When the Olympics kicks off in Japan, all eyes would be on Team Nigeria especially in basketball where three sisters, Nneka, Erica and Chiney Ogwumike would be flying the Nigerian flag against big teams of the world including Team United States.
They have been tagged the Real First Family of Hoops when you add their sister, Olivia. All four are real ballers in the WNBA.
The trio were left out of Team USA to the shock of many especially Nneka, the oldest of the trio, who currently ranks 27th in the top US WNBA All-stars’ list. Nneka on current form was highly favoured to make the Team USA list.
The Women’s National Basketball Association, WNBA, star Nneka Ogwumike will seemingly be making an appearance at the Tokyo Games after all, following her omission from Team USA’s roster. Ogwumike has been listed on the 15-woman provisional squad for Nigeria’s national team (D’Tigress), the Nigerian Basketball Federation announced on Tuesday, reports USAtoday.
Ogwumike is joined on the provisional squad by her sisters, Chiney of the Los Angeles Sparks and Erica, a WNBA 2020 draftee. The sibling trio could make history all playing on the same team during the Olympic Games, should they make the 12-person team (Nneka and Chiney await FIBA approval having played for Team USA in the past, per ESPN). Together they bring eight All-Star appearances, six gold medals (FIBA, World University Games, U18), five NCAA Final Four appearances, two WNBA Rookie of the Year awards and over 10 NCAA conference honors.
Erica Erinma Ogwumike (born September 26, 1997), a Nigerian-American professional basketball player for the Minnesota Lynx of the WNBA played college basketball for the Rice Owls.
In July, 2020, she announced her decision to play for the Nigerian national basketball team in the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. In addition to her excellence in athletics, Ogwumike is currently in medical school and would add the stethoscope to her career ladder.
Nneka plays for the Los Angeles Sparks of the WNBA, after being drafted No. 1 overall in the 2012 WNBA Draft. Soon after being drafted, she signed an endorsement deal with Nike. She is the older sister of Chiney Ogwumike, who also plays for the Sparks. Nneka ranked 27th in the 2021 WNBA ranking was named WNBA MVP for the 2016 WNBA season; as well as winning the WNBA Finals that year in 2016. It was a huge shock when she was omitted from the US Olympics team.
She also plays for Dynamo Kursk of Russia. Nneka is 6’2″ and plays power forward. She attended Cypress-Fairbanks High School in Cypress, Texas and led them to a 5A State Championship in her senior season.
While at Stanford University she helped the Cardinal reach the Final Four for a record four times. Ogwumike was elected President of the WNBA Players Association in 2016 and was re-elected to a new three-year term in 2019.
Chinenye “Chiney” plays for the Los Angeles Sparks. As of 2020, she became the first Black woman to host a national radio show for ESPN, also being the first WNBA player to do so. 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, who 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.
As of 2016, Ogwumike was elected Vice-President of the WNBA Players Association, and signed an endorsement deal with Adidas. In May 2018, Ogwumike signed a multi-year contract with ESPN to become a full-time basketball analyst.
Their fourth sister, Olivia, 5’11”, is reportedly a hybrid who can bang inside and drill threes from deep. She’s down to challenge anyone who claims Kyrie Irving doesn’t have the sickest handles in the NBA (“It’s like poetry in his hands”). Just don’t judge her for thinking La La Land is one of the greatest movies of all time, writes Mirin Fader for Bleacherreport.com
D’Tigress and Team USA’s first matchup will be Tuesday, July 27 in Group B of the preliminary round and it will be a clash of friends and colleagues. The Nigerian team has a huge sprinkling of US-based ballers.
Head coach Otis Hughley Jr.’s team submission comes two weeks after Nneka Ogwumike’s absence on Team USA’s roster left fans and WNBA players stunned.
A regular on Team USA – winning gold medals in two FIBA World Cups – Ogwumike’s stacked résumé also includes six All-Star appearances, four All-WNBA team nods, four All-WNBA All-Defensive Team appearances and one Euroleague Championship. She was a Team USA camp participant the last five years and was Team USA’s leading scorer last year. Ogwumike is also the WNBA players association president.
