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Chiney Ogwumike

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Chiney Ogwumike
Personal information
Born (1992-03-21) March 21, 1992 (age 32)
Tomball, Texas, U.S.
Listed height6 ft 2[1] in (1.88 m)
Listed weight183 lb (83 kg)
Career information
High schoolCy-Fair (Cypress, Texas)
CollegeStanford (2010–2014)
WNBA draft2014: 1st round, 1st overall pick
Selected by the Connecticut Sun
Playing career2014–present
PositionPower forward
Career history
2014–2018Connecticut Sun
2014–2015Famila Schio
2016Henan Phoenix
2019,
2021–2023		Los Angeles Sparks
Career highlights and awards
Stats at WNBA.com
Stats at Basketball Reference Edit this at Wikidata
Medals
Women's Basketball
Representing  United States
U18 and U19
Gold medal – first place 2010 U18 Colorado Springs Team Competition
World University Games
Gold medal – first place 2011 Shenzhen Team Competition
Basketball 3x3
World Championship
Gold medal – first place 2012 Athens Women's

Chinenye Joy "Chiney" Ogwumike (born March 21, 1992) is an American professional basketball player who last played for the Los Angeles Sparks of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). In 2020, she became the first Black woman and the first WNBA player to host a national radio show for ESPN. She was one of the first and youngest commentators ever to be named an NBA analyst for the network covering the NBA, WNBA, and variety of sports, while simultaneously playing in the WNBA. Chiney is a graduate of Stanford University, where she majored in International relations. She played in three Final Fours and finished as the conference leader in scoring and rebounding as of January 3, 2014.[2] As of 2016, Ogwumike was elected vice-president of the WNBA Players Association, and signed an endorsement deal with Adidas.[3] In May 2018, Ogwumike signed a multi-year contract with ESPN to become a full-time basketball analyst.[4]

Early life

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Born in Tomball, Texas,[5] Ogwumike attended Cypress Fairbanks High School in nearby Cypress, Texas, winning the 5A State Championship in her sophomore and senior seasons.[6] Ogwumike was named a WBCA and McDonald's All-American.[7] She participated in the 2010 WBCA High School All-America Game, where she scored 24 points,[8] and earned MVP honors for the White team.[9]

College career

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Ogwumike chose Stanford over Connecticut and Notre Dame, joining her sister Nneka Ogwumike.[10]

Ogwumike ended her Stanford career in 2014 as the all-time career scoring leader for either sex in Pac-12 Conference history, a record that fell in 2016 to Kelsey Plum of Washington.[11]

Professional career

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Ogwumike was drafted first overall in the 2014 WNBA draft by the Connecticut Sun. In her rookie season, Ogwumike became a starter, averaging a career-high 15.5 points per game and 7.5 rebounds per game. She was named a WNBA All-Star along with her sister Nneka Ogwumike, becoming the first pair of sisters to be selected into a WNBA All-Star game.[12] Ogwumike would also win the WNBA Rookie of the Year Award in 2014.[citation needed]

After the WNBA season ended, Ogwumike signed with Italian club Famila Schio. In seven games for Famila Schio, she averaged 25.3 points and 13.1 rebounds per game, but then suffered a knee injury that required microfracture surgery and resulted in her missing the entire 2015 WNBA season.[13]

Ogwumike came back healthy for the 2016 season, playing 33 games with 18 starts while averaging 12.6 points per game. She had scored a career-high 26 points along with 15 rebounds in a regular season game win against the Dallas Wings.[14] During the 2016 WNBA season, Ogwumike had signed with Henan Phoenix of the WCBA for the 2016–17 Chinese season.[15] In her fifth game with the team, Ogwumike scored 56 points (on 23 of 24 field goal shooting) along with 12 rebounds[16][17] She would end up winning first round MVP, averaging 33.6 points per game and 12.4 rebounds per game, prior to her achilles injury.[18] In December 2016, it was announced that Ogwumike had undergone surgery after injuring her achilles.[19] She was ruled out with an estimated recovery period of 6–9 months, which caused her to miss the 2017 WNBA season.[20]

In April 2017, Ogwumike was suspended by the Sun for the entire 2017 season to free up a roster spot due to her injury and that same month she also signed a contract extension.[21]

