SHENZHEN (China) - The upcoming FIBA Women's Asia Cup 2025 should be an opportunity for Amar Mansour to further spread her wings following a coming-out party of sorts in the senior level last year.
Some fans and pundits alike remember the young playmaker as one of Lebanon's few bright spots during their campaign in the FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup 2026 Pre-Qualifying Tournament in Rwanda.
Only 18 at that time, the 1.75 M (5'9") guard proved that she can hang with some of the world's best after posting solid averages of 11.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 3.0 assists with an efficiency of 11.7 in three games.
It was just her third tour of duty with the women's national team since being called up in 2021 and she went on to turn a lot of heads, so much so that some are already considering her as the Cedars' next great hope.
Definitely, it's not a reach whatsoever since she showed that she could be, something that her more experienced teammates such as Rebecca Akl could surely appreciate as the program strives for more success.
That run in Kigali saw Mansour provide support for the 32-year-old star as well as naturalized forward Trinity Baptiste. The trio were the only players who averaged double figures in scoring for the Lebanese.
Her commendable performance not only got her cheers and adoration but gave a reminder of sorts, too, of how high her ceiling is after an exceptional showing in the youth level back in 2019.
The WABA U16 Women's Championship was her lone stint in the age-group ranks but made sure to leave a mark. She led the tilt in scoring with 20.0 points alongside 7.5 rebounds and 7.0 assists, with 3.5 steals.
Years later and she's starting to gain some footing in the senior level, thus the excitement of many if she could elevate her game higher come the 2025 Women's Asia Cup for a team hoping to stay in Division A.
The Cedars rose to the top division after earning the promotion in 2021 in Amman, Jordan thanks to a special batch led by Akl - and featured a very young Mansour as she was just around 16 at that time.
Understandably, she saw extremely limited action during that tournament and it was the same thing in their Division A debut in the 2023 competitions in Sydney, Australia, where they finished seventh.
But now, there should be no doubt that her role would become more significant in their bid to remain - and perhaps aim for one of the six tickets to the FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup 2026 Qualifying Tournaments.
Aside from experience, the hooper out of Missouri Baptist University is coming into the meet with more confidence following a solid season with Azour Sporting Club in the recent Women's Lebanese Basketball League.
That's why eyes will be on Mansour if she could sustain her fine play come the July 13-20 showpiece.
FIBA
