By Valentin Le Clezio

With two years of NBA Draft eligibility left Axel Bouteille ('95) should be a player NBA scouts keep an eye on over the next few months. Coming off a successful summer with the National Team, Bouteille has had the most prolific season of his young career (over 14 minutes a game, 7.5 of valuation) in a club, Elan Chalon, that has continued to develop young talents over the past decade (Sefolosha, Capela, Lauvergne...).
In the midst of a very successful season for his team (Leader's Cup finalist, qualified for Fiba Eurocup Final Four, currently qualified for ProA playoffs) Axel Bouteille comes back with us on his current progression, his family background and what the future could hold for him.

Axel, how is you season going so far?
My season has been going pretty well so far. My playing time has increased compared to last year and our team has been winning a lot of games lately. So far so good, collectively and individually.

Despite this overall increase in playing time, your time spent on the court is, at times, a bit inconsistent. How difficult is it to deal with?
It is going alright. I just try to be ready at all time to help this team, no matter when or how many minutes I receive. As a competitor you always want to spend more minutes on the court to try help your team win but you got to respect Coach's decisions.

What aspects of your game still need the most improvements?
The main areas I need to improve on are my ball-handling and my 3 point-shooting. I am shooting rather efficiently from the outside this season but I am not shooting enough threes and I need to increase that number. Spreading the floor and making threes at a high rate are very important in modern basketball and it is something I will work on extremely hard this summer in order to come back next year as a better shooter. I also need to continue getting stronger.

Your club, Elan Chalon, has been a source of young talents for well over ten years now (Sefolosha, Capela, Lauvergne, Lessort, Ouattara, Michineau, Bouteille...), how can you explain this great deal of success in supplying the highest levels of basketball with quality players?
First and foremost, all these players were talented, and it demonstrates how good the recruiting job Chalon does. It is a major part of their success. Secondly, the daily work and the methods used in Chalon by our coaches (Romain Chenaud and Maxence Broyer) are of great quality. They push us to get better during each and every practice. Chalon has proven for a long time it was quality club with quality coaches and infrastructures. A young player can evolve step by step and develop his game here before reaching the highest levels.

What kind of relationship have you kept with Clint Capela since he left Chalon?
I have kept in touch a lot with Clint . We have a very friendly relationship and we talk very regularly despite he fact he is playing overseas now. He has been mentoring myself quit a bit.

You have two years of NBA draft eligibility remaining. What are your plans for the near future and do you already have a program for this summer?
This summer will be very important for my future and I plan on working extremely hard in Europe and in the United States. I would like to participate to some pre-draft workouts, test the NBA Draft waters and then make up my mind if it could be a good year for me to keep my name in the Draft. The more important for me is to come back next year as an overall improved basketball player.

Your dad had a long and successful career at the Pro level in France. What kind of relationship do you keep with him as a dad and a basketball advisor?
Indeed, my dad had a very long professional career in basketball. Whenever I have him on the phone we discuss my previous games and he gives me advises on some of the things I should be doing better to improve my overall game. He is tough on me but that is how I like it. He follows me closely and has a lot of interest in my evolution.

Do you have any player you model your game after?
Gordon Hayward is one of the players I like to watch a lot. He is very versatile, can do a little bit of everything on both ends of the floor. I really like his playing style and try to incorporate some of his moves in my game.
 
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