Michael Patrick Gbinije (born June 5, 1992) is a Nigerian-American 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 for the

Cape Town Tigers The Cape Town Tigers are a South African professional basketball team founded in Cape Town. The Tigers have played in the Basketball National League (BNL) and played in three seasons of the Basketball Africa League (BAL) between 2022 and 2024. ...

of the

Basketball Africa League The Basketball Africa League (BAL) is the premier men's basketball league in Africa. Founded in 2019, the league was established and is co-organized by NBA Africa and the FIBA, International Basketball Federation (FIBA). Each season typically r ...

. He played one season of college basketball for

Duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of Royal family, royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobi ...

before transferring to

Syracuse Syracuse most commonly refers to: * Syracuse, Sicily, Italy; in the province of Syracuse * Syracuse, New York, USA; in the Syracuse metropolitan area Syracuse may also refer to: Places * Syracuse railway station (disambiguation) Italy * Provi ...

in 2012. He was drafted 49th overall by the Pistons 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) ...

. He has represented the Nigerian national team.

High school career

Gbinije competed for Benedictine High School. As a junior, Gbinije averaged 18.0 points and 6.0 rebounds per game. He averaged 25.0 points, 10.0 rebounds and 5.0 assists as a senior and was named first team all-state. He led Benedictine to a 26–5 record and the VISAA Division I State Championship. Gbinije was ranked 28th in the 2011 class by ESPNU 100 and 26th overall by Scout.com.

College career

Gbinije began his collegiate career at

, where he played sparingly as freshman and averaged 1.7 points in 19 games. He opted to transfer to

after his freshman year and sat out the 2012–13 season as a redshirt. As a sophomore, Gbinije averaged 3.4 points, 1.8 rebounds, and 1.2 assists per game. He increased those numbers to 12.7 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 3.6 assists per game as a junior in 2014–15. On February 14, 2015, he scored a career-high 27 points against Duke to go along with four assists in an 80–72 loss. As a senior in 2015–16, he averaged 17.5 points, 4.1 rebounds, 4.3 assists, and 1.9 steals per game while shooting 39% from beyond the three-point line and 46% overall. Gbinije started all 37 games of the season and helped lead the Orange on an improbable run to the 2016 NCAA Final Four.

Professional career

Detroit Pistons (2016–2017)

On June 23, 2016, Gbinije was selected by the

Detroit Pistons The Detroit Pistons are an American professional basketball team based in Detroit. The Pistons compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), East ...

with the 49th overall pick in the

. He was drafted for his defense, versatility and athleticism. On July 3, 2016, he suffered a sprained ankle and was ruled out for the entire

2016 NBA Summer League The 2016 NBA Summer League consisted of three pro basketball leagues organized by the National Basketball Association (NBA): the Orlando Pro Summer League, Utah Jazz Summer League, and Las Vegas Summer League. Ten teams participated in the week ...

. Despite the injury, he signed with the Pistons on July 14. During his rookie season, Gbinije had multiple assignments with the

Grand Rapids Drive The Grand Rapids Gold are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and are affiliated with the Denver Nuggets. The Gold play their home games at Van Andel Arena. They began play as the Anahe ...

, the Pistons'

D-League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is a professional basketball league in North America that serves as the developmental league of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The league comprises 31 teams; as of the 2024–25 season, ...

affiliate. On July 15, 2017, he was waived by the Pistons.

Santa Cruz Warriors (2017–2019)

On September 6, 2017, Gbinije signed a training camp deal with the

Golden State Warriors The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in San Francisco. The Warriors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. Founded in 1946 i ...

and appeared in 4 preseason games. He was waived by the Warriors on October 14, 2017. A couple days later, Gbinije was then signed with the

Santa Cruz Warriors The Santa Cruz Warriors are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Santa Cruz, California, and are affiliated with the Golden State Warriors. The Warriors play their home games at Kaiser Permanente Arena. Prior to ...

in the

NBA G League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is a professional basketball league in North America that serves as the Minor league#Basketball, developmental league of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The league comprises 31 teams; as of ...

. On June 29, 2018, the Knicks announced that Gbinije would be on their summer league team.

