Stan Okoye facts for kids
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Okoye in 2024
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| MoraBanc Andorra | ||||||||||||||
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| Small forward / shooting guard | ||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||
| Born | April 10, 1991 Raleigh, North Carolina |
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| Nationality | American / Nigerian | |||||||||||||
| High school | Knightdale (Knightdale, North Carolina) |
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| Listed height | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) | |||||||||||||
| Listed weight | 215 lb (98 kg) | |||||||||||||
| Career information | ||||||||||||||
| College | VMI (2009–2013) | |||||||||||||
| NBA Draft | 2013 / Undrafted | |||||||||||||
| Pro career | 2013–present | |||||||||||||
| League | Liga ACB | |||||||||||||
| Career history | ||||||||||||||
| 2013 | Barak Netanya | |||||||||||||
| 2014 | Perth Redbacks | |||||||||||||
| 2014–2015 | Varese | |||||||||||||
| 2015–2016 | Matera | |||||||||||||
| 2016 | Trapani | |||||||||||||
| 2016–2017 | Udinese | |||||||||||||
| 2017–2018 | Varese | |||||||||||||
| 2018–2019 | Zaragoza | |||||||||||||
| 2019–2021 | Gran Canaria | |||||||||||||
| 2021–2022 | Zaragoza | |||||||||||||
| 2022 | SIG Strasbourg | |||||||||||||
| 2022–2023 | Scafati Basket | |||||||||||||
| 2023–present | Andorra | |||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | ||||||||||||||
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Medals
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Stanley Onyekachukwu Okoye, born on April 10, 1991, is a professional basketball player from Nigeria. He plays for MoraBanc Andorra in the Liga ACB, which is a top league in Spain. Stan is known as a "swingman," meaning he can play both small forward and shooting guard positions. He is 6 feet 6 inches tall. In 2013, he was named the best player in the Big South Conference while playing college basketball for the Virginia Military Institute (VMI).
Contents
Stan Okoye: A Basketball Star
Early Life and High School Basketball
Stan Okoye grew up in Raleigh, North Carolina. He played basketball for Knightdale High School from 2005 to 2009. During his time there, he scored over 1,300 points and grabbed more than 550 rebounds. Both of these were school records! In one playoff game, he even scored 42 points, which was also a school record. His team won 73 games while he was playing.
Even with all his success, only two top college basketball programs, called NCAA Division I schools, offered him scholarships. One offer was later taken back, so VMI became his only chance to play at that high level. He decided to go to VMI.
College Journey at VMI
Okoye started at VMI in the fall of 2009. It was tough at first, especially at a military school where older students put pressure on freshmen. He even thought about quitting before playing his first game. But his teammates supported him, and he decided to stay. He said, "I stuck it out because of the other guys. I figured if they could take it, I could too."
Freshman Year Highlights
In his first year (2009–10), Okoye was a standout player. He led all freshmen in the Big South Conference in scoring and how well he shot the ball. In games against other conference teams, he was also the best freshman in scoring, shooting, and blocking shots. He averaged 14.2 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 1.5 blocks per game. Because of his great performance, he was named to the Big South All-Freshman Team. This means he was one of the best first-year players in the conference.
Sophomore and Junior Seasons
Okoye continued to improve in his second year (2010–11). He scored more points and got more rebounds, assists, and steals per game. By the end of his sophomore year, he had scored 933 points in his college career.
In his junior year, he was named to the Second Team All-Conference. This means he was one of the top players in the Big South Conference. He averaged 19.5 points and 8.2 rebounds per game in conference games. He helped his team reach the Big South tournament championship game in 2012, but they lost.
Senior Year Success
Okoye had an amazing senior year in 2012–13. He averaged 21.5 points, 9.4 rebounds, and 2.6 assists per game. He was chosen as the best player in the conference before the season even started, and he earned that honor again at the end of the season. His scoring and rebounding numbers were the best in the Big South. He was named the conference's Player of the Week five times that season. VMI lost in the conference tournament, ending their hopes for a bigger postseason tournament. Okoye finished his college career with 2,146 points, 962 rebounds, 212 assists, 152 steals, and 103 blocks.
Professional Basketball Career
After college, Stan Okoye started his professional career.
Starting in Europe and Australia
On August 13, 2013, Okoye signed with a team called Ikaros in Greece. However, he left before playing any games for them. On October 27, 2013, he signed with Barak Netanya in Israel. He played only four games there before leaving in November 2013.
On February 6, 2014, Okoye joined the Perth Redbacks in Australia for their 2014 season. In his first game, he scored 30 points and grabbed 13 rebounds. He played in all 30 games for the Redbacks that year. He averaged 28.0 points, 11.2 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 1.8 steals, and 1.0 blocks per game. He was even named the SBL Player of the Week in May 2014.
After Australia, Okoye moved to Italy. On August 16, 2014, he signed with Pallacanestro Varese. He played 23 games for them. In August 2015, he signed with Bawer Matera. In February 2016, he left Matera and joined Pallacanestro Trapani for the rest of that season. He returned to his former club, Pallacanestro Varese, on May 27, 2017.
Playing in Spain and France
In July 2018, Okoye played for the Denver Nuggets in the 2018 NBA Summer League. This is a special event where NBA teams look at new players. On July 28, he signed a one-year deal with Tecnyconta Zaragoza in Spain's top league, the Liga ACB.
On July 31, 2019, Okoye signed another one-year deal, this time with Herbalife Gran Canaria. He averaged 6.8 points per game for them. He signed with Gran Canaria again on July 18, 2020.
On July 13, 2021, Okoye returned to Zaragoza in the Spanish Liga ACB.
On July 27, 2022, he signed with SIG Strasbourg in France's LNB Pro A league. Later that year, on December 6, 2022, he signed with Scafati Basket in Italy.
Most recently, on July 11, 2023, he signed with MoraBanc Andorra in the Spanish Liga ACB, where he plays today.
Representing Nigeria
Stan Okoye has also played for the senior men's Nigeria national basketball team. He represented his country in the 2013 and 2015 AfroBasket tournaments.
See also
In Spanish: Stan Okoye para niños
