HS Diary No. 6: Mohamed Bamba

Harlem’s Mohamed Bamba is a top-5 prospect in the Class of 2017. We’ll be following Bamba on the journey through his senior year of high school as he holds down the SLAM HS Diarist position for the 2015-16 season.

Well, the long travel season is now officially in the books. During our trips to Florida, Delaware and Massachusetts, we went undefeated at every single national showcases, and showed we’re right up there with the nation’s best. It was great to get out there and compete against guys who were just as good, if not better than we were if we didn’t bring our A-game.

I’d give our team an A- grade so far, since there’s always room for growth but every single person on this team has done their job and elevated us to that next level. It’s been awesome to watch. Obviously I’m a part of it, but sometimes I take a step back and see the overall progress of the team and I’m like, wow, these guys have made some really great strides.

Being selected to play in the McDonald’s All-American Game was an unbelievable honor. The first time I heard of the game was when my older brother, Sidiki Johnson, was nominated to play. Throughout the years, I watched the Jamfest, the skills competition, and of course the game. I’m blessed to now be a part of it.

On the school front, we recently started a new semester and one of the classes I’m really looking forward to is Liberation Theology.

I also achieved one of my biggest life accomplishments back in December –forget about McDonald’s All-American or playing on ESPN – I scored a 30 on my ACT (94th percentile). I studied my butt off And I take pride in this because sometimes I would skip practice or class just to study for the ACT. I honestly don’t think the score really does any justice to us HS students because it doesn’t look at us holistically but I know it’s at least one important measure of aptitude.

Lastly, I decided to cut my college list to four: Michigan, Duke, Texas and Kentucky. The process was very thoughtful, and included a ton of in-depth discussions with my family. It’s been great to see the unique characteristics that each program potentially offers. Look forward to checking back in with you all after I’ve made a decision.