Tylor Ongwae (born 15 July 1991) is a Kenyan

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 Nairobi City Thunder of the KBF Premier League and 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 ...

(BAL) and the Kenya national team. He has known his most successful years in Denmark with Bakken Bears, with whom he won three straight

Basketligaen The Basketligaen (English: The Basketball League) is the highest professional basketball league in Denmark. The men’s first division was originally founded in 1957. Over the years, the league has undergone several name changes due to sponsorsh ...

titles and was named Defensive Player of the Year twice.

Professional career

Ongwae averaged 10 points and five rebounds per game during the 2019-20 season with Bakken. He re-signed with the Bears on March 22, 2020. In 2020-21 and 2021–22, he earned All-Danish Basketligaen Defensive Player of the Year honours. In 2022, he left Bakken after four years to move to Russian side BC Parma. In May 2023, Ongwae joined the ABC Fighters for the

playoffs The playoffs, play-offs, postseason or finals of a sports league are a competition played after the regular season by the top competitors to determine the league champion or a similar accolade. Depending on the league, the playoffs may be eithe ...

of the

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(BAL). He became the first Kenyan to play in the BAL. In October 2023, he was signed by the

Niners Chemnitz Niners Chemnitz e.V., also named Chemnitz 99, is a German basketball club based in Chemnitz, Saxony. Currently, the team plays in the Basketball Bundesliga. Since its foundation in 1999, the team has played in Germany's lower divisions but mov ...

of the German

Bundesliga The Bundesliga (; ), sometimes referred to as the Fußball-Bundesliga () or 1. Bundesliga (), is a professional association football league in Germany and the highest level of the German football league system. The Bundesliga comprises 18 teams ...

, with whom he won the

FIBA Europe Cup The FIBA Europe Cup (FEC) is an annual professional club basketball competition organised by FIBA for eligible European clubs. It is FIBA Europe's second level competition. Clubs mainly qualify based on their performance in national leagues an ...

. In August 2024, Ongwae signed in Kenya with the Nairobi City Thunder of the KBF Premier League. He helped the Thunder qualify for their first ever

(BAL) season by winning the Road to BAL qualifiers. On May 17, 2025, Ongwae scored a team-high 14 points in his BAL debut, in a 63–92 loss to APR.

Kenyan national team

Ongwae has been part of Kenya's national team. He helped the team capture the silver medal at FIBA AfroCan 2019. Ongawe was a key part in Kenya's qualifcation for the

AfroBasket 2021 FIBA AfroBasket 2021 was the 30th edition of the FIBA AfroBasket, a men's basketball continental championship of Africa. The tournament was hosted by Rwanda for the first time. It was originally scheduled to take place between 17 and 29 August 20 ...

in Rwanda, as he scored a buzzer-beater in the decisive qualifying game against

Angola Angola, officially the Republic of Angola, is a country on the west-Central Africa, central coast of Southern Africa. It is the second-largest Portuguese-speaking world, Portuguese-speaking (Lusophone) country in both total area and List of c ...

. Kenya returned to the AfroBasket after a 28-year drought.

Personal

Tylor Ongwae was raised in

Eldoret Eldoret is a city in the Rift Valley region of Kenya. It serves as the capital of Uasin Gishu County. Located in western Kenya and lying south of the Cherangani Hills, the local elevation varies from about at the Eldoret International Air ...

, Kenya, a town famed for producing world famous marathoners and athletes like Eliud Kipchoge. He has two siblings who also play basketball.Kenyan Jersey Takes Pride of Place in My Heart, Says Gundo
Joseph Kanyi (

AllAfrica ''allAfrica'' is a website that aggregates and produces news primarily on the African continent about all areas of African life, politics, issues and culture. It is owned by AllAfrica Global Media, a multi-media content service provider and the l ...

), 3 September 2021. Accessed 21 September 2021.

BAL career statistics

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ongwae, Tyler 1991 births Living people ABC Fighters players Alumni of Friends School Kamusinga Bakken Bears players Kenyan expatriate basketball people in the United States Kenyan expatriate sportspeople in Denmark Kenyan expatriate sportspeople in Germany Kenyan expatriate sportspeople in New Zealand Kenyan expatriate sportspeople in Russia Kenyan expatriate sportspeople in Sweden Kenyan expatriate sportspeople in Switzerland Kenyan men's basketball players Louisiana–Monroe Warhawks men's basketball players Niners Chemnitz players BC Parma players Sportspeople from Eldoret Ranger Rangers men's basketball players SAM Basket players Södertälje BBK players Taranaki Mountainairs players Nairobi City Thunder players 21st-century Kenyan sportsmen