Chol Marial

Chol Beny Marial (born 1 November 1999) is a South Sudanese college basketball player for the Oregon State Beavers of the Pac-12 Conference. He previously played for the Maryland Terrapins.

Chol Marial
Marial with Maryland in 2020
No. 15 – Oregon State Beavers
PositionCenter
LeaguePac-12 Conference
Personal information
Born (1999-11-01) 1 November 1999
Rumbek, Sudan
(now South Sudan)
NationalitySouth Sudanese
Listed height7 ft 2 in (2.18 m)
Listed weight235 lb (107 kg)
Career information
High school
College

Early life

Marial was born in Rumbek, a city in what is now known as South Sudan.[1] He grew up away from areas of war and famine, which were prevalent across the country. Marial played soccer from age five but was soon held back by his exceptional height and started playing basketball in 2013.[2][3] In the same year, he was discovered at a Basketball Without Borders camp in Johannesburg, South Africa.[4][5] His cousin, in 2014, helped him join an all-star team at the Middle East & North Africa (MENA) Basketball Showcase in Dubai.[3][6]

In 2014, with the help of his cousin who had lived in Florida, Marial moