Sean Obi

[CharlestonDave]

I am not sure why he decided to transfer or for that matter why Coach K recruited him . All 4 other transfers, McCloud, Jones, Curry and Hood made significant contributions to the time they were here but I do not see Obi making anything close to those 4.

It is not as if Rice was a poor academic school , it is not . While Duke might be slightly higher rank academically in some publications Rice is not far behind. It is an excellent academic university with a very high endowment.

[OldPhiKap]

I am not sure why he decided to transfer or for that matter why Coach K recruited him . All 4 other transfers, McCloud, Jones, Curry and Hood made significant contributions to the time they were here but I do not see Obi making anything close to those 4.

It is not as if Rice was a poor academic school , it is not . While Duke might be slightly higher rank academically in some publications Rice is not far behind. It is an excellent academic university with a very high endowment.

Obi has had some knee problems which have limited his play, so not really fair to judge what he can bring to the team in full it seems to me.

[YmoBeThere]

I am not sure why he decided to transfer or for that matter why Coach K recruited him . All 4 other transfers, McCloud, Jones, Curry and Hood made significant contributions to the time they were here but I do not see Obi making anything close to those 4.

It is not as if Rice was a poor academic school , it is not . While Duke might be slightly higher rank academically in some publications Rice is not far behind. It is an excellent academic university with a very high endowment.


The nature and extent of his knee/leg issues were probably not known at the time of his recruitment. And at the time he was coming off what by most measures was a very good freshman year at a Power 5 conference school with limited basketball history.

I'm less puzzled by why he came to Duke than the need of some to second guess his school choice? As you note he came to a very good academic school with a known propensity to produce athletes well prepared to compete at the highest levels of basketball. What's the downside?

[Owen Meany]

When Obi first transferred in, it was a low risk/(possible) high reward situation for Duke. Many thought his rebound numbers, in particular, would transfer well to a higher level of basketball. Unfortunately, he has been severely hampered by knee injuries.

I do feel that many Duke fans have been spoiled by Duke's level of success and don't appreciate the value of less highly rated recruits. Duke has been in a position in several years where there were not enough players to practice 5 on 5. Although I am unsure how much Obi is limited now by his knees, I do know that Okafor once commented on how tough it was to go against him in practice. So I think its safe to day that Obi made Okafor a better player - and Duke needed every bit of improvement Okafor made to win a National Championship. So even if you only measure success in the harshest of terms (Championships) - Obi seems to have been a success. Role players/practice players/walk-ons, etc. are very important. Not everyone can be a superstar.

Furthermore, Obi is a unique individual with a pretty inspiring background. I remember reading how he would stay up into the early hours of the morning to improve his English when he first came to the U.S. (while developing his basketball skills enough to earn a scholarship to Rice). I would think he has a lot to offer the players and program off of the court. I know he seems popular with the other players, so I would think they have all benefited by being exposed to what he brings to the table. And for this kid to be able to use basketball to come to the U.S and graduate from a top university is pretty remarkable. I would imagine he has a very bright future ahead.

This seems to be a clear win-win for everyone involved.

[OldPhiKap]

When Obi first transferred in, it was a low risk/(possible) high reward situation for Duke. Many thought his rebound numbers, in particular, would transfer well to a higher level of basketball. Unfortunately, he has been severely hampered by knee injuries.

I do feel that many Duke fans have been spoiled by Duke's level of success and don't appreciate the value of less highly rated recruits. Duke has been in a position in several years where there were not enough players to practice 5 on 5. Although I am unsure how much Obi is limited now by his knees, I do know that Okafor once commented on how tough it was to go against him in practice. So I think its safe to day that Obi made Okafor a better player - and Duke needed every bit of improvement Okafor made to win a National Championship. So even if you only measure success in the harshest of terms (Championships) - Obi seems to have been a success. Role players/practice players/walk-ons, etc. are very important. Not everyone can be a superstar.

Furthermore, Obi is a unique individual with a pretty inspiring background. I remember reading how he would stay up into the early hours of the morning to improve his English when he first came to the U.S. (while developing his basketball skills enough to earn a scholarship to Rice). I would think he has a lot to offer the players and program off of the court. I know he seems popular with the other players, so I would think they have all benefited by being exposed to what he brings to the table. And for this kid to be able to use basketball to come to the U.S and graduate from a top university is pretty remarkable. I would imagine he has a very bright future ahead.

This seems to be a clear win-win for everyone involved.

Outstanding post, Owen. Sign me up for this.

[Newton_14]

I am not sure why he decided to transfer or for that matter why Coach K recruited him . All 4 other transfers, McCloud, Jones, Curry and Hood made significant contributions to the time they were here but I do not see Obi making anything close to those 4.