On May 20, 2018, Ogwumike made her return to the Sun in their season debut, playing her first WNBA game in two years. In 17 minutes of play, she scored 9 points in the starting lineup in a 101–65 victory over the Las Vegas Aces.[22][23] On June 30, 2018, Ogwumike scored a new career-high of 30 points in a 103–92 loss to the Seattle Storm.[24] Later on in the 2018 season, it was announced that Ogwumike was voted into the 2018 WNBA All-Star Game, making it her second all-star appearance.[25] The Sun finished as the number 4 seed in the league with a 21–13 record, receiving a bye to the second round elimination game. The Sun would lose 96–86 to the Phoenix Mercury.

On April 28, 2019, Ogwumike was traded to the Los Angeles Sparks for a 2020 first-round pick, reuniting her with her sister Nneka.[26] The Sparks finished as the number 3 seed with a 22–12 record, receiving a bye to the second round. In the second round elimination game, the Sparks defeated the defending champion Seattle Storm 92–69. In the semi-finals, the Sparks were eliminated by her former team, the Connecticut Sun in a three-game sweep.

In June 2020, Ogwumike announced she would sit out the 2020 WNBA season due to health concerns of playing in the bubble during the COVID-19 pandemic.[27] Without Ogwumike, the Sparks finished the season 15–7 as the number 3 seed with a bye to the second round but would get eliminated by the Connecticut Sun in the elimination game.

In February 2021, Ogwumike re-signed with the Sparks to a multi-year deal.[28]

Ogwumike has not made an official retirement announcement to date, but she did not play in the 2024 WNBA season.[29] Instead she has focused on her career as a sports broadcaster for ESPN.

National team career

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Ogwumike was named to the USA Basketball U18 team. The USA team was one of eight teams from North, South and Central America, along with the Caribbean, invited to participate in the 2010 FIBA Americas U18 Championship For Women, held at the U.S. Olympic Training Center, in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The team was coached by Jennifer Rizzotti. Ogwumike started all five games and was the leading scorer with 13.2 points per game. She was also the leading rebounder with 7.4 rebounds per game. The USA team won all five games and captured the gold medal.[30][31]

The usual sequence is for the players on the U18 team to move to the U19 team. However. Ogwumike played so well as a U18 that she was promoted to the World University Games team for the 2011 World University Games held in Shenzhen, China. Chiney was not the only Ogwumike on the team, as her sister, Nneka Ogwumike, was also on the team. Both started every game, with Chiney scoring almost ten points per game. She hit 25 of 37 shot attempts for a team leading 67.6% shooting percentage. She helped the USA win all six games and earn the gold medal.[32]

ESPN career

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In May 2018, Ogwumike signed a multi-year contract with ESPN to become a full-time basketball analyst. In August 2020, she became the first Black woman to host a national radio show for ESPN, while also becoming the first WNBA player to do so as well. She is one of the youngest commentators to be named a full-time NBA analyst for ESPN, while simultaneously playing in the WNBA. Ogwumike was partnered with Mike Golic Jr., as the co-host of the ESPN radio show Chiney & Golic Jr..[33] After the re-organization of ESPN's NBA coverage, she joined the daily series NBA Today as a rotating in-studio analyst.

Career statistics

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College

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College career statistics[34]
Year Team GP Points FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2010–11 Stanford 35 409 .574 .000 .626 8.0 0.9 1.5 0.8 11.7
2011–12 Stanford 37 556 .583 .000 .663 10.1 1.4 0.8 1.2 15.0
2012–13 Stanford 36 805 .586 .250 .776 12.9 1.5 1.4 1.7 22.4
2013–14 Stanford 37 967 .601 .267 .713 12.1 1.7 1.2 1.8 26.1
Career 145 2,737 .589 .263 .705 10.8 1.4 1.2 1.4 18.9

WNBA

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Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game  RPG  Rebounds per game
 APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game  BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game
 TO  Turnovers per game  FG%  Field-goal percentage  3P%  3-point field-goal percentage  FT%  Free-throw percentage
 Bold  Career best ° League leader

