Transfer center, a former Florida target, plans to officially visit Gators

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — The Gators have scheduled another official visit with a transfer target in the portal. The latest player to set up a trip is former Washington State center Rueben Chinyelu.

Chinyelu plans to officially visit Florida this weekend, he told On3. He will visit Mississippi State first and then fly to Gainesville to check out the Gators. It will mark his second official visit to UF.

Florida was a finalist for Chinyelu in the 2023 class and he visited on Sept. 17, 2022. He also took trips to Santa Clara, Rutgers Tennessee and Washington State before signing with the Cougars.

Chinyelu, a true freshman from Nigeria, averaged 4.7 points and 5.0 rebounds in 14 minutes per game. He became the all-time blocks leader in WSU freshman history with 45 blocks.

Chinyelu and Florida center Alex Condon tied for 10th nationally for most blocks by a freshman. He boasts an eye-popping 7’8″ wingspan and shot 61.7% from the floor last season.

Chinyelu scored a career-high 12 points and posted his first career double-double with 11 rebounds in Washington State’s 77-74 road win over then-No. 4 Arizona in late February.

The 6-foot-11, 245-pound would provide UF’s frontcourt with valuable rim protection and physical defense. He’s the No. 16 center and No. 161 overall transfer in the On3 Industry rankings.

UF will also receive official visits this month from point guard JP Pegues (Furman) and a pair of power forwards in Amari Williams (Drexel) and Sam Alexis (Chattanooga).

Rueben Chinyelu background

Chinyelu averaged nearly 20 boards at the FIBA Africa U-16 tournament. As just a high schooler, Chinyelu reportedly boasts an eye-popping 7’8″ wingspan and was also called up to the talent-loaded Nigerian Senior Men’s Basketball Team. That is significant due to the amount of NBA talent on the roster.

Chinyelu hails from Nigeria by way of NBA Academy Africa, an elite basketball training center in Senegal for the top high-school age prospects from across Africa. Chinyelu participated in the 2022 NBA Academy Games, a series of exhibition games featuring top NBA Academy prospects.

Chinyelu helped lead NBA Academy Africa to a first-place finish in the tournament. Last spring, Chinyelu played for Mozambique’s CFV in the Basketball Africa League (BAL) as part of an initiative to include one NBA Academy Africa player on each team.

Chinyelu competed for Nigeria in the 2019 FIBA U16 Africa Championship, carrying his country to the third-place game while averaging 12.3 points and 17.6 rebounds per game and shooting 56.7%. He made his debut for the Nigerian Senior National Team in August, participating in the 2023 World Cup Qualifiers.

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