Joventut Badalona has confirmed the signing of Chinanu Onuaku on a one-year deal. Onuaku (2.08 meters, 26 years old) made his BKT EuroCup debut for Hapoel Shlomo Tel Aviv in the 2022-23 campaign, averaging 10.8 points, 7.6 rebounds, 1.9 assists, 1.0 steal, 1.5 blocks and a 15.9 PIR in 16 appearances. Hapoel made it to the EuroCup Quarterfinals last season, but it was eliminated after losing 82-74 to Joventut, the American center's new team. That night, Onuaku posted 7 points, 10 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal and 1 block.
Joventut seals move for Chinanu Onuaku
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An impressive first season in the EuroCup
Despite having a difficult debut against Gran Canaria in Round 5, Onuaku quickly adapted to the EuroCup and displayed what he can do in the competition. He posted a double-digit number of points nine times in 14 games in the regular season, while he also had four games with 10 rebounds or more. In particular, Onuaku had a jaw-dropping 17 rebounds in Hapoel's Round 10 win on the road at the London Lions. However, his best performance came in Round 13 against Dolomiti Energia Trento, as he earned MVP of the Round honors after posting 22 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals and a career-high 35 PIR in a 60-78 triumph.
Onuaku has also played for the Houston Rockets (2016-18) in the NBA, the Rio Grande Valley Vipers (2016-18) and the Greensboro Swarm (2018-19) in the G League, Wonju DB Promy (2019-20) in South Korea, Zadar (2020-21) in Croatia, Bnei Herzliya (2021-22) in Israel and Dinamo Sassari (2022-23) in Italy prior to joining Hapoel.
An effective summer for Joventut
Joventut may have lost star players Joel Parra and Kyle Guy during this offseason, but the club has responded well by bringing in players who will be elite at the EuroCup level. Andrew Andrews, a EuroCup finalist with Frutti Extra Bursaspor in 2021-22, was the first big name to arrive. A couple of days later, Deshaun Thomas, a player with a ton of Turkish Airlines EuroLeague experience, walked through the door. Now, Onuaku joins a roster that has EuroCup glory in its sights.