2015 Draft Selection Announced
Seattle signs on Nneka Enemkpali

Seattle Storm fans have been speculating about which rookie the team will choose for its draft selection for months now and the wait is over. Yesterday the Storm announced that Nneka Enemkpali has been signed on to play with the team for the 2016 season. Enemkpali is a forward and stands at 6’1. She was drafted by Seattle during the third round in 2015 as the 26th draft selection that year, but fans didn’t get to see her play since she was out recovering from a bad injury while playing for her college team, the University of Texas.

Enemkpali seems to have All Star written all over her. In Middle School, she was a track, volleyball and basketball star. She was already 5’10 in the seventh grade and known for being able to dunk a tennis ball while barefoot. Her Nigerian parents were more focused on her obtaining an education than playing sports. She said, “The biggest push for me was getting my parents to kind of support me. I think that was probably the hardest par.” When her father finally attended one of her track meets, they realized how talented and passionate their daughter was about sports.

In fact, it was on a basketball scholarship that she attended the University of Texas. During her time at college, she was second team All-American, further demonstrating her skill level. It was only her knee injury that kept her off the court, but now the Storm is pleased to announce that she has returned. The talent seems to run in the family as well, since her brother plays football for the Buffalo Bills.

Some of Enemkpali’s awards and honors include Big 12 Player of theWeek (four times), Wade Watch, Wooden Award, WBI Tip Off Classic MVP and the honor roll. Before the injury to her left knee, she was leading the team in both rebounds and double rebounds, finishing her time there in ninth place in total rebounds as well as 30th in total points. After her junior season on the team, she was also named to the All-Big 12 team.

Storm President and General Manager Alisha Valavanis says, “We were impressed with Nneka leading up to the WNBA Draft last year. She is working hard in preparation to compete at the next level and we are excited to get her to Seattle.” What do you think of Seattle’s newest player? Tell us in the comments below.

Photo courtesy of Wikipedia

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