ChinanuOnuaku.gif

32 - Chinanu Onuaku

6-10, 245 Center
Louisville Sophomore
Birthday
11/01/96 (27.4 yrs)
Hometown
Lanham, MD
High School
Riverdale Baptist
Team Site Profile
Statistics
Athleticism
7
Size
8
Defense
8
Strength
8
Quickness
7
Leadership
7
Jump Shot
6
NBA Ready
6
Rebounding
8
Potential
7
Post Skills
6
Intangibles
7
85 Overall:

NBA Comparison: Alex Oriakhi

Strengths: Center with a strong frame, especially given his age, who was a defensive force when he was on the floor for Louisville … With a 7’2.75” wingspan and over 9’0” standing reach, along with weighing in at 245 lbs, measures in at around or above average for a post … Moves feet quite well for a big man and covers a lot of ground on defense … Load to move down low, showed improvement as a post player … Will make rim runs, has a decent stride to him and definitely has the strength to battle inside, along with potential to increase his already impressive girth … Was a valuable rim protector, shows good timing as a shot blocker and is quite good at playing with his arms straight up … Also had a pretty nice steal rate for a big man, makes a lot of plays defensively … Factor on the offensive boards, works hard and knows how to use his body … Willing to do a lot of the things you want your big man to do, to the point of shooting FT’s underhanded in hopes of improvement, as he went from 46.7% FT as a freshman to 58.9% FT as a sophomore … While his hands are not very big at his size, does have a quick reaction time, which enables him to do things faster than most centers … Showed very nice vision, which makes up for his limitations as a shooter and lack of creativity as a post player … Also a strong defensive rebounder, closes out possessions to go along with knowledge of how to alter shots without getting moved far out of position … Ability to make decisions on the move sets him apart from a vast number of young big men … Finished a high amount of his attempts near the rim … His ability in the pick-and-roll, playing off the ball, also show signs of being a good teammate … Still only 19-years old, does not turn 20 until November and already possesses strength that sets him apart

Weaknesses: Quite limited offensively, has not shown much ability to stretch the floor or post moves … Lacks speed to do much off of the dribble or the footwork to consistently pose much of an issue once he has the ball on the block … Plays very upright, which sometimes causes him to get pushed off balance … Still a rather poor FT shooter, who did not get to the line very often … With the NBA now leaning towards the “hack-a-whoever” mode, will still be a possible liability on the floor offensively … Will gamble and make some bad decisions as a passer, very high turnover rate given his usage rate … Gambles and uses his hands a lot as a defender, resulting in foul trouble on quite a number of occasions … Not an explosive leaper, will likely have a much more difficult time finishing and challenging at the rim in the NBA … Conditioning will be something he needs to develop in the NBA, can lose some focus when he is tired … While he runs alright, still not particularly fast and will have a tough time staying in front of quicker players … Measured with only 8.00” hand width, among the smallest at the NBA Draft Combine in 2016 … Averaged only 7 FGA’s per game and played just 24.6 mpg, expecting him to do much more than that will take quite a while … Was not cleared to begin private workouts with teams close to the NBA Draft Combine as it was discovered he had a heart rhythm issue known as “Wolf-Parkinson-White syndrome”, which required surgery and will definitely be something that should be monitored

Notes: Brother of former Syracuse and pro player, Arinze Onuaku … Name is pronounced chih-NAH-noo on-ooh-AHH-koo … Helped lead Riverdale Baptist HS to a Maryland private school state championship as a senior … Named to 2015 All-ACC Academic Men’s Basketball team … Part of the 2015 USA U19 World Championship Gold Medal winning team … Had six points, eight rebounds and four blocks in the gold medal game against Croatia, with USA assistant coach Archie Miller quoted as saying … "There isn’t any doubt in my mind we wouldn’t have won a gold medal without ‘Nanu." … Was 3rd in the ACC at 2 bpg and finished 4th in ACC in total rebound rate at 19.8 … His 84.9 defensive rating led the ACC and was amongst the top in the country, with a 29.8 differential between his offensive and defensive rating … Posted 11 double-doubles as a sophomore, including 10 in ACC play … Named Honorable Mention All-ACC in 2016, averaging 9.9 ppg, 8.5 rpg, 1.6 apg and 2 bpg on 62% FG in 24.6 mpg … Averaged 6.2 ppg, 6.4 rpg, 1.1 apg and 1.6 bpg on 61.9% FG in 21 mpg during two seasons at Louisville … Known for aggression as a defender, ability to cover and take up space and strength … Seen to have some upside due to his size, strength and vision … Lack of lift and underwhelming athleticism by NBA standards seem to put a cap on just effective he can be in the NBA, not to mention his limitations offensively … His willingness to turn to underhanded FT shooting gained him some notoriety, and while he improved, still not seen as a strength, nor does it give much hope for his development as a midrange shooter … Rebounding and defense are still things you love to get from your big man and it is what he brings to the table, with Houston willing to take a shot and hope his medical condition can be monitored … Taken 37th by the Houston Rockets, with some believing he could have possibly been a 1st round pick if it were not for the heart concerns

Notes: Brother of former Syracuse player, Arinze Onuaku

Michael Visenvberg 6/25/16

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