Andrew Kehinde "Kenny" Adeleke (born February 10, 1983) is a Nigerian-American professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

player who has played 12 seasons in the NBA, Europe, Asia, and Latin America. In 2006–07 he was the top rebounder in the Israel Basketball Premier League.

High school career

Born in

Lagos Lagos (Nigerian English: ; ) is the largest city in Nigeria and the second most populous city in Africa, with a population of 15.4 million as of 2015 within the city proper. Lagos was the national capital of Nigeria until December 1991 fo ...

, Nigeria, Adeleke grew up in Brooklyn, New York Where he played basketball and tennis at Paul Robeson High School in

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

. During Adeleke's junior season he averaged 19 points and 12 rebounds. Having breakout games defeating Benjamin Cardozo and scoring 18 points and 14 rebounds. Also beating perennial powerhouse Abraham Lincoln in overtime scoring 25 points and 12 rebounds. Paul Robeson High School eventually lost to Abraham Lincoln in the PSAL playoffs quarterfinals in overtime, where he again scored 25 points and 13 rebounds. As a senior ranked the no.7 small forward in the country by ESPN.com, accomplishments included 14 points and 14 rebounds in the Adidas ABCD Camp, which included the nations best player. Notable participants were

Eddy Curry Eddy Anthony Curry Jr. (born December 5, 1982) is an American former professional basketball player. Coming directly out of Thornwood High School in South Holland, Illinois, Curry was selected fourth overall in the 2001 NBA draft by the Chicago B ...

Kwame Brown Kwame Hasani Brown (born March 10, 1982) is an American former professional basketball player who spent 12 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Selected by the Washington Wizards in the 2001 NBA draft, Brown was the first No. ...

, Mo Williams,

Ben Gordon Benjamin Ashenafi Gordon (born April 4, 1983) is an American former professional basketball player. Gordon played for 11 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA), and he played college basketball for the University of Connecticut, ...

. Also winning the All Star MVP award in the prestigious Five Star All Star camp with 22 points and 12 rebounds. Participants included

Carmelo Anthony Carmelo Kyam Anthony (born May 29, 1984) is an American professional basketball player who last played for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He has been named an NBA All-Star ten times and an All-NBA Team ...

and

Sebastian Telfair Sebastian Telfair (born June 9, 1985) is an American former professional basketball player who played in the NBA and the Chinese Basketball Association. Telfair was picked thirteenth overall in the 2004 NBA draft by the Portland Trail Blazers on ...

, along with Eastern Invitation camp scoring 19 points and 8 rebounds. He averaged 19 points and 13 rebounds as a senior winning the PSAL player of the year as a senior. Leading his team to a national ranking of Number #18 in the USA Today. He participated in the New York vs. Chicago Windy City stars consisting of the best players from each city. He scored a record high 26 points along with 8 rebounds.

College career

Adeleke committed to

DePaul University DePaul University is a private, Catholic research university in Chicago, Illinois. Founded by the Vincentians in 1898, the university takes its name from the 17th-century French priest Saint Vincent de Paul. In 1998, it became the largest Ca ...

, over Boston College, Providence College, New Mexico,

University of Massachusetts The University of Massachusetts is the five-campus public university system and the only public research system in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The university system includes five campuses (Amherst, Boston, Dartmouth, Lowell, and a medical ...

, and Hofstra University. Later reneging on his commitment to stay closer to home attending Hofstra. As a freshman at Hofstra he won CAA Rookie of the year, including notable games against Syracuse scoring 20 points and 9 rebounds, against Kent State 25 points and 11 rebounds, and in the conference tournament upsetting

George Mason George Mason (October 7, 1792) was an American planter, politician, Founding Father, and delegate to the U.S. Constitutional Convention of 1787, one of the three delegates present who refused to sign the Constitution. His writings, including ...

scoring 23 points and 10 rebounds. The next game losing to scored 26 points and 8 rebounds against VCU in the semifinals loss. As a sophomore he averaged 16.1 points including 11 rebounds as was a second team all CAA selection notable games included 18 points and 9 rebounds against Gonzaga and 24 points 19 rebounds vs. Manhattan and 19 points 21 rebounds against Sweet sixteen participant UNC Wilmington. As a junior, he was a first team all CAA selection, notable games included 20 points 10 rebounds and 4 blocks against St. John's also 27 points and 15 rebounds against VCU. He later transferred to Hartford as a senior and averaged 20.7 points and 13 rebounds finishing second in the nation to

Paul Millsap Paul Millsap (born February 10, 1985) is an American professional basketball player who last played for the Philadelphia 76ers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). A power forward from Louisiana Tech University, Millsap was selected by t ...

, as a first team American East selection, including a record setting 8 times player of the week. Notable players who played in the American East were University of Hartford

Vin Baker Vincent Lamont Baker (born November 23, 1971) is an American former professional basketball player who played in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He appeared in four consecutive All-Star Games. As of 2018, Baker serves as an assista ...