Regular season

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG TO PPG
2014 Connecticut 31 31 29.7 .536 — .693 7.5 0.6 1.2 1.2 1.9 15.5
2016 Connecticut 33 18 24.3 .587 — .719 6.7 0.7 1.0 1.0 1.5 12.6
2018 Connecticut 31 31 25.5 .603 .500 .797 7.3 1.0 1.1 0.6 1.6 14.4
2019 Los Angeles 32 14 21.8 .494 .250 .809 5.8 0.8 1.0 0.7 1.3 9.6
2021 Los Angeles 7 3 19.1 .408 .750 .750 4.1 1.3 0.9 0.4 0.9 7.0
2022 Los Angeles 26 7 18.4 .466 .444 .706 5.5 1.1 0.8 0.3 1.4 7.0
2023 Los Angeles 10 4 21.2 .430 .077 .714 4.3 1.3 1.3 0.3 1.2 8.4
Career 7 years, 2 teams 170 108 23.7 .535 .341 .741 6.5 0.9 1.0 0.7 1.5 11.6

Playoffs

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG TO PPG
2018 Connecticut 1 0 19.1 .200 .000 .000 3.0 1.0 2.0 0.0 0.0 2.0
2019 Los Angeles 4 0 16.6 .500 .000 .857 3.3 0.8 0.8 0.5 0.8 6.0
Career 2 years, 2 teams 5 0 17.1 .435 .000 .857 3.2 0.8 1.0 0.4 0.6 5.2

Awards

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  • 2010—WBCA High School Coaches' All-America Team[7]
  • 2011—All-Pacific-10 Conference Team
  • 2011—All-Pac-10 All-Defensive Team
  • 2011—All-Pac-10 Tournament Team
  • 2011—Pac-10 Freshman of the Year
  • 2013—Pac-12 Player of the Year
  • 2013—Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year
  • 2014—ESPNW First Team All-American[35]
  • 2014—USBWA All-American team[36]
  • 2014—John R. Wooden Award
  • 2014—Pac-12 Player of the Year
  • 2014—Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year
  • 2014—WNBA Rookie of the Year

Off the court

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Personal life

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Ogwumike is Catholic.[37][38] Ogwumike's older sister, Nneka Ogwumike, plays for the Seattle Storm.

In November 2023, Ogwumike married Nigerian boxer, Raphael Akpejiori.[39]

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In December 2020, Ogwumike was named to Forbes 30 Under 30, alongside fellow WNBA players, Natasha Cloud and A'ja Wilson.[40]

Advocacy

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In 2014, Ogwumike and her sister, Nneka Ogwumike, held a fundraiser to support UNICEF programs that promote education and empowerment for girls in Nigeria following the mass kidnapping of schoolgirls by Boko Haram earlier that year.[41]

In October 2023, Ogwumike became an inaugural member of the President's Advisory Council on African Diaspora Engagement in the United States.[42]

See also

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  • List of NCAA Division I women's basketball players with 2,500 points and 1,000 rebounds

