Chuma Okeke

Chukwuma Julian "Chuma" Okeke (born August 18, 1998) is an American professional basketball player for the Orlando Magic of the National Basketball Association (NBA). A power forward, he was drafted 16th overall by the Orlando Magic in the 2019 NBA draft. He played college basketball for the Auburn Tigers.[1]

Chuma Okeke
Okeke with Auburn in 2019
No. 3 – Orlando Magic
PositionPower forward
LeagueNBA
Personal information
Born (1998-08-18) August 18, 1998
Atlanta, Georgia
NationalityAmerican
Listed height6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
Listed weight230 lb (104 kg)
Career information
High schoolWestlake
(Atlanta, Georgia)
CollegeAuburn (2017–2019)
NBA draft2019 / Round: 1 / Pick: 16th overall
Selected by the Orlando Magic
Playing career2020–present
Career history
2020–presentOrlando Magic
Career highlights and awards
Stats  at NBA.com
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com

High school career

Okeke attended Westlake High School in Atlanta. As a junior, he won the Georgia Class 6A state championship, scoring 13 points in a 68–58 win over Pebblebrook High School.[2] Okeke was named Mr. Georgia Basketball after his senior season, after he averaged 24.4 points, 15 rebounds and 2.4 steals per game.[3] He was a consensus four-star recruit and was ranked among the top 50 players in his class by some scouting services.[4]

College career

In his freshman season with Auburn, Okeke averaged 7.5 points and 5.8 rebounds per game. He grabbed 197 rebounds in the season, the most by an Auburn freshman since Jeff Moore in 1984–85.[4]

As a sophomore, Okeke averaged 12 points, 6.8 rebounds, 1.8 steals, and 1.2 blocks per game while starting in all 38 games.[5] On March 29, 2019, in a Sweet 16 win over top-seeded North Carolina at the 2019 NCAA Tournament, he tore his ACL and was injured for the rest of the tournament. Despite his absence, Auburn advanced to its first Final Four appearance in program history.[6]

Professional career

On June 20, 2019, Okeke was selected with the 16th overall pick by the Orlando Magic in the 2019 NBA draft. Okeke was considered to be a lottery pick in the draft, but after suffering an ACL injury in the 2019 NCAA Tournament, he fell to the 16th selection by the Magic, and was referred to by ESPN analyst, Mike Schmitz as the "steal of the draft."[7]

Lakeland Magic (2019–2020)

During his rehab, Okeke signed a one-year G League contract with the Magic's affiliate in Lakeland with the intent of starting his rookie-scale contract in 2020. At the time, the Magic faced a salary cap crunch that prevented them from adding Okeke's rookie salary to their books. [8] He reported to Lakeland's training camp as a draft rights player on October 28, 2019.[9] Okeke never played a game with Lakeland, however.

Orlando Magic (2020–present)

On November 16, 2020, the Orlando Magic announced that they had signed with Okeke.[10] In a preseason game against the Atlanta Hawks, Okeke recorded 9 points with 2 three pointers.

Career statistics
Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high

College
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2017–18 Auburn 34021.6.458.391.6735.81.1.7.77.5
2018–19 Auburn 383829.1.496.387.7226.81.91.81.212.0
Career 723825.5.481.389.7036.31.51.31.09.9

Personal life

Okeke's father Chuka Okeke is from Nigeria.[11]

References
  1. Ostendorf, Greg (February 7, 2018). "Getting to know Chuma Okeke". Auburn University Athletics. Retrieved May 16, 2019.
  2. Purdum, David (March 5, 2016). "Class AAAAAA boys: Westlake 68, Pebblebrook 58". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved May 16, 2019.
  3. Sinor, Wesley (March 24, 2017). "Auburn signee Chuma Okeke is Georgia's Mr. Basketball". AL.com. Retrieved May 16, 2019.
  4. "Chuma Okeke". Auburn University Athletics. Retrieved May 16, 2019.
  5. "Chuma Okeke Player Profile". RealGM. Retrieved May 16, 2019.
  6. Teicher, Adam (March 31, 2019). "How Auburn survived without (and because of) Chuma Okeke". ESPN. Retrieved May 16, 2019.
  7. "While Orlando Magic fans complained, experts loved Chuma Okeke". Orlando Magic Daily. June 22, 2019.
  8. Robbins, Shams Charania and Josh. "Magic first-round pick Chuma Okeke will sign his NBA rookie..." The Athletic. Retrieved 2019-10-29.
  9. "2019 NBA G League Training Camp Rosters". NBA G League. Retrieved 2019-10-29.
  10. "Orlando Magic Sign Rookie Chuma Okeke". NBA.com. November 16, 2020. Retrieved November 16, 2020.
  11. "Chuma Okeke". USA Basketball. Retrieved May 16, 2019.
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