; both players leaned on one another for support throughout their college careers. UCLA advanced to the Final Four during each of Aboya’s first three seasons. Although slated to start as a freshman, his debut was postponed until the seventh game due to arthroscopic surgery on both knees. In the 2005–06 season, he participated in 33 games and started twice. The following year, he played in 35 out of 36 games with one start, recording nearly balanced offensive (68) and defensive (79) rebounds. As a junior during the 2006–07 season, Aboya appeared in all 39 games, starting 17, while averaging 2.9 points and 2.2 rebounds over 15.2 minutes per contest.

In his senior season (2008–09), after teammates Mbah a Moute and Kevin Love departed for the National Basketball Association (NBA), UCLA depended on Aboya’s rebounding abilities. He achieved career-high averages of 9.9 points and 6.3 rebounds per game and received acclaim for his defensive efforts as well as developing a dependable jump shot. Alongside seniors Darren Collison and Josh Shipp, Aboya graduated as part of UCLA’s most successful class with 123 wins—a remarkable accomplishment considering previous eras featured shorter seasons and restrictions on freshmen participation.

Academically, Aboya expedited his studies by completing an undergraduate degree in international relations within three years while maintaining a GPA above 3.0. In his final year, he pursued graduate studies in public policy with ambitions of eventually becoming Cameroon’s president.

Professional career

Following the 2009 NBA draft in which he was not selected, he participated with the Dallas Mavericks during the 2009 NBA Summer League. In September of that year, he inked a deal with BCM Gravelines but was released after one week.

By October 2009, he had signed with Olympique Antibes competing in the LNB Pro B, and then in January 2010, he joined Link Tochigi Brex of Japan’s Basketball League (JBL). For the 2010–11 season, he committed to the Hitachi Sunrockers, also part of the JBL.

In 2012, he signed with Bucaneros de La Guaira from Venezuela's Liga Profesional de Baloncesto but departed in February. The following month, he transferred to Final Gençlik in Turkey’s Basketball Second League. He spent the 2012–13 season playing for Shiga Lakestars in Japan before being released early in 2013 and subsequently rejoining Final Gençlik in March.

On November 1, 2013, he was drafted in the second round by the Fort Wayne Mad Ants in the NBA D-League draft. After being waived on November 22, he was reacquired on December 20 but waived again on February 4, 2014. On March 20, he signed with the Reno Bighorns; however, after appearing in two games, he was released on March 28. The next month, he secured a contract with Al Ittihad Tripoli in Libya.

He returned to the Reno Bighorns on November 2, 2014, but was waived again on December 12 after seven appearances. Shortly thereafter, on December 18, he joined the Los Angeles D-Fenders. Aboya was waived on January 28, 2015, and then brought back on February 25.

Coaching career

On October 30, 2019, Aboya accepted a position as an assistant coach and player development specialist with the Iowa Wolves of the NBA G League.

In 2021, Alfred Roland Aboya Baliaba was appointed Assistant Coach for Cameroon’s Men’s National Team during the FIBA Afrobasket tournament; despite the team losing all three group matches, he was later elevated to Head Coach. Under his guidance, Cameroon competed in the 2023 FIBA African World Cup Qualifiers, finishing third in Group B with a 4–8 record and narrowly missing out on qualification.

In 2022, Aboya took on a coaching role at NBA Academy Africa based in Senegal and served as head coach for their squad during the 2023 BAL qualification tournament.

Although he did not serve as coach during Cameroon’s participation at the FIBA AfroCAN 2023—where they finished eleventh—he resumed his position as Head Coach in August 2023 for the FIBA Pre-Olympic Qualifying Tournament held in Nigeria. Leading the team to an undefeated run, Aboya helped Cameroon secure a spot in the Olympic qualifiers for only the second time ever.

External links

• NBA D-League profile
• Eurobasket.com profile
• UCLA Bruins bio
• ESPN.com profile