Ugonna Onyenso


Ugonna Kingsley Onyenso is a Nigerian college basketball player for the Virginia Cavaliers. He will be a senior in 2025-26. He previously played for the Kentucky Wildcats and the Kansas State Wildcats. He also plays for the Nigeria national team, where he is the youngest player to ever play for the team at age 17. Standing at 7 ft 0 in with a wing span of 7 ft 5 in, he plays the center position.

Early career

Born in Owerri, Onyenso played football as a kid before a local coach proposed playing basketball to him. Kingsley was a student-athlete at the NBA Academy Africa in Thiès, Senegal, where he played for three years.
In January 2021, he moved to the United States to play for the Putnam Science Academy in Putnam, Connecticut. With Putnam, Onyenso averaged 13.2 points, 9.2 rebounds and 2.7 blocks per game as the team went 20-0 during his tenure there.
In August 2021, he also played for Team England of the Amateur Athletic Union. He played in the 2022 NBA Academy Games and averaged 13.2 points, 9.2 rebounds and 2.7 blocks per game.

College career

On August 2, 2022, Onyenso committed to Kentucky, choosing them over Kansas, Memphis and Oklahoma. He played sparingly as a freshman. Onyenso missed the first month on his sophomore season with a foot injury but averaged 3.6 points, 4.8 rebounds and 2.8 blocked shots per game. Following the season, he entered the 2024 NBA draft before withdrawing and transferring to Kansas State. Onyenso averaged 2.8 points, 2.4 rebounds, and 0.9 blocks per game for Kansas State. He entered the transfer portal again after the season, ultimately landing at Virginia.

National team career

In November 2021, Onyenso was selected for the Nigeria national senior team by coach Julius Nwosu. In his debut, he scored 10 points, four rebounds and two blocks in 16 minutes against Uganda. At age 17, he became the youngest player in history to play for the Nigerian national team.

Personal

Onyenso is the son of Martins and Lilian Chinyere, and he has four siblings.