Auburn forward Chuma Okeke was drafted by the Orlando Magic with the No. 16 overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft, making him Auburn’s first draft pick since 2001.
Okeke had an impressive sophomore campaign before suffering an ACL injury in the Sweet 16 against North Carolina.
However, Okeke showed elite flashes throughout his career that made him more than attractive enough to spend a first round pick on.
The flashes started his freshman year, such as when Okeke had 11 points, five rebounds, four assists, two steals, one block and zero turnovers off the bench against Tennessee in his first-ever conference game.
Okeke scored his career-high 23 points (on 8 of 11 shooting) against Ole Miss.
Of course, Okeke began playing on another level in March.
Auburn was 20-9 towards the end of last season, and the Tigers still had a game at Alabama and against Tennessee left on the slate.
Okeke looked like a first round pick in both of those performances, finishing the Alabama game with 17 points and 14 rebounds and adding 22 points, five rebounds and four steals against a fifth-ranked Tennessee team en route to blocking the Vols from securing an outright SEC championship.
Okeke continued these performances throughout the rest of his season, playing at a level that would have easily made him one of the SEC’s best players if he had sustained those averages for an entire season.
The stats from Okeke’s last eight regular season games compared to the rest of the conference’s yearly averages showcase how dominant of a player he can be:
I took Chuma Okeke’s stats from Auburn’s last eight games and compared them to the rest of the SEC’s season totals.
Here’s where Okeke would rank if those were his season averages: pic.twitter.com/D3vkvxoi45
— Auburn Hoops Fan Account (@aubawn) March 11, 2019
He averaged 13.8 points, 7.6 rebounds, 2.4 steals, 1.8 assists and 1.2 blocks per game in the month of March on 50-percent field goal shooting and 43.6-percent three-point shooting.
Another aspect that should make him successful in the NBA is the fact that Okeke played better against better competition. In addition to his 22-point outing to close the regular season, he had 18 points, 13 rebounds, three steals and a block against Tennessee in the SEC tournament championship.
He showed off his versatility against Kansas and Dedric Lawson as Auburn’s forward scored just 12 points but added five rebounds, four assists, four steals and a block in the second round game against the Jayhawks.
Okeke’s season ended with an injury against North Carolina, but he had logged 20 points, 11 rebounds, two assists, two steals and a block in just 25 minutes against the Tar Heels.
He completely transformed his game and body from his freshman to his sophomore year, giving hope that he can bounce back from his injury and continue his improvement with the Magic.
Even though fans won’t get to see him in an Auburn jersey next season, this is still good news for the program as it gives Bruce Pearl another powerful tool on the recruiting trail.
Okeke was ranked No. 50 by ESPN coming out of Westlake High School in Atlanta, one of Pearl’s favorite places to recruit.
Before Okeke got drafted, Auburn hadn’t had a player drafted since Jamison Brewer in 2001, and the Tigers hadn’t had an active NBA player since Marquis Daniels (current Auburn graduate assistant) retired in 2013.
Okeke will join a team of long, versatile players as the Orlando Magic have drafted Jonathan Isaac and Mo Bamba in their last two drafts.
Bamba was measured at 7’0” with a 7’10” wingspan, while Isaac was measured at 6’10” with a 7’1” wingspan. Okeke will give the Magic a 6’8” wing with a 7’0” wingspan that can play either power forward or small forward.
Aaron Gordon and Isaac both play similar positions and will allow Okeke to ease back to full form.
Orlando snapped a six-season long postseason drought last year, but the Magic will have to evaluate Okeke and his injury before deciding if the Auburn forward will be able to step on the court and contribute next season.