Wenyen Gabriel

Wenyen Gabriel
Gabriel at Kentucky's 2016 Blue-White scrimmage
No. 32 – Sacramento Kings
Position Power forward
League NBA
Personal information
Born (1997-03-26) March 26, 1997
Khartoum, Sudan
Nationality Sudanese
Listed height 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)
Listed weight 205 lb (93 kg)
Career information
High school
College Kentucky (2016–2018)
NBA draft 2018 / Undrafted
Playing career 2018–present
Career history
2018–present Sacramento Kings
2018–present →Stockton Kings
Career highlights and awards

Wenyen Gabriel (born March 26, 1997) is a Sudanese-American professional basketball player for the Sacramento Kings of the National Basketball Association (NBA), on a two-way contract with the Stockton Kings of the NBA G League. He played collegiately for the Kentucky Wildcats. Gabriel was a 5-star prospect who in 2016 was ranked number 14 on ESPN's Top 100.

High school career

Gabriel (32) at the 2016 Jordan Brand Classic

Gabriel attended Wilbraham & Monson Academy in Wilbraham, Massachusetts since 2014.[1] Prior to that, he played at Trinity High School in Manchester, New Hampshire for three years.[2] As a senior in 2015-16, he averaged 22.0 points per game, 14.0 rebounds per game, 7.0 blocks per game and 6.3 assists per game. In October 2015, he announced his decision to enroll at the University of Kentucky. Maryland, Duke, UConn and Providence were other schools on his shortlist.[3] He played 19:17 minutes in the 2016 Nike Hoop Summit, scoring two points, grabbing four rebounds and dishing out two assists.[4] He also played in the 2016 Jordan Brand Classic. Gabriel was rated as a five-star recruit and ranked #14 in the Class of 2016 by ESPN.

College career

He made his debut for the UK Wildcats in an exhibition game on October 31, 2016 against Clarion University, tallying nine points, two rebounds and one assist in 17 minutes coming off the bench.[5] As a freshman, he played in 38 games, including 23 starts, averaging 4.6 points and 4.8 rebounds in 17.8 minutes.[6] During his sophomore year, Gabriel became more of a key figure for Kentucky's success that season, tallying 6.8 points and 5.4 rebounds in 37 games. He led UK with 40 blocked shots.[7]

Professional career

Gabriel declared for the 2018 NBA draft,[8] but went undrafted.[9] He joined the Sacramento Kings for the 2018 NBA Summer League.[10] On July 31, 2018, he signed a two-way contract with the Kings.[11]

Personal life

Gabriel was born in Khartoum, Sudan, on March 26, 1997.[12] Because his sister – born a year earlier – had died in infancy, Gabriel was given the name "Wenyen", which means "wipe your tears" in his native Dinka language.[12] Two weeks after he was born, Gabriel's mother, Rebecca Gak, moved with him and his three siblings to Cairo, Egypt to escape the violence of the Second Sudanese Civil War.[12] While Gabriel's mother worked to earn enough money to move his father, Makuac, to Cairo, his seven-year-old brother, Komot, became Gabriel's primary care giver.[12][13] Two years after moving to Egypt, the United Nations granted an appeal to move the refugee family to Manchester, New Hampshire, an American city with a large Sudanese population.[12]

Despite receiving a US passport in 2015[14] and being picked to represent the USA Basketball Junior National Select Team at the 2016 Nike Hoop Summit, Gabriel considers South Sudan his rightful home country.[15]

References

  1. ↑ "Wenyen Gabriel's High School Basketball Stats". MaxPreps.com. Retrieved 2016-02-12.
  2. ↑ "Ex-Trinity hoop star Wenyen Gabriel commits to Kentucky | New Hampshire". UnionLeader.com. Retrieved 2016-02-12.
  3. ↑ "Kentucky basketball: Wenyen Gabriel commits to Wildcats, coach John Calipari". UPI. Retrieved 2016-02-12.
  4. ↑ "USA Wins Nike Hoop Summit 101-67". www.usab.com. Retrieved 2016-04-10.
  5. ↑ "Live Basketball (M)! Clarion vs. Kentucky". University of Kentucky | Official Athletics Site. Retrieved 2016-11-12.
  6. ↑ "Basketball (M) Stats - UK Wildcats". University of Kentucky | Official Athletics Site. Retrieved 2017-04-18.
  7. ↑ "Wenyen Gabriel - 2017-18 Men's Basketball Roster - University of Kentucky". ukathletics.com. Retrieved 2018-06-23.
  8. ↑ release, Official. "Forty-three international early entry candidates withdraw from NBA Draft 2018 | NBA.com". NBA.com. Retrieved 2018-06-23.
  9. ↑ "NBA Draft 2018: Kentucky's Wenyen Gabriel goes undrafted". CatsPause. Retrieved 2018-06-23.
  10. ↑ "Official: Wenyen Gabriel joins Sacramento Kings for Summer League | Kentucky Sports Radio". kentuckysportsradio.com. Retrieved 2018-06-25.
  11. ↑ "Kings Sign Wenyen Gabriel to a Two-Way Contract | Sacramento Kings". Sacramento Kings. Retrieved 2018-08-01.
  12. 1 2 3 4 5 Tipton, Jerry (October 7, 2016). "Gabriel's journey to UK includes stops in Sudan, Cairo, New Hampshire". Lexington Herald-Leader.
  13. ↑ Braziller, Zach. "Wenyen Gabriel: From Africa war to doorstep of NCAA hoops elites". New York Post. Retrieved 2016-02-12.
  14. ↑ "PREP SCHOOL BASKEBALL: Wilbraham & Monson standout Wenyen Gabriel selected to the USA Basketball Juniors National Team". www.bostonherald.com. Retrieved 2016-06-25.
  15. ↑ "USA Selection Caps Rise For Wenyen Gabriel". www.usab.com. Retrieved 2016-02-12.
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