STANLEY OKOYE, A WELCOME RETURN TO THE RED & WHITES
maggio 27, 2017
Openjobmetis Varese Basketball is glad to announce the acquisition of Stanley Okoye, who returns to wear a Varese jersey two years after his first stint with the Red & Whites. Class of 1991, Okoye has signed a two-year contract that will bind him to the Piazza Monte Grappa club until the end of the 2018/2019 season. Okoye, an American ‘swingman’ with a Nigerian passport, arrives at Basketball Varese after having played a great championship in Serie A2 with Udine Basketball.
Coach Attilio Caja, Openjobmetis Varese Basketball: «I am very happy to be able to coach Okoye again. He is a player who, two years ago, during his first experience in a high-level championship like Serie A, had already exhibited great physical and human qualities coupled with a remarkable intelligence on court and a great work ethic that make him a true team player and who was always at the service of his teammates. With the Varese jersey, right from the moment he was on the bench, he had already revealed his form which, in the last two years in A2, he perfected and improved further by playing as a leader in high-quality teams where he was able to boost his self-confidence. He comes to Varese with a great deal of motivation and with a desire to play a part on a larger stage. Hunger, a willingness to get in the game and quality – these are all attributes that we insist on rooting out for every player who is going to wear the Red & White jersey next year».
Player Profile:
Date of birth: 10 April 1991
Place of birth: Raleigh (North Carolina, USA)
Height: 198 cm
Role: Small Forward / Shooting Guard
Career:
Okoye already proved to be an interesting prospect in his four years of training at Knightdale High School where he totalled over 1,300 points and 550 rebounds, both of which were records. Statistics also confirm his excellence wearing a Virginia Military Institute jersey. In 2009/2010, he was the best freshman marker on the Big South Conference (14.2 points, 6.6 rebounds and 1.5 stoppers) and was included in the Big South All-Freshmen Team quintet. The following year thanks to 16.8 points and 8 rebounds on average, he dragged the Keydets into the championship final. In 2011/2012, his stats improved again (17.1 points, 7.2 rebounds and 2 assists in 28 minutes), doing even better the following year (21.5 points, 9.4 rebounds, 2.6 assist with 45% 2-pointers and 35% 3s). These stats gave him recognition for 5 Player of the Week awards and a player-of-the-year award in the Big South Conference, which was unique in the history of the Big South Tournament for having over 2,000 career points (2,146), 900 rebounds (962) and 100 Stops (103). After leaving the college after a short break to Greece at Irakos, he played two games in the second Israeli league with a Maccabi Hod Hasharon's jersey, and then moved on (October 2013) to the top league with Barak Netanya (8.5 points, 7.2 rebounds and 1.2 stoppages in 23 minutes on average). He finally closed the season in Australia with the Perth Redbacks with 28.4 points, 11.3 rebounds, 1.8 assists with a high of 30 points, 13 rebounds and 3 assists in 42 minutes in the opening game. In 2014/15, he was called to Varese – wearing a Red & White jersey, he scored 5.4 points with 3.9 rebounds, in 15.7 minutes on average. The following year he played in Matera and then went to Trapani. During the 2016/2017 season, he wore an Udine jersey (17.5 points, 6.2 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 30.7 minutes on average).
Coach Attilio Caja, Openjobmetis Varese Basketball: «I am very happy to be able to coach Okoye again. He is a player who, two years ago, during his first experience in a high-level championship like Serie A, had already exhibited great physical and human qualities coupled with a remarkable intelligence on court and a great work ethic that make him a true team player and who was always at the service of his teammates. With the Varese jersey, right from the moment he was on the bench, he had already revealed his form which, in the last two years in A2, he perfected and improved further by playing as a leader in high-quality teams where he was able to boost his self-confidence. He comes to Varese with a great deal of motivation and with a desire to play a part on a larger stage. Hunger, a willingness to get in the game and quality – these are all attributes that we insist on rooting out for every player who is going to wear the Red & White jersey next year».
Player Profile:
Date of birth: 10 April 1991
Place of birth: Raleigh (North Carolina, USA)
Height: 198 cm
Role: Small Forward / Shooting Guard
Career:
Okoye already proved to be an interesting prospect in his four years of training at Knightdale High School where he totalled over 1,300 points and 550 rebounds, both of which were records. Statistics also confirm his excellence wearing a Virginia Military Institute jersey. In 2009/2010, he was the best freshman marker on the Big South Conference (14.2 points, 6.6 rebounds and 1.5 stoppers) and was included in the Big South All-Freshmen Team quintet. The following year thanks to 16.8 points and 8 rebounds on average, he dragged the Keydets into the championship final. In 2011/2012, his stats improved again (17.1 points, 7.2 rebounds and 2 assists in 28 minutes), doing even better the following year (21.5 points, 9.4 rebounds, 2.6 assist with 45% 2-pointers and 35% 3s). These stats gave him recognition for 5 Player of the Week awards and a player-of-the-year award in the Big South Conference, which was unique in the history of the Big South Tournament for having over 2,000 career points (2,146), 900 rebounds (962) and 100 Stops (103). After leaving the college after a short break to Greece at Irakos, he played two games in the second Israeli league with a Maccabi Hod Hasharon's jersey, and then moved on (October 2013) to the top league with Barak Netanya (8.5 points, 7.2 rebounds and 1.2 stoppages in 23 minutes on average). He finally closed the season in Australia with the Perth Redbacks with 28.4 points, 11.3 rebounds, 1.8 assists with a high of 30 points, 13 rebounds and 3 assists in 42 minutes in the opening game. In 2014/15, he was called to Varese – wearing a Red & White jersey, he scored 5.4 points with 3.9 rebounds, in 15.7 minutes on average. The following year he played in Matera and then went to Trapani. During the 2016/2017 season, he wore an Udine jersey (17.5 points, 6.2 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 30.7 minutes on average).