Olumide Oyedeji

Olumide Oyedeji
Olumide Oyedeji warming up for the London Lions
Personal information
Born (1981-05-11) 11 May 1981
Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria
Nationality Nigerian / British
Listed height 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)
Listed weight 255 lb (116 kg)
Career information
NBA draft 2000 / Round: 2 / Pick: 42nd overall
Selected by the Seattle SuperSonics
Playing career 1996–2016
Position Center
Career history
1996–1997 Ebun Comets
1997–1998 Dynamo Moscow
1998–2000 DJK Würzburg
2000–2002 Seattle SuperSonics
2002–2003 Orlando Magic
2003 Ilysiakos
2003–2004 Union Olimpija
2004 Beijing Ducks
2004 Al-Kuwait SC
2004–2005 Beijing Ducks
2005 Cangrejeros
2005–2006 Seoul Thunders
2006 Cangrejeros
2006–2007 Seoul Thunders
2007 Al-Kuwait SC
2007–2008 Beijing Ducks
2008 Liaoning Hunters
2008 Granada
2008–2009 Shanxi Zhongyu
2009 Vaqueros
2009–2010 Liaoning Hunters
2010 ASU Sports Club
2010 Juvecaserta Basket
2011 Changwon LG Sakers
2011–2012 Qingdao
2013–2013 Link Tochigi Brex
2015–2016 London Lions
Career highlights and awards
Medals
Men's Basketball
Representing  Nigeria
FIBA Africa Championship
2015 Tunisia National Team
2005 Algeria National Team
2011 Madagascar National Team

Olumide Oyedeji (born 11 May 1981) is a Nigerian-British[1] professional basketball center who played in the NBA for 3 seasons.

Professional career

Oyedeji played at the 1999 and 2000 Nike Hoop Summits. He was selected by the Seattle SuperSonics, in the 2nd round (42nd overall) of the 2000 NBA Draft. He played a total of 93 games during 3 seasons in the NBA, and had career averages of 1.4 points per game, 2.1 rebounds per game, 0.1 assists per game, and 0.2 steals per game.[2] He also played in the Spanish League with Granada. Oyedeji signed on with the London Lions, who compete in the British Basketball League, in 2015.

Oyedeji played with Shanxi Zhongyu in the Chinese Basketball Association.[3] He played with Changwon LG Sakers of the Korean Basketball League in 2011. However, he was released from the team, despite averaging 10.8 points, 15.0 rebounds, and 1.7 blocks per game.

National team

Oyedeji has been a member of the senior men's Nigerian national basketball team since 1997. He contributed immensely to the his national team's participation at the FIBA Africa Nations Cup in 1997, 1999, 2001, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2011, 2013 and 2015. He led Nigeria to its first ever AfroBasket trophy in Tunisia in 2015. Oyedeji won silver medals in 1997, 1999 and 2003 respectively during the FIBA Africa Nations Cup. He won the bronze medal at the 2005 FIBA Africa Championship and 2011 FIBA Africa Championship. Oyedeji has represented his home country in the All Africa Games winning bronze in 1999, 2007 and 2015, silver in 2003 and gold in 2011. He also played at the FIBA World Cup in 1999 and at the 2012 Summer Olympic Games. Oyedeji is the only African player to ever feature in all major basketball tournaments on the global stage, including Olympic Games, World Cup, Commonwealth Games, All Africa Games, NBA, Euro-League, Asia Championships and South American basketball leagues.

Oyedeji featured in the invitational tournament in South Africa where he captained the team and lead them to victory in the finals. Nigeria's basketball team, D'Tigers, emerged overall winners of the 2015 Four Nations' invitational basketball tournament hosted by South Africa on Sunday March 22, 2015. Oyedeji, the long serving captain of the Nigerian Men's national team, emerged the MVP of the tournament. D'Tigers beat Mozambique 72-59 in their final game to win the inaugural tournament held at the Wembley Indoor Arena in Johannesburg. He retired from the Nigerian national basketball team some weeks before the 2016 summer Olympics in Brazil.[4]

FIBA

The International Basketball Federation, FIBA, Central Board appointed Oyedeji, to the FIBA Players commission for the 2014-2019 term. Oyedeji’s appointment resulted from his nomination by the Nigerian Basketball Federation in line with the criteria provided by the world governing body of basketball on his achievements on the court, as well as his tireless work ethic in developing the game not only in his home country, but also beyond Africa and across the globe. He is expected to serve in the newly inaugurated FIBA Players commission under the chairmanship of former Serbian International and NBA great, Vlade Divac. Oyedeji is also a member of the board of the Nigeria Basketball Federation.

Off the court

Oyedeji is a philanthropist and is committed to empowering youths using the tool of basketball as the medium for change. He is founder and CEO of his initiative Olumide Oyedeji Youth Foundation (OOYF) was established in 2000 as a Nonprofit /Charity Corporation in the U.S.A, United Kingdom and Nigeria. The focus of the organization is to help underprivileged, troubled and at-risk teens make better choices and create a brighter future for all. OOYF has produced over 300 scholarships to youths since its inception in 2000. Over 40,000 youths from all over the world have participated in the programs since the foundation was established. It has operated in more than 30 cities in Nigeria, and over 20 different cities worldwide, including in South Africa, Nigeria, China, Spain, Mali, Germany, South Korea, Puerto Rico and the United Kingdom. In November 2013, Oyedeji hosted a charity basketball clinic for youths, to advocate against gun and knife crimes and for keeping the streets safe, at the Damilola Taylor Centre in Peckham, South London.

Oyedeji has planned and implemented numerous youth basketball camps, and helped troubled and at-risk teens throughout the world, including in the United States, United Kingdom, Nigeria, Germany, China, South Korea, South Africa, Ghana, Benin, and Togo. His basketball camps and various programs have been met with the extreme success and over the years he has personally supported the academic and athletic advancement of hundreds of teenagers.

Awards and Honours

Oyedeji has won various awards for his humanitarian efforts and philanthropy. He is also a Laureus Global Ambassador, the first Nigerian and third African to be awarded this honour. For his efforts in preventing guns and knife crimes among youth and campaigning against gangs, Oyedeji was honoured as an Honorary London Metropolitan Police officer.

Personal life

He is married to Adegoke Fajemisin. They have five children together.[5]

References

  1. ↑ "Profile". Asia-basket.com.
  2. ↑ "Olumide Oyedeji Historical Profile". Nba.com. 11 May 1981.
  3. ↑ "Bonzi Wells joins CBA with Shanxi Zhongyu". News.xinhuanet.com. 12 December 2008. Archived from the original on 15 December 2008.
  4. ↑ http://punchng.com/tough-calling-quits-dtigers-oyedeji/
  5. ↑ http://thenationonlineng.net/olumide-oyedeji-my-wife-is-four-in-one/
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