Have a look at the NBA 2020 Draft and you’d be forgiven for thinking it was a draft for the Nigerian Premier Basketball League.

There are no less than SEVEN Nigerians projected to go in the first round of the 2020 draft.

Such a surge is unprecedented for Nigeria let alone for any country in the NBA.

One of the most recognizable Nigerians to ever play in the NBA is Houston Rocket’s legend and 12x All-Star Hakeem Abdul Olajuwon (he became a naturalized American citizen in 1993).

He is considered to be one of the greatest centers to ever play in the NBA.

Today in the NBA, Orlando Magic’s Al-Farouq Aminu is the most recognizable Nigerian name, as well as Greek Giannis Antetokounmpo, the son of Nigerian immigrants.

Set to join them are seven Nigerians who are all projected first rounders:

Onyeka Okongwu

Daniel Oturu

Isaac Okoro

Precious Achiuwa

Zeke Nnaji

Jordan Nwora

Udoka Azubuike

D’Tigers national basketball team

The Nigerian national basketball team, known as D’Tigers, are the only African country to ever quality for the Olympic Games through the FIBA qualifying tournament.

They shocked everyone by beating Lithuania and Greece en route to qualifying for the London 2012 Olympics.

Historically Angola have been the most dominant team in Africa, winning the biennial Afrobasket tournament a record 11-times.

Nigeria won it for the first time in 2015 and were runners up in 1997, 1999, 2003 and 2017.

The explosion of Nigerian talent in the NBA looks set to shake the order of basketball in Africa and could put Nigeria onto the world stage.

Jordan Nwora

Of the Nigerian seven only Jordan Nwora has played for D’Tigers after being called up by his father Alexander who is head coach of the national team.

The projected mid-late first rounder averaged 21.7 points, 8 rebounds and 2.7 assists in the 2019 FIBA World Cup qualifying tournament.

Nwora exploded for a 36-point haul in the tournament against Mali, the highest score ever by a Nigerian in their history.

He made a massive leap in his second year from his freshman year becoming the second-most improved scorer during 2018-19 in college.

The small forward continued this form into his third year to become the go to guy at Louisville with his effortless scoring and rebounding ability.

Louisville F Jordan Nwora Highlight Reel – 2019-20 Season | Stadium Jordan Nwora put together an impressive 2019-20 season, becoming the only ACC player to rank in the top ten in points (18.0), rebounding (7.7), free throw pe…

Isaac Okoro

Isaac Okoro is likely a lottery pick. Also a small forward, he is a multi-positional defender which is crucial in the modern NBA.

A high-level explosive athlete, Okoro has been one of the best perimeter defenders in college basketball.

Although the son of Nigerian immigrants, Okoro represented the US at the 2018 FIBA Under-17 Basketball World Cup averaging 4.3 points, 1.9 rebounds, and 1.6 steals per game.

Declaring for the draft following his freshman year at Auburn, he averaged 12.9 points, 4.4 rebounds and 2.0 assists while shooting 51.4% from the field.

Auburns Isaac Okoro Is Making His Case For The NBA Draft | Non Conference | 12.8 PPG 4.5 RPG Email: swishsports6@gmail.com Insta: https://instagram.com/swish.insta?igshid=1c70ky84oss08 Your Favorite College/NBA Prospect Players I DO NOT own clips or …

Onyeka Okongwu

Okongwu is likely a top-5 pick and the highest projected of all Nigerians in the draft.

He has an explosive and sturdy frame especially for someone who is just 19-years of age. He is solid in the post and good at rebounding.

Onyeka is likely to step into a starting role immediately due to his elite defensive ability both inside and out the paint.

He’s a tremendous athlete and can uses his physical strength in the post to get good positioning in the paint.

With one of the highest upsides of all players in the draft, he has averaged 16.4 points, 8.9 rebounds, 1.1 assists, 3 blocks and 1 steal per game all as a USC freshman.

Onyeka Okongwu – USC Highlights 2020 USC’s star freshman center Onyeka Okongwu remained a high first-round pick in Sports Illustrated’s latest 2020 NBA Mock Draft on Tuesday. Okongwu was tabbed …

Zeke Nnaji

The power forward is a projected mid-late first rounder but has upside as one of the most explosive big men in the entire draft.

“Zeke is a lot like Derrick Williams against a zone,” Arizona coach Sean Miller said.

“He’s the ideal player to get the ball anywhere in and around the rim and key area against the zone because when he turns and faces a lot of good things will happen.”

Nnaji averaged 16.1 points, 8.6 rebounds, 0.9 blocks, and 0.7 steals per game as a freshman at Arizona thanks in part to his athleticism and energy.

Zeke Nnaji Arizona 2019-20 Season Highlights Montage | 16.1 PPG 8.6 RPG 57 FG% Email: swishsports6@gmail.com Insta: https://instagram.com/swish.insta?igshid=1c70ky84oss08 Your Favorite College/NBA Prospect Players I DO NOT own clips or …

Udoka Azubuike

The big man has great size, strength, aggression and athleticism for someone his size.

Projected as a late first rounder, he should wear down those guarding him due to his size and reliability at the rim.

After Azubuike’s Kansas Jayhawks thrashed Oklahoma State back in Feb, Cowboy’s head coach Mike Boynton was in awe of Udoka’s ability.

“I don’t watch a lot of national basketball. I watch a lot of basketball but I don’t focus on all the players,” Boynton said. “I’d be hard pressed to find a better national player of the year candidate than (Azubuike) is.”

“I’ve watched his development in my time here. I saw him play a little bit in high school. His growth is remarkable”.

Precious Achiuwa

Achiuwa is an explosive forward who loves the physical side of the game. He’s projected as a mid-late first rounder.

He represented the World Team in the 2019 Nike Hoop Summit as they went down 93-87 to team USA.

He led all players with 28 minutes played finishing with 15 points, 11 rebounds, 2 steals and four blocks.

“I was born in Nigeria and moved to the US… It’s a great honor to have that patch on my jersey”

Daniel Oturu

Oturu is projected to go as high up as an early lottery pick.

He averaged 20 points, 11 rebounds and 2.6 blocks for the Minnesota Golden Gophers.

The Gophers’ big man led the Big Ten in rebounding and blocked shots this season and received first-team All-Big 10 defensive team honors.

Oturu has great size and athleticism and can shoot from almost anywhere, leading the Big Ten with 56% shooting from the field.