References

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  1. ^ "Chiney Ogwumike - I'm actually 6'2... so thank you Smash..." Facebook.com. Retrieved June 5, 2023.
  2. ^ Ogwumike sets rebound mark, dominates Oregon in Cardinal win
  3. ^ MVP Nneka Ogwumike elected WNBA players' union president
  4. ^ EXCLUSIVE: WNBA Star Chiney Ogwumike Signs Multi-Year Agreement With ESPN To Become Regular Analyst
  5. ^ "Chiney Ogwumike - WNBA.com - Official Site of the WNBA". WNBA.com - Official Site of the WNBA. Retrieved December 3, 2018.
  6. ^ USA Basketball profile
  7. ^ a b "Past WBCA HS Coaches' All-America Teams". Women's Basketball Coaches Association. Archived from the original on July 15, 2014. Retrieved July 1, 2014.
  8. ^ "WBCA High School All-America Game Box Scores". Women's Basketball Coaches Association. Archived from the original on July 15, 2014. Retrieved June 29, 2014.
  9. ^ "WBCA High School All-America Game Team MVP's". Women's Basketball Coaches Association. Archived from the original on July 15, 2014. Retrieved June 29, 2014.
  10. ^ "espn.go.com: Chiney Ogwumike opts for Stanford". ESPN. November 12, 2009. Retrieved March 22, 2013.
  11. ^ Allen, Percy (December 11, 2016). "Kelsey Plum becomes Pac-12 all-time leading scorer, scores 44 to lift UW past Boise State". The Seattle Times. Retrieved December 31, 2016.
  12. ^ Ogwumike sisters headline WNBA All-Star reserves
  13. ^ "Chiney Ogwumike has microfracture surgery on knee". USA Today. Association Press. January 22, 2015. Retrieved February 5, 2024.
  14. ^ Chiney Ogwumike Scores Career-High 26 To Lead Sun Past Wings
  15. ^ "Chinese WCBA round 5 best performance: Chiney Ogwumike". Archived from the original on October 30, 2018. Retrieved November 3, 2016.
  16. ^ Chinese League Round 5 October 25th
  17. ^ WNBA Players Making Their Mark Overseas
  18. ^ Sun's Chiney Ogwumike Could Miss Entire Season
  19. ^ Connecticut Sun forward Chiney Ogwumike could miss 2017 season following Achilles surgery
  20. ^ Chiney Ogwumike Undergoes Achilles Surgery
  21. ^ Sun offer Chiney Ogwumike contract extension, suspend her for season
  22. ^ Preview: Connecticut Sun hosts Las Vegas Aces in the teams’ season opener
  23. ^ [Preview: Connecticut Sun hosts Las Vegas Aces in the teams’ season opener Mohegan Sun Arena Sunday, May 20, 2018]
  24. ^ Howard’s career-high 25 points lift Storm past Sun
  25. ^ Chiney Ogwumike’s Road To All-Star Return
  26. ^ Sparks Trade For Chiney Ogwumike
  27. ^ Sparks' Chiney Ogwumike, Kristi Toliver Opt to Sit Out 2020 WNBA Season
  28. ^ Sparks re-sign Chiney Ogwumike to multi-year deal
  29. ^ Roberson, Matthew (May 9, 2024). "How Chiney Ogwumike Went From All-Star Basketball Player to All-Star Broadcaster". GQ. Retrieved September 29, 2024.
  30. ^ "EIGHTH WOMEN'S FIBA AMERICAS U18 CHAMPIONSHIP FOR WOMEN – 2010". USA Basketball. Archived from the original on November 5, 2013. Retrieved September 2, 2013.
  31. ^ "Incoming Stanford freshman Ogwumike leads USA U18 hoop team to gold". Palo Alto Online Sports. June 28, 2010. Retrieved September 2, 2013.
  32. ^ "TWENTY-SIXTH WORLD UNIVERSITY GAMES – 2011". USA Basketball. Archived from the original on April 28, 2013. Retrieved May 15, 2013.
  33. ^ "Chiney & Golic Jr. Show - PodCenter".
  34. ^ "NCAA® Career Statistics". web1.ncaa.org. Retrieved May 12, 2016.
  35. ^ "Slideshow: espnW All-Americans". ESPN. Archived from the original on March 14, 2014. Retrieved March 14, 2014.
  36. ^ "USBWA ANNOUNCES 2013–14". U.S. Basketball Writers Association. March 31, 2014. Retrieved April 2, 2014.
  37. ^ Nelson, Glenn (November 12, 2009). "HoopGurlz: Ogwumike to join sister at Stanford". ESPN.com. Archived from the original on November 18, 2016. Retrieved June 14, 2021.
  38. ^ "Facebook post". Facebook. Retrieved June 14, 2021.
  39. ^ "WNBA Star Chiney Ogwumike and Boxer Raphael Akpejiori Marry in Epic Four-Day Wedding Celebration". Peoplemag. Retrieved December 13, 2023.
  40. ^ Ariail, Cat (December 2, 2020). "Natasha Cloud, Chiney Ogwumike and A'ja Wilson named to the 'Forbes 30 Under 30 List'". Swish Appeal. Retrieved June 4, 2024.
  41. ^ "Ogwumike sisters raise funds for Nigeria education". AP News. June 11, 2014. Retrieved September 28, 2024.
  42. ^ "WNBA player Chiney Ogwumike named to President Biden's council on African diplomacy". AP News. September 26, 2023. Retrieved September 28, 2024.
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