{"id":64997,"date":"2024-08-09T23:11:23","date_gmt":"2024-08-10T04:11:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/?p=64997"},"modified":"2024-08-09T23:11:23","modified_gmt":"2024-08-10T04:11:23","slug":"7-footer-obinna-ekezie-jr-emerging-as-an-early-name-to-watch-for-kentucky-in-2027","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/7-footer-obinna-ekezie-jr-emerging-as-an-early-name-to-watch-for-kentucky-in-2027\/","title":{"rendered":"7-Footer Obinna Ekezie Jr. Emerging as an Early Name to Watch for Kentucky in 2027"},"content":{"rendered":"

Kentucky is still about 10 months away from being able to contact 2027 recruits directly, but Mark Pope and his staff are keeping an eye on some potential targets. One of the names they\u2019re eying is Prolific Prep (Napa, CA) center Obinna Ekezie Jr<\/a>.<\/a><\/span> <\/p>\n

The 7-foot center moved from Nigeria to Kentucky in 2022 to play for St. Raphael in Louisville, Kentucky. That was where he got his first taste of Big Blue Nation. <\/p>\n

\u201cIf you\u2019re in Kentucky, everybody knows about Kentucky basketball,\u201d Ekezie told KSR+. \u201cIt\u2019s one of the greatest college basketball programs in the country.\u201d <\/p>\n

Just a couple of years later, Ekezie has landed on the radar of Kentucky\u2019s new head coach. Pope saw Ekezie play at the 3SSB Circuit All-American Camp in Atlanta in July and <\/p>\n

Mark Pope talked to Ekezie\u2019s dad at 3SSB Circuit All-American Camp. He had positive things to say.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe told my dad he likes my game, I have very high potential, and they\u2019ll be watching,\u201d Ekezie said.<\/p>\n

\u2018Kentucky is a Great Program\u2019<\/h2>\n

Obinna Ekezie Jr. has a good history with the Kentucky basketball program. For starters, his dad, Obinna Ekezie Sr. played college basketball at Maryland during the same time Mark Pope was playing at Kentucky. <\/p>\n

\u201cHe and Coach Pope have a relationship because they played against each other and know each other a little bit,\u201d Ekezie said. \u201cIt was a big change going from Coach Cal [John Calipari] to Coach Pope.\u201d <\/p>\n

Ekezie said it was \u201ccrazy\u201d to see Calipari go to Arkansas. However, he\u2019s still impressed with Kentucky as an overall institution. <\/p>\n

\u201cKentucky is a great program,\u201d Ekezie said. \u201cGetting interest from any program that gives you the opportunity to play in college is a really great thing. Kentucky is a really great basketball program.\u201d <\/p>\n

Still, only time will tell how Pope fares in Lexington. Ekezie is excited to see it play out. <\/p>\n

\u201cThere was a lot of division between the different people. Some people were saying it\u2019s going to be a great change and others were saying it\u2019s going to be a mistake,\u201d Ekezie said. \u201cYou can\u2019t really tell until the season starts and we actually see the record and how good Coach Pope\u2019s coaching is compared with Coach Cal\u2019s.\u201d <\/p>\n

Getting the Opportunity to Play in Front of College and NBA Scouts<\/h2>\n

The 3SSB Circuit All-American Camp was a great opportunity for Obinna Ekezie to play, not just in front of college scouts, but also NBA scouts. There were a lot of positive reviews. <\/p>\n

\u201cI played really well on the defensive end,\u201d Ezekie said. \u201cA lot of high-major coaches were saying good things about me, my rim protection, and my potential on the offensive end. It was a really great experience and I got to play against really good recruits.\u201d <\/p>\n

Ekezie has already received offers from the likes of Cal, Houston, Stanford, and Arizona State. Schools like Alabama, Kansas, and Louisville are showing interest.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a great experience and I\u2019ve got to keep working,\u201d Ekezie said. \u201cNone of this really matters until you prove yourself to people and be the best you can be out there. It\u2019s a great experience to be recruited by all these colleges.\u201d <\/p>\n

Ekezie\u2019s only visit so far was to Stanford for a game under the previous staff. He\u2019s looking to visit Houston and potentially Stanford later in the year. <\/p>\n

\u201c[I\u2019m looking for] a school that cares about you and a school that has a controllable fan base,\u201d Ekezie said. \u201cJust a place where you\u2019re loved and people want you there. If you\u2019re not really wanted in a program, they\u2019re not going to get the best out of you. If they don\u2019t want you, the coaches aren\u2019t going to push you. I just want to go to a place where I\u2019m wanted and can play to my strengths.\u201d <\/p>\n

Obinna Ekezie\u2019s Game<\/h2>\n

2027 center Obinna Ekezie of Prolific Prep (CA) is considered one of the best-shot blockers in the 2027 class. That\u2019s what he considers to be his greatest strength. <\/p>\n

\u201cI also have a developed skill set for my age on the offensive end,\u201d Ekezie said. \u201cFor being 7-foot, I\u2019m really good athletically in the low post and dunker spot. I can catch the ball in the low post, face up, and make some moves. I have a left and right-hand hook shot.\u201d <\/p>\n

Ekezei is looking to expand his range to the three-point line. He already can operate in the post, face-up, and dunker spot. However, most of all, he wants to have an elite motor. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s hard to guard a 7-footer with an elite motor who is everywhere on both the defensive and offensive end,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019m trying to expand my IQ, decision-making, and pick-and-roll on the offensive end. Once I get all of that down, then I can start talking about knocking down threes. You still have to be a really good big man inside. It\u2019s an inside-out game. You can\u2019t be one of each.\u201d <\/p>\n

\n<\/span>\n<\/div>\n

The post 7-Footer Obinna Ekezie Jr. Emerging as an Early Name to Watch for Kentucky in 2027<\/a> appeared first on On3<\/a>.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Kentucky is still about 10 months away from being able to contact 2027 recruits directly,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-64997","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64997","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=64997"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64997\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":65040,"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64997\/revisions\/65040"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=64997"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=64997"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=64997"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}