It is not as if Rice was a poor academic school , it is not . While Duke might be slightly higher rank academically in some publications Rice is not far behind. It is an excellent academic university with a very high endowment.

The guy has terrible knees. He hasn't played and won't play because of those knees. Nothing else. He doesn't even do drills in practice. It's a shame. Great kid.

[jimsumner]

The nature and extent of his knee/leg issues were probably not known at the time of his recruitment. And at the time he was coming off what by most measures was a very good freshman year at a Power 5 conference school with limited basketball history.

I'm less puzzled by why he came to Duke than the need of some to second guess his school choice? As you note he came to a very good academic school with a known propensity to produce athletes well prepared to compete at the highest levels of basketball. What's the downside?

Rice, of course, is not a Power Five school. But Obi did have solid performances against some P5 schools in his one year there, eight points and nine rebounds against Texas A & M, 10 points and 12 rebounds against Texas. Obi also had 25 and 19 against South Alabama, 22 and 17 against Marshall, 18 and 13 against North Texas. He had 11 double-doubles and led Conference USA in rebounding.

Even healthy, his relative lack of mobility would have been an impediment in Duke's up-tempo system. But anyone who could grab 12 rebounds against Texas projected as a useful complementary player at Duke. At the end of it all, he will have a degree from Duke and significant contributions in practice to at least one NCAA title team.

[Troublemaker]

The guy has terrible knees. He hasn't played and won't play because of those knees. Nothing else. He doesn't even do drills in practice. It's a shame. Great kid.

Right, it's just health. We'll never know what Sean could or could not contribute to Duke if he hadn't run into significant health issues. Still, by all accounts, a great kid with a great makeup for academics. Proud that he'll be a Duke graduate in about 7 months.

[Doria]

Right, it's just health. We'll never know what Sean could or could not contribute to Duke if he hadn't run into significant health issues. Still, by all accounts, a great kid with a great makeup for academics. Proud that he'll be a Duke graduate in about 7 months.

Yes, and even not playing, he was still on the sidelines giving it his all, cheering for his teammates with reservation. He was literally, by all accounts, doing everything he could to help our team.

[gus]

I can't believe this is the best image I could find:

http://acc.blogs.starnewsonline.com/files/2015/04/Duke-national-title-celebration.jpg

Look at that tux. How can anyone say he didn't contribute?

[weezie]

...I do feel that many Duke fans have been spoiled by Duke's level of success and don't appreciate the value of less highly rated recruits. Duke has been in a position in several years where there were not enough players to practice 5 on 5... Role players/practice players/walk-ons, etc. are very important. Not everyone can be a superstar...

Right on Owen Meany. The perseverance and strength this young man has shown in the face of real physical adversity (and believe me, I now know exactly how he feels) makes me very proud of Sean. Sure hope we see him at full strength one day.

[Researchc]

I do feel that many Duke fans have been spoiled by Duke's level of success and don't appreciate the value of less highly rated recruits. Duke has been in a position in several years where there were not enough players to practice 5 on 5. Although I am unsure how much Obi is limited now by his knees, I do know that Okafor once commented on how tough it was to go against him in practice. So I think its safe to day that Obi made Okafor a better player - and Duke needed every bit of improvement Okafor made to win a National Championship. So even if you only measure success in the harshest of terms (Championships) - Obi seems to have been a success. Role players/practice players/walk-ons, etc. are very important. Not everyone can be a superstar.

This seems to be a clear win-win for everyone involved.

Excellent points! We are truly spoiled as fans. Any given year, we have more McDonald's All-Americans sitting on our bench than some teams have had in their entire team history. We need people that are willing to do the little things, ready to into the game, at a moment's notice, and do something as simple as fouling someone to stop the clock. These are the unsung heroes of the team. Duke fans know that and that's why the crazies blow the roof off when that role player scores or makes a play. This year is going to be fun!

[johnb]

Excellent points! We are truly spoiled as fans. Any given year, we have more McDonald's All-Americans sitting on our bench than some teams have had in their entire team history. We need people that are willing to do the little things, ready to into the game, at a moment's notice, and do something as simple as fouling someone to stop the clock. These are the unsung heroes of the team. Duke fans know that and that's why the crazies blow the roof off when that role player scores or makes a play. This year is going to be fun!

From first (Abdelnaby) to almost last (Williams, Elizabeth and Mistie), I'd guess that Duke has had more McDonald's AA's on the bench than MOST Div 1 schools have ever recruited. I'm tempted to go through this list and prove it, but perhaps I should go back to work... http://www.mcdonaldsallamerican.com/content/dam/allamerican/pdfs/Player-Alumni-List-12-2013.pdf

Oh, and it's easy for us to consider only what we see on the court, but I'd second the above Obi-servations: he's a smart, high character kid who is a current asset and will bring credit to the U after graduation, and not just because he's a snazzy dresser.