Chinanu Onuaku Has Helped Lead The Louisville Cardinals Into The Sweet 16
By Danny Cox
Name: Chinanu Onuaku #32
University: Louisville
Year: Freshman
Height: 6'10"
Weight: 230 lbs.
Hometown: Lanham, MD
Position: Forward/Center
Chinanu Onuaku's older brother Arinze played basketball for Syracuse and now is a member of the Canton Charge roster for the D-League. Many have compared the two players and often think that both will end up being successful with a professional basketball career, but Chinanu seems to be moving faster than his brother ever did.
In high school at Riverdale Baptist in Upper Marlboro, Maryland, Onuaku originally began gaining interest when he averaged 8.2 points per game as a junior. He then went into the spring and summer playing with the D.C. Assault grassroots program and schools really started taking notice.
It was at that time that Louisville had already become the front-runner to land Onuaku, and he wasn't even a senior at the time.
When he hit his senior year at Riverdale Baptist, he helped lead them to a 30-9 record and the Capital Beltway conference title. They won the first private school state championship and that was due in huge part to his double-double game average of 12.4 points and 12.7 rebounds combined with 5.5 blocks per game.
On two different occasions, he was named the top defensive player in his conference and was rated the seventh-best center in the nation during his senior year. Once he committed to Louisville, coach Rick Pitino knew that he had landed himself a prize recruit in the highly competitive college basketball state of Kentucky.
As a freshman for Louisville, he has played in 33 games and is averaging close to 20 minutes per contest. He has averaged 3.1 points per game and 4.7 rebounds while leading the team in blocks per game with 1.3. While his numbers aren't overly high yet, Onuaku is already proving himself to be a big and dominant force in the lane.
In the first two games of the 2015 NCAA Tournament for the Cardinals, he has been the primary reserve coming off of the bench. Against UC Irvine, he was in for 14 minutes and against Northern Iowa, he was on the floor for 13 minutes.
It is highly expected that Montrezl Harrell will end up leaving Louisville after this, his junior season, and heading into the NBA Draft. With his likely departure, Onuaku is in a prime position to not only move into the starting line-up, but also become a huge force with the Cardinals.
Not only does Onuaku's brother Arinze play in the D-League, but another member of his family played college basketball as well. While at Florida A&M, his sister Ify played, so it's obvious that the family is just destined to excel at the sport.
While his family may have a history of being on the court, it's not Chinanu Onuaku's turn to shine, and he is making the most of his opportunity in a great college basketball program.
Danny Cox knows a little something about the NFL, whether it means letting you know what penalty will come from the flag just thrown on the field or quickly spouting off who the Chicago Bears drafted in the first round of the 1987 draft (Jim Harbaugh). He plans on bringing you the best news, previews, recaps, and anything else that may come along with the exciting world of the National Football League. Danny is a freelance writer covering all things NFL. His work can be found on Examiner.com.
