Isaac Okoro

Isaac Okoro (born January 26, 2001) is an American college basketball player for the Auburn Tigers of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). Listed at 6 feet 6 inches (1.98 m) and 225 pounds (102 kg), he plays the small forward position.

Isaac Okoro
Okoro practices with Auburn in September 2019
No. 23 – Auburn Tigers
PositionSmall forward
LeagueSoutheastern Conference
Personal information
Born (2001-01-26) January 26, 2001
Atlanta, Georgia
NationalityAmerican
Listed height6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
Listed weight225 lb (102 kg)
Career information
High schoolMcEachern
(Powder Springs, Georgia)
CollegeAuburn (2019–2020)
Career highlights and awards
  • Second-team All-SEC (2020)
  • SEC All-Freshman Team (2020)
  • SEC All-Defensive Team (2020)
  • Nike Hoop Summit (2019)
Medals
Men's basketball
Representing  United States
FIBA Under-17 World Cup
2018 ArgentinaTeam

Okoro played basketball for McEachern High School in Georgia for four years, helping his team win the state championship and achieve national success in his senior season. He was considered a five-star recruit by Rivals and a four-star recruit by 247Sports and ESPN. After his freshman college season at Auburn, he was named to the second team All-SEC.

Early life

Okoro was born in Atlanta, Georgia and was raised close to metro Atlanta. His father, Godwin, emigrated from Nigeria in the 1980s. His mother, Gloria, also originates from Nigeria.[1] Okoro started playing basketball in his local church league. When he was around seven to eight years old, he began training under the guidance of Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) coach Omar Cooper, the father of his future high school teammate, Sharife Cooper.[2]

High school career

Okoro played high school basketball for McEachern High School in Powder Springs, Georgia. In his freshman season, he averaged 15 points and eight rebounds per game, helping his team win the regional title and reach the Georgia High School Association Class 7A state quarterfinals.[3][4] As a sophomore, Okoro averaged 22.5 points per game, leading McEachern to the regional championship and the Class 7A state semifinals.[4][5] He earned Atlanta Journal-Constitution Class 7A All-State second team and MaxPreps Sophomore All-American third team honors.[6][7] In his junior season, Okoro averaged 20.3 points and 6.4 rebounds per game, helping McEachern reach the Class 7A state quarterfinals.[8][9] He was named to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution Class 7A All-State first team and the USA Today All-USA Georgia first team.[8][10] In the offseason, Okoro had success on the Nike Elite Youth Basketball League, a prominent amateur circuit, with Athletes of Tomorrow.[11]

In his senior season, Okoro averaged 19.7 points, 10.6 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 2.7 steals per game.[12] He led McEachern to titles at the City of Palms Classic and the Tournament of Champions.[13][14] His team ended the regular season with a 32–0 record, becoming the first undefeated team in the highest Georgia classification since 1995 and receiving a No. 1 national ranking from multiple websites, including MaxPreps.[15] Okoro scored 16 points to help his team win its first Class 7A state championship.[16] He shared Atlanta Journal-Constitution state most valuable player recognition with teammate Sharife Cooper.[17] Okoro was named to the MaxPreps All-American second team and the USA Today All-USA Georgia first team.[12][18] On April 12, 2019, Okoro competed in the Nike Hoop Summit, an international all-star game.[19]

Recruiting

By the end of his high school career, Okoro was considered a five-star recruit by Rivals and a four-star recruit by 247Sports and ESPN.[20][21] On July 25, 2018, he committed to play college basketball for Auburn over offers from Florida, Florida State, Oregon and Texas, among others.[22] Okoro became the second-highest ranked commit in program history, according to 247Sports composite rankings, behind only Mustapha Heron.[23]

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Isaac Okoro
SF		 Powder Springs, GA McEachern (GA) 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 203 lb (92 kg) Jul 25, 2018 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN:   ESPN grade: 88
Overall recruiting rankings:   Rivals: 31  247Sports: 35  ESPN: 39
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "Auburn 2019 Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved July 27, 2019.
  • "2019 Auburn Tigers Recruiting Class". ESPN.com. Retrieved July 27, 2019.
  • "2019 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved July 27, 2019.

    College career

    Okoro scored 12 points in his Auburn debut, a 84–73 win over Georgia Southern. The following game, he attained 17 points in a 76–66 victory over Davidson.[24] Okoro was named Southeastern Conference (SEC) Freshman of the Week on November 18, 2019.[25] He scored a season-high 23 points in a 83–79 win over Vanderbilt on January 8, 2020.[26] Okoro did not play in a February 15 game against Missouri due to a hamstring injury.[27] After the regular season, he was named to the All-SEC Second Team, the SEC All-Freshman Team and the SEC All-Defensive Team by the league's coaches.[28] Okoro averaged 12.9 points, 4.4 rebounds and two assists per game. After the season, he announced that he would enter the 2020 NBA draft.[29]

    National team career

    Okoro played for the United States at the 2018 FIBA Under-17 Basketball World Cup in Argentina. In seven games, he averaged 4.3 points, 1.9 rebounds and 1.6 steals per game, helping his team win the gold medal.[4][30]

    Career statistics
    Legend
      GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
     FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
     RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
     BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high

    College
    Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
    2019–20[31] Auburn 282831.5.514.290.6724.42.0.9.912.9
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    References
    1. Givony, Jonathan (April 11, 2019). "Isaac Okoro: 2019 Hoop Summit Interview". YouTube. Retrieved April 11, 2019.
    2. Scarborough, Alex (February 12, 2020). "Auburn back to the Final Four? Only if Isaac Okoro gets selfish". ESPN. Retrieved February 21, 2020.
    3. "Three games into young season shows McEachern is ready to play". Marietta Daily Journal. December 8, 2016. Retrieved July 27, 2019.
    4. "Isaac Okoro". USA Basketball. May 23, 2019. Retrieved July 27, 2019.
    5. Halley, Jim (November 14, 2017). "Super 25 Preseason Boys Basketball: No. 9 McEachern". USA Today High School Sports. Retrieved July 27, 2019.
    6. Holcomb, Todd (March 31, 2017). "AJC boys All-State basketball teams". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved July 27, 2019.
    7. "2016–17 MaxPreps Boys Basketball Sophomore All-American Team". MaxPreps. April 13, 2017. Retrieved July 27, 2019.
    8. Hilbert, Evan (April 16, 2018). "2017–18 ALL-USA Georgia Boys Basketball Team". USA Today High School Sports. Retrieved July 27, 2019.
    9. White, Carlton (February 28, 2018). "McEachern boys' championship hopes dashed by Norcross in quarterfinals". Marietta Daily Journal. Retrieved July 27, 2019.
    10. Holcomb, Todd; Saye, Chip (March 29, 2018). "High school basketball: Boys, girls all-state teams". Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved July 27, 2019.
    11. Smith, Cam (May 29, 2018). "Isaac Okoro has been on a Nike EYBL tear, and his athleticism should have teams on notice". USA Today High School Sports. Retrieved July 27, 2019.
    12. Divens, Jordan (April 11, 2019). "MaxPreps 2018–19 High School Boys Basketball All-American Team". MaxPreps. Retrieved July 27, 2019.
    13. Zagoria, Adam (December 22, 2018). "Sharife Cooper, Isaac Okoro lead McEachern to City of Palms title". Zagsblog. Retrieved July 27, 2019.
    14. Wheeler, Wyatt D. (January 20, 2019). "Hot takes from a thrilling championship night at the 2019 Bass Pro Tournament of Champions". Springfield News-Leader. Retrieved July 27, 2019.
    15. Holcomb, Todd (March 12, 2019). "AAAAAAA basketball blog: McEachern, Westlake finish unbeaten, nationally ranked". Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved July 27, 2019.
    16. Divens, Jordan (March 9, 2019). "No. 1 McEachern continues magical year capturing first Georgia state title". MaxPreps. Retrieved July 27, 2019.
    17. Saye, Chip (May 30, 2019). "2018–19 High school Player of the Year winners". Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved July 27, 2019.
    18. "2018–19 ALL-USA Georgia Boys Basketball Team". USA Today High School Sports. April 16, 2019. Retrieved July 27, 2019.
    19. Blockus, Gary R. (March 25, 2019). "Isaac Okoro Ready to Bring Aggressive Defense to Nike Hoop Summit". USA Basketball. Retrieved July 27, 2019.
    20. "Isaac Okoro". Auburn University Athletics. Retrieved April 29, 2020.
    21. "Auburn freshman Isaac Okoro to declare eligibility for NBA draft". ESPN. March 20, 2020. Retrieved April 29, 2020.
    22. Vitale, Josh (July 25, 2018). "Isaac Okoro, ranked 35th nationally in 2019 class, commits to Auburn men's basketball". Opelika-Auburn News. Retrieved April 29, 2020.
    23. Green, Tom (July 25, 2018). "What 4-star small forward Isaac Okoro's commitment means for Auburn basketball". AL.com. Retrieved April 29, 2020.
    24. Vitale, Josh (November 12, 2019). "Auburn's 'most talented freshman': Isaac Okoro is living up to the hype". Montgomery Advertiser. Retrieved November 18, 2019.
    25. "Week 2: Men's Basketball Players of the Week". Southeastern Conference. November 18, 2019. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
    26. "Okoro, No. 5 Auburn edge Vanderbilt 83–79 to stay perfect". NBC Sports. Associated Press. January 8, 2020. Retrieved January 9, 2020.
    27. "Smith, Pinson lead Missouri to 85–73 win over No. 11 Auburn". ESPN. Associated Press. February 15, 2020. Retrieved February 16, 2020.
    28. "SEC announces 2020 Men's Basketball Awards". Southeastern Conference. March 10, 2020. Retrieved March 10, 2020.
    29. Boone, Kyle (March 20, 2020). "Auburn freshman Isaac Okoro, projected lottery pick, set to test NBA Draft waters". CBS Sports. Retrieved March 20, 2020.
    30. "Isaac Okoro (USA)'s profile - FIBA U17 Basketball World Cup". FIBA. Retrieved July 27, 2019.
    31. "Isaac Okoro College Stats". Sports Reference. Retrieved April 29, 2020.
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