| Position | Power Forward |
|---|---|
| Height | 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) |
| Weight | 235 lb (107 kg) |
| Born | July 10, 1975 Lagos, Nigeria |
| Nationality | Germany |
| College | North Carolina |
| Pro career | 1999–present |
| Career history | ALBA Berlin (1999-00) Girona (2000-01) FC Barcelona (2001-02) Unicaja Málaga (2002-03) Girona (2003-04) Benetton Treviso (2004) Pamesa Valencia (2004-05) RheinEnergie Köln (2005-06) Khimki Moscow (2006-07) Etosa Alicante (2007) Brose Baskets (2007-09) |
Ademola Okulaja, (born July 10, 1975, in Lagos, Nigeria) is a former German professional basketball player. The last team he played for were the Brose Baskets from Germany. He moved from Nigeria to West Berlin when he was only three years old.
The 6' 9", 235 lb (2.06 m, 107 kg) forward played college basketball in the United States at North Carolina and flirted briefly with the NBA before moving on to a successful international professional basketball career in Europe. He most recently played for Etosa Alicante in the ACB[1] before returning to Germany for the 2007-08 season.
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Okulaja played college basketball at North Carolina from 1995 to 1999. During the 1997-1998 NCAA season, he was a member of new coach Bill Guthridge's successful "six starters" rotation with Antawn Jamison, Vince Carter, Ed Cota, Shammond Williams and Makhtar N'Diaye. In his senior season, he was named MVP of the Tar Heels basketball team, and won a spot on the 1998-99 All-Atlantic Coast Conference First Team.
Okulaja has played professionally for a variety of Euroleague teams, including ALBA Berlin (1999–2000) and RheinEnergie Köln (2005–2006) in Germany; CB Girona (2000–2001 and 2003–04), Barcelona (2001–2002), Unicaja Malaga (2002–2003) and Pamesa Valencia (2004–2005) in Spain; and Benetton Treviso in Italy (2004).[2][3] His ALBA Berlin team won the 1999-2000 German National (Bundesliga) championship. He won the "Rookie of the Year" award with Girona, and was an All-League First Team selection that year.[4] In 2002, he won the award for "Most Spectacular Player" at the Spanish All-Star Game.[5]
Okulaja had three different attempts to join the NBA; his first training camp experience was with the Philadelphia 76ers, then with the San Antonio Spurs, and finally the Utah Jazz, but was unable to make an NBA roster.
On July 12, 2010, he announced his retirement from professional basketball.[6]
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Competitor for Germany | ||
| World Championships | ||
| Bronze | 2002 USA | Germany |
Okulaja is also an experienced member of the Germany national basketball team. He played with the team in the European Championships in 1995, 1997, 1999 and 2001. He competed with the German National Team in Japan in the 2006 FIBA World Basketball Championship tournament alongside NBA star Dirk Nowitzki.
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