Daniel Hassan Ochefu (born December 15, 1993) is an American-born Nigerian professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

player who last played for Al-Jaish of the Syrian Basketball League. He played college basketball for the

Villanova Wildcats The Villanova Wildcats are the athletic teams of Villanova University. They compete in the Big East (NCAA Division I) for every sport; except football and women's rowing where they compete in the Coastal Athletic Association (Football Champions ...

, and had a short, 19-game stint in the

NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

with the

Washington Wizards The Washington Wizards are an American professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C. The Wizards compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference. The team plays i ...

High school career

Born in

Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the List of United States ...

, Ochefu attended the

Westtown School Westtown School is a Quaker, coeducational, college preparatory day and boarding school for students in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade, located in West Chester, Pennsylvania, United States, 20 miles west of Philadelphia. Founded in 179 ...

, where he averaged 16 points and 12 rebounds per game as a junior. As a senior, he transferred to

Downingtown East High School Downingtown High School is an American secondary school located in Downingtown, Pennsylvania and Uwchlan Township, Pennsylvania. Population growth in the burgeoning Downingtown Area School District forced the original Downingtown High School t ...

. He was ranked 54th on ESNPU's list of the top 100 players in his high school class."Daniel Ochefu"
. villanova.com. Retrieved April 5, 2016.

College career

Ochefu played college basketball for Villanova. As a freshman, he played behind center Mouphtaou Yarou. In 2013–14, he averaged 5.7 points per game as a reserve player. The following season, he had 9.2 points per game. Ochefu scored a career-high 25 points in a 73–63 win over St. John's on February 13, 2016. At the conclusion of the regular season, he was named Honorable Mention All-Big East. Ochefu played in the NCAA championship game on April 4, 2016, against

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

, where he helped the Wildcats defeat the Tar Heels 77–74, and claim Villanova's second national championship.

Professional career

Washington Wizards (2016–2017)

After going undrafted in the

2016 NBA draft The 2016 NBA draft was held on June 23, 2016, at Barclays Center in Brooklyn. It was televised nationally in the U.S. by ESPN, and was live streamed for the first time in NBA draft history by The Vertical. National Basketball Association (NBA) ...

, Ochefu joined the

for the Las Vegas Summer League, where he averaged 1.8 points and 2.8 rebounds per game. On September 23, 2016, he signed with the Wizards. He made his debut for the Wizards in their season opener on October 27, recording one rebound in four minutes off the bench in a 114–99 loss to the

Atlanta Hawks The Atlanta Hawks are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta. The Hawks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division (NBA), Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), Easte ...

Maine Red Claws (2017)

On October 9, 2017, Ochefu was waived by the Wizards. The

Boston Celtics The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), ...

signed him on October 13, 2017. He was assigned to G-League affiliate team the

Maine Red Claws The Maine Celtics are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Portland, Maine, and are affiliated with the Boston Celtics. The Maine Celtics play their home games at the Portland Expo Building. The Boston Celtics pu ...

Windy City Bulls (2017–2018)

On November 30, 2017, Ochefu was acquired by the

Windy City Bulls The Windy City Bulls are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Hoffman Estates, Illinois, and are affiliated with the Chicago Bulls. The Bulls play their home games at Now Arena, from Chicago. It became the thirte ...

Reno Bighorns / Stockton Kings (2018–2019)

On February 12, 2018, Ochefu was traded by the Bulls to the

Reno Bighorns Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada–California border. It is the county seat and most populous city of Washoe County. Sitting in the High Eastern Sierra foothills, in the Truckee River v ...

along with a 2018 third-round draft pick and the returning player rights to Spencer Dinwiddie in exchange for Will Davis, the returning player rights to Lamar Patterson, and a 2018 first-round draft pick. He remained on the team as it became the Stockton Kings. Ochefu averaged 14 points and 8 rebounds per game.

Overseas (2019–present)

On April 2, 2019, Cafés Candelas Breogán of the

Liga ACB The Liga ACB, known as Liga Endesa for sponsorship reasons, is the top professional basketball division of the Spanish basketball league system. Administered by the Asociación de Clubs de Baloncesto (ACB), Liga ACB is contested by 18 teams, w ...

announced the signing of Ochefu. In July 2019, Ochefu signed with the Ibaraki Robots in Japan. In August 2022, he signed with the

Rain or Shine Elasto Painters The Rain or Shine Elasto Painters are a professional basketball team in the Philippine Basketball Association owned by Asian Coatings Philippines, Inc. It debuted in the league in the 2006–07 PBA season after acquiring the franchise righ ...

of the

Philippine Basketball Association The Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) is a men's professional basketball league in the Philippines, composed of twelve company-branded Franchising, franchise teams. Founded in 1975, it is the first professional basketball league in Asia ...

(PBA) as the team's import for the

2022–23 PBA Commissioner's Cup The 2022–23 PBA Commissioner's Cup, also known as the 2022–23 Honda PBA Commissioner's Cup for sponsorship reasons, was the second conference of the 2022–23 PBA season of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). The 20th edition of th ...

. However, he was replaced by

Steve Taylor Roland Stephen Taylor (born December 9, 1957) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, music executive, film maker, assistant professor, and actor. A figure in what has come to be known as Christian alternative rock, Taylor enjoyed ...

prior to the start of the tournament. In February 2023, Ochefu signed with the

TNT Tropang Giga The TNT Tropang 5G is a professional basketball team currently owned by Smart Communications, a subsidiary of the Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company (PLDT), playing in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) since 1990. The fra ...

as the team's import for the 2023 EASL Champions Week held in Japan. On September 20, 2023, Ochefu signed with the Hsinchu Lioneers of the P. League+. On December 1, Ochefu left the team. In April 2024, Ochefu joined the Al-Jaish of the Syrian Basketball League. In first game of the quarterfinals, Ochefu scored 15 points, 12 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 block.

International career

He was called up for the

Nigeria national basketball team The Nigeria men's national basketball team represents Nigeria in international basketball, and it is governed by the Nigeria Basketball Federation (NBBF). In March 2021, the global governing body FIBA ranked Nigeria as Africa's top men's bask ...

for the 2017 FIBA Africa Championship.

NBA career statistics

Regular season

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Playoffs

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References

External links