Wikipedia

Daniel Ochefu

Daniel Hassan Ochefu[1] (born December 15, 1993) is an American-born Nigerian professional basketball player who last played for the Al-Jaish of the Syrian Basketball League. He played college basketball for the Villanova Wildcats, and had a short stint in the NBA with the Washington Wizards.

Daniel Ochefu
Ochefu at Washington Wizards training camp in 2017
Free agent
PositionPower forward / center
Personal information
Born (1993-12-15) December 15, 1993 (age 30)
Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.
NationalityNigerian / American
Listed height6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)
Listed weight244 lb (111 kg)
Career information
High school
CollegeVillanova (2012–2016)
NBA draft2016: undrafted
Playing career2016–present
Career history
2016–2017Washington Wizards
2017Maine Red Claws
2017–2018Windy City Bulls
2018–2019Reno Bighorns / Stockton Kings
2019Breogán
2019–2020Ibaraki Robots
2021–2022Seoul Samsung Thunders
2022Libertadores de Querétaro
2023TNT Tropang Giga
2023Al Riyadi Club Beirut
2023Gladiadores de Anzoátegui
2023Hsinchu Lioneers
2024Bishrelt Metal
2024Al-Jaish
Career highlights and awards
Stats at NBA.com Edit this at Wikidata
Stats at Basketball Reference Edit this at Wikidata
Medals
Men's basketball
Representing  Nigeria
AfroBasket
Silver medal – second place 2017 Tunisia/Senegal

High school career

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Born in Baltimore, Maryland,[2] Ochefu attended the Westtown School, where he averaged 16 points and 12 rebounds per game as a junior. As a senior, he transferred to Downingtown East High School. He was ranked 54th on ESNPU's list of the top 100 players in his high school class.[3]

College career

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Ochefu played college basketball for Villanova. As a freshman, he played behind center Mouphtaou Yarou.[4] In 2013–14, he averaged 5.7 points per game as a reserve player. The following season, he had 9.2 points per game.[3]

Ochefu scored a career-high 25 points in a 73–63 win over St. John's on February 13, 2016.[3] At the conclusion of the regular season, he was named Honorable Mention All-Big East.[5] Ochefu played in the NCAA championship game on April 4, 2016, against North Carolina, where he helped the Wildcats defeat the Tar Heels 77–74, and claim Villanova's second national championship.

Professional career

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Washington Wizards (2016–2017)

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After going undrafted in the 2016 NBA draft, Ochefu joined the Washington Wizards for the Las Vegas Summer League, where he averaged 1.8 points and 2.8 rebounds per game.[6] On September 23, 2016, he signed with the Wizards.[7] He made his debut for the Wizards in their season opener on October 27, recording one rebound in four minutes off the bench in a 114–99 loss to the Atlanta Hawks.[8]

Maine Red Claws (2017)

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On October 9, 2017, Ochefu was waived by the Wizards.[9] The Boston Celtics signed him on October 13, 2017. He was assigned to G-League affiliate team the Maine Red Claws.

Windy City Bulls (2017–2018)

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On November 30, 2017, Ochefu was acquired by the Windy City Bulls.[10]

Reno Bighorns / Stockton Kings (2018–2019)

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On February 12, 2018, Ochefu was traded by the Bulls to the Reno Bighorns along with a 2018 third-round draft pick and the returning player rights to Spencer Dinwiddie in exchange for Will Davis, the returning player rights to Lamar Patterson, and a 2018 first-round draft pick.[11] He remained on the team as it became the Stockton Kings.[12] Ochefu averaged 14 points and 8 rebounds per game.[13]

Overseas (2019–present)

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On April 2, 2019, Cafés Candelas Breogán of the Liga ACB announced the signing of Ochefu.[14]

In July 2019, Ochefu signed with the Ibaraki Robots in Japan.[15]

In August 2022, he signed with the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) as the team's import for the 2022–23 PBA Commissioner's Cup.[16] However, he was replaced by Steve Taylor prior to the start of the tournament.[17]

In February 2023, Ochefu signed with the TNT Tropang Giga as the team's import for the 2023 EASL Champions Week held in Japan.[18]

On September 20, 2023, Ochefu signed with the Hsinchu Lioneers of the P. League+.[19] On December 1, Ochefu left the team.[20]

In April 2024, Ochefu joined the Al-Jaish of the Syrian Basketball League.[21] In first game of the quarterfinals, Ochefu scored 15 points, 12 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 block.[22]

International career

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He was called up for the Nigeria national basketball team for the 2017 FIBA Africa Championship.[23]

NBA career statistics

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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

Regular season

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2016–17 Washington 19 0 3.9 .444 .000 .000 1.2 .2 .1 .0 1.3
Career 19 0 3.9 .444 .000 .000 1.2 .2 .1 .0 1.3

Playoffs

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2017 Washington 4 0 1.3 .000 .000 .000 .3 .0 .0 .0 .0
Career 4 0 1.3 .000 .000 .000 .3 .0 .0 .0 .0

References

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  1. ^ "Daniel Ochefu". ACB.COM. Retrieved November 9, 2024.
  2. ^ Donohue, Ed (November 26, 2012). "2012 Villanova Basketball Preview: Daniel Ochefu". VU Hoops. SB Nation. Retrieved April 5, 2016.
  3. ^ a b c "Daniel Ochefu" Archived 2018-06-05 at the Wayback Machine. villanova.com. Retrieved April 5, 2016.
  4. ^ Juilano, Joe (March 31, 2016). "Villanova's Daniel Ochefu has emerged as a leader". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved September 25, 2016.
  5. ^ "Four Named Unanimously to MBB All-BIG EAST First Team". Big East Conference. March 6, 2015. Retrieved March 9, 2015.
  6. ^ "Wizards' Daniel Ochefu: Struggles in summer league tryout". CBS Sports. Retrieved September 25, 2016.
  7. ^ "Wizards Finalize Training Camp Roster". Wizards Today. September 23, 2016. Archived from the original on March 30, 2019. Retrieved September 24, 2016.
  8. ^ "Wizards at Hawks". NBA.com. October 27, 2016. Retrieved October 27, 2016.
  9. ^ "Wizards Waive Ochefu". Nba.com. October 9, 2017. Retrieved October 9, 2017.
  10. ^ "Sports Digest: Red Claws trade Ochefu to Windy City". Portland Press Herald. December 2017. Retrieved January 30, 2022.
  11. ^ "BIGHORNS ACQUIRE DANIEL OCHEFU, 2018 THIRD-ROUND DRAFT SELECTION AND RIGHTS TO SPENCER DINWIDDIE IN THREE-TEAM TRADE". NBA.com. February 12, 2018. Retrieved February 12, 2018.
  12. ^ "STOCKTON KINGS WAIVE FOUR PLAYERS". NBA.com. October 31, 2018. Archived from the original on August 9, 2022. Retrieved November 3, 2018.
  13. ^ "Ibaraki Robots sign Daniel Ochefu, Nik Caner-Medley, Will Creekmore". Sportando. August 5, 2019. Retrieved September 5, 2020.
  14. ^ "Daniel Ochefu, poderío interior para o Cafés Candelas Breogán". cbbreogan.com (in Spanish). April 2, 2019. Retrieved April 2, 2019.
  15. ^ Jensen, Mike (July 31, 2019). "Former Villanova Wildcat Daniel Ochefu signs to play in Japan". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved January 25, 2020.
  16. ^ "Rain or Shine to tap Daniel Ochefu as Comm's Cup reinforcement". Manila Bulletin. August 17, 2022. Retrieved August 17, 2022.
  17. ^ "Change of plans for Rain or Shine as Taylor tapped to replace Ochefu". spin.ph. September 14, 2022. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
  18. ^ "Prince Ibeh out, Daniel Ochefu in as second TNT import in EASL". spin.ph. February 16, 2023. Retrieved February 20, 2023.
  19. ^ "Lioneers sign Daniel Ochefu". Eurobasket.com. September 20, 2023. Retrieved November 9, 2024.
  20. ^ "首戰表現荒腔走板！攻城獅宣布3Q歐獅傅". ETtoday. December 1, 2023. Retrieved November 9, 2024.
  21. ^ "Al Jaish adds Ochefu to their roster". Eurobasket.com. April 22, 2024. Retrieved November 9, 2024.
  22. ^ "Al Jalaa defeat Al Jaish in Game 1". Eurobasket.com. April 25, 2024. Retrieved November 9, 2024.
  23. ^ "Diogu, Ochefu headline Nigeria's AfroBasket 2017 final roster". September 7, 2017.
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