Mitteldeutscher BC (2019–2020)

On July 17, 2019, Gbinije signed with

Mitteldeutscher BC Mitteldeutscher Basketball Club (), for sponsorship reasons named SYNTAINICS MBC, and commonly known as simply MBC, is a professional basketball club based in Weißenfels, Germany. The club currently plays in the Basketball Bundesliga, the first ...

of the

Basketball Bundesliga The Basketball Bundesliga (BBL) (English language: ''Federal Basketball League''), for sponsorship reasons named easyCredit BBL, is the German basketball league system, highest level Sports league, league of professional club basketball in German ...

. In 17 games, he averaged 11.2 points, 2.5 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.1 steals per game.

BC Nevėžis (2020)

On February 13, 2020, Gbinije signed with

BC Nevėžis BC Nevėžis (), commonly known as Nevėžis Kėdainiai, also known as Nevėžis-OPTIBET due to sponsorship reasons, is a professional basketball club based in Kėdainiai, Lithuania. The club currently competes in the Lithuanian Basketball Leagu ...

of the Lithuanian league.

Oklahoma City Blue (2021–2022)

Gbinije was selected with the ninth pick in the

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by the

Iowa Wolves The Iowa Wolves are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Des Moines, Iowa, and are affiliated with the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Wolves play their home games at the Wells Fargo Arena and compete in the Western ...

. He was traded to the

Oklahoma City Blue The Oklahoma City Blue are an American professional basketball team based in Oklahoma City and are affiliated with the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Blue compete in the NBA G League as members of the Western Conference. The Blue play their home games ...

for a pair of later-round picks. He was then later waived on January 31, 2022.

Return to OKC Blue (2022)

On February 10, 2022, Gbinije was reacquired and activated by the

. Gbinije was then later waived on March 4, 2022. Gbinije was reacquired on March 6, 2022.

Cape Town Tigers (2022–present)

On October 17, 2022, it was announced Gbinije had signed with the South African team

for the 2022–23 season.

NBA career statistics

Regular season

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National team career

Gbinije competed on the

Nigerian Nigerians or the Nigerian people are citizens of Nigeria or people with ancestry from Nigeria. The name Nigeria was derived from the Niger River running through the country. This name was allegedly coined in the late 19th century by British jo ...

squad in

AfroBasket 2015 AfroBasket 2015 was the 28th edition of the AfroBasket, a men's basketball continental championship of Africa. It also served as the qualifying tournament for FIBA Africa at the Basketball at the 2016 Summer Olympics – Men's tournament, 2016 Sum ...

because his father, Frank, is a native of Nigeria. He helped Nigeria win gold in the tournament and qualify for the

2016 Summer Olympics The 2016 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad () and officially branded as Rio 2016, were an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with preliminary events i ...

, scoring five points in the championship game against Angola. "Playing on this team was a unique experience for me," he said. "Overall, I enjoyed playing with these guys." Overall, Gbinije averaged 7.3 points and 2.1 rebounds per game in the tournament and scored in double figures twice in eight games.

Personal life

He is the son of Frank, an All-American soccer player at Temple, and Yvette Gbinije. He enrolled in the College of Visual and Performing Arts and majored in communication and rhetorical studies.

References

External links

Syracuse Orange bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gbinije, Michael 1992 births Living people American expatriate basketball people in Germany American expatriate basketball people in Lithuania American men's basketball players American basketball players of Nigerian descent Basketball players at the 2016 Summer Olympics Basketball players from Hartford, Connecticut Basketball players from Richmond, Virginia BC Nevėžis players Cape Town Tigers players Detroit Pistons draft picks Detroit Pistons players Duke Blue Devils men's basketball players Grand Rapids Drive players Mitteldeutscher BC players Nigerian expatriate basketball people in Germany Nigerian expatriate sportspeople in South Africa Nigerian men's basketball players Oklahoma City Blue players Olympic basketball players for Nigeria Santa Cruz Warriors players Shooting guards Small forwards Syracuse Orange men's basketball players 21st-century American sportsmen 21st-century Nigerian sportsmen