, Drexel University Malik Rose, Hofstra University Craig Speedy Claxton also future NBA player JJ Barea. Notable games included 21 points and 15 rebounds against

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United States, with highly selective ad ...

, and 20 points and 10 rebounds against UMass.

Professional career

After going undrafted in the 2006 NBA draft, he was signed by the New York Knicks to play in the Summer League squad in

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

in the Summer of 2006. During the 2006 NBA pre-season, he played 2 games with the

Seattle SuperSonics The Seattle SuperSonics (commonly known as the Seattle Sonics) were an American professional basketball team based in Seattle. The SuperSonics competed in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member club of the league's Western Confe ...

scoring 2 points from 2–2 free throws in 2 minutes against the Los Angeles Lakers before being released. Adeleke went on to play in Israel and played for Hapoel Galil Elyon, where he played alongside NBA veteran

Omri Casspi Omri Moshe Casspi ( he, עומרי משה כספי, born June 22, 1988) is an Israeli former professional basketball player. He mainly played at the small forward position, but could play also at the power forward position. Casspi was drafted 23 ...

averaging 16 points and 10 rebounds. Having a very successful season and leading the Israeli league in rebounds in 2006–07. He scored 28 points and 9 rebounds and 22 points and 12 rebounds in games against European powerhouse Jerusalem. Also scoring 19 points and 11 rebounds against

Maccabi Tel Aviv Maccabi Tel Aviv ( he, מכבי תל אביב) is one of the largest sports clubs in Israel, and a part of the Maccabi association. Many sports clubs and teams in Tel Aviv are in association with Maccabi and compete in a variety of sports, such ...

, and 22 rebounds and 12 rebounds in a playoff lost in the semifinals to Maccabi Tel Aviv. Adeleke signed with the Seattle SuperSonics for the 2007 Summer League. He also played in Italy for NSB Napoli and in Turkey for Hacettepe Üniversitesi. On January 11, 2013, Adeleke was acquired by the Springfield Armor. On January 27, 2015, he signed with

Trotamundos de Carabobo Trotamundos B.B.C. (), also known as Trotamundos de Carabobo, is a professional basketball team based in Valencia, located in the Venezuelan Carabobo State. The team currently plays in the Venezuelan SuperLiga. The team has won the Venezuelan champ ...

of Venezuela. On May 14, 2015, he signed with Atenienses de Manatí of the Puerto Rican

Baloncesto Superior Nacional The Baloncesto Superior Nacional, abbreviated as BSN, is the first-tier-level professional men's basketball league in Puerto Rico. It was founded in 1929 and is organized by the Puerto Rican Basketball Federation. The Baloncesto Superior Naci ...

. On October 2015, he signed with

Club Atlético Goes Club Atlético Goes is a Uruguayan professional basketball team located in Montevideo, Uruguay. The team competes in the Liga Uruguaya de Basketball.

, an Uruguayan club. The 2016–17 season, Adeleke started with

Final Gençlik Final Gençlik is a Turkish basketball team based in Bursa, Turkey which plays in Turkish Basketball League (TBL) The Turkish Basketball First League, also called TBL, is the second-tier level league of professional club basketball in Turkey. ...

of the

Turkish Basketball First League The Turkish Basketball First League, also called TBL, is the second-tier level league of professional club basketball in Turkey. The league was previously known as Turkish Basketball Second League (TB2L). Format and promotion and relegation The ...

appearing in 19 games. Averaging 14 points and 14 rebounds, the highest rebounding average that season in European Competition. In early March 2017, he signed with Lebanese club

Hekmeh BC Sagesse Sports Club (), known as Hekmeh ( ar, الحكمة) in Arabic, is a Lebanese sports club based in Beirut. The basketball team was established in 1992, as part of the Club Sagesse established in 1943 with mainly the football (soccer) te ...

scoring 20 points and 17 rebounds against Lebanese champion

Al Riyadi Club Beirut Al Riyadi Club Beirut ( ar, نادي الرياضي بيروت, lit=Sporting Club Beirut) is a multi-sports club based in Manara, a district in Beirut, Lebanon. Founded in 1934, the basketball team competes in the Lebanese Basketball League. T ...

. In 2017, he played 11 games with

Fuerza Regia The Fuerza Regia de Monterrey (''Monterrey Royal Force'' in English) is a Mexican professional basketball team based in Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, Mexico playing in the Liga Nacional de Baloncesto Profesional (LNBP). They currently play their home gam ...

of the Mexican LNBP. In January 2018, he signed with CD Español de Talca of the

Liga Nacional de Básquetbol de Chile The Liga Nacional de Básquetbol de Chile, also known as the LNB Chile, is the top national basketball leagues in Chile, it is a professional league, organized by the Federación de Básquetbol de Chile. The league was created in 2010 and the old ...

Personal life

His name "Adeleke" means "the crown achieves happiness" in Yoruba.

References

External links