Meet The Team
Lesly Bengaber
French Antilles Director
Dominique Bukasa
Camp Director
Angelo Tsagarakis
Program Director
Dominique Bukasa Camp Director
Since the 2012-13 season Dominique Bukasa has been the Associate Head Coach at San Joaquin Delta College. He joined Coach Ressa’s staff after spending the 2011-12 season as the Head Coach at Lassen College. Prior to Lassen College he was an NCAA Division I Assistant Coach at Sacramento State University from 2008-2011 for former Delta College and California Community College Coaches Hall of Famer Brian Katz. His duties with the Hornets included recruiting, scouting, player development, academic mentoring and game scheduling.
Bukasa, who has over 15 years of coaching experience, worked as an Assistant Coach for Ed Madec from 2005-2008 at College of the Siskiyous and Fresno City College. At College of the Siskiyous, he helped coach the Eagles to a 27-5 record and a #1 Ranking in the State for nine consecutive weeks during the 2005-06 season. That marked the first time in school history that the College of Siskiyous had received the top ranking in the State. The next two years at Fresno City College, he was part of the coaching staff that won the 2007 California Community College State Championship, back-to-back Central Valley Conference league titles and State Final Eight appearances with a 62-16 combined record.
After playing three years at Sonoma State University (1997-00) where he was part of a nationally ranked team that set the school record for victories in 1998-99, Bukasa had a successful career overseas. He played four years of professional basketball in Belgium and France.
Many of the players he helped train, went on to sign Division I scholarships and professional contracts, including Angelo Tsagarkis (Oregon State/Pro in France) and Josh Akognon (Washington State/Cal State Fullerton/Dallas Mavericks).
Bukasa graduated from Sonoma State University in 1999 with a degree in history and a minor in political science. In July 2008, he earned his Master’s Degree in Kinesiology from Fresno Pacific University.
Angelo Tsagarakis Program Director
A native of Mantes la Jolie, Angelo Tsagarakis is considered one of the top 3 french players of his generation (players born in 1984). He has followed a very atypical course:
After spending all his youth in his club team Poissy, he decided to go to the United States in 2002 with the idea of pursuing his dream of becoming a professional basketball player without sacrificing high-level studies. He joined Casa Grande High School and led them to a 24–5 record, the best mark in school history while earning all the Sonoma County MVP Honors.
Wanting to play in the prestigious PAC 10 (Now PAC 12) Conference, Tsagarakis decided to join Oregon State University on a full ride scholarship. He set the all-time record for made 3 pointers by a freshman with 45 (the record held for 15 years). In May 2008 after graduating with a Bachelor of Science in International Business, along with a minor in Spanish he signed his first professional contract in France. Tsagarakis played for Bourg-en-Bresse, Paris-Levallois, Châlons-Reims, Boulogne-sur-Mer and Vichy-Clermont. He was named 3 times Pro B All Star and finished his career in France with two Pro B regular season titles.
For the past three years, Tsagarakis has been playing in the renowned Greek league where he is considered one of the top Greek guards in the country.
He also speaks French, English, Spanish and Greek fluently
Olivier Fontaine
Technical Director
Phil Doherty
Academic & NCAA Advisor
Lesly Bengaber
French Antilles Director
Lesly is a young retired French professional basketball player. Coming from a large family of basketball players, he started playing at the age of 4 in the most titled ball club in Guadeloupe, Ban e Lot. On this land of champions, Lesly has been repeatedly honored as the best young, top scorer, MVP and champion in all youth categories. When he was only 15, he played in the Seniors category where he once again received the same accolades.
All these distinctions allowed him to start a professional career at the age of 19; career during which Lesly has played for many teams all around France, starting with Ajaccio, Denain, Bondy and Rueil-Malmaison (with which he played his first Pro B final in 2003). He then joined Antibes, where as an emblematic captain, he left his mark in the history of one of the most respected clubs historically in French Basketball. During the 2005-2006 season Lesly ranked first in efficiency among french players, finished 2nd best French player and won the most improved player award.
After a successful year in pro A with JL Bourg the following season, Lesly went back to ProB with Stade Clermontois where he finished 2nd in the ProB french mvp votings in 2009 ; Lesly was then recruited by the experienced coach Moncheau of SLUC Nancy for which he played the Eurocup, the Week of Aces and the Pro A playoffs.
The next stage of his career brings him back to his club of heart as he accepts the challenge of helping to bring back Olympique Antibes (which became Antibes Sharks) to the elite of french basketball. This 3-year adventure was a successful, as the team won the Pro B Championship and earned its place back in ProA. Afterwards, Lesly went on to play for some prestigious ProB clubs such as Poitiers Basket 86 and ALM Evreux.
Then comes a return to the Sharks of Antibes to help once again the club back in Pro A. After many years at the elite level between ProA and ProB, Lesly’s career meets a turning point as he devotes himself as an experienced player to mentor his younger teammates in the clubs of CBB Cognac then Vendée Challans Basketball, both members of the french’s third division, NM1.
The time of transmission was obvious to Lesly when his 7-year-old son competed in the Orlando Magic youth competitions. He wanted to make a comeback in his old stomping grounds of Ban e lot where he is today head coach of the U11 and U15 categories.
Lesly wants to contribute to the hatching of great basketball players from his region as Jérôme Moïso, the Pietrus brothers, Mickaël Gelabale or Ruddy Robert all were. Every summer Lesly takes part in the various basketball camps that those all-time greats organize.
The love of the orange ball and competition being stronger than anything, Lesly continues to compete since 2017 as a player in the N3 French amateur league.
He is a personal trainer very appreciated by his customers and is also a sports educator, which allows him to extend the transmission of his knowledge to other young people outside of his club setting. Thanks to all his experiences, basketball that was his passion became more than his job. Through his interaction with young athletes, Lesly is always committed to informing and helping to put into practice the various knowledge of high level basketball that he has accumulated throughout his career.
Olivier Fontaine Technical Director
In the basketball circuit for 25 years as a player and for ten years as a coach (from mini-basket to senior level), Olivier has been in the coaching field for 10 years in one of the most historical French clubs, the Olympique Antibes Juan les Pins.
Awarded the DEJEPS by the French Basketball Federation with a specialization in individual training and position work. He was also able, thanks to his experience to not only represent France at the "Youth Games" organized by the city of Aalborg in Denmark where his team won the gold medal, but also organize several sporting exchanges while developping socio-cultural ties between France and the United States, allowing many players to discover the cradle of basketball.
Coach of the U13 Paca during the 2017-2018 season, he has been since 2015 a member of Antibes’ training center coaching conference (training center of which he was assistant in 2006 and 2008), multiplying his interventions in the U17 and U21 teams' training sessions, focusing specifically on individual development.
He coached the U13, U18 and U20 men's league teams and was responsible of the mini-basketball school in 2014 and 2018. He also intervened in the local Paca clubs to provide guidance for the CQP degree candidates in 2014 and participated in the organization of sports exchanges with the city of Newport Beach in California in 2010 and 2011.
Philippe Doherty
NCAA & Acdemic Advisor
Philippe Doherty is currently the program’s director of operations at Prolific Prep. He was the program’s first official head coach in the program’s inaugural year in 2014-2015 but for the last 2 years has helped run the operations for Prolific Prep which includes scheduling, travel, academics, and helps with recruiting and community relations.
Coach Doherty was born in France and lived in West Africa as a child but was raised in San Francisco. He is fluent in 3 languages and has a wealth of playing and coaching experience having spent the last 18 years coaching NCAA Division 1, high school, and elite-level AAU basketball.
Philippe also helped develop NBA 1st Round Pick Jared Cunningham (2012 1st Rounder), NBA lottery pick Marquese Chriss, who was drafted 8th overall in the June 2106 NBA draft, and Josh Jackson who was drafted 4th overall in the 2017 NBA draft. Furthermore, Philippe has also coached multiple NFL players who played for him in AAU. Players like TE Zach Ertz of the Philadelphia Eagles, DB Trumaine Johnson of the St. Louis Rams, and TE Julius Thomas of the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Philippe Doherty played at Santa Clara University in 1995-1997 for Coach Dick Davey where he was a member of two WCC championship teams in 1995-96 and 1996-97, one of which (95-96) advanced to the 2nd round of the NCAA tournament with 2 Time NBA MVP and Future Hall of Famer Steve Nash and that team entered the Santa Clara Hall of Fame in the Spring of 2017. Philippe also was teammates in college with current Philadelphia 76ers asst. coach Lloyd Pierce and with current Phoenix Suns asst. coach Marlon Garnett.
Coach Doherty also coached Division 1 basketball for 4 years at the University of San Francisco from 2002-2006 under head coaches Phil Mathews and Jessie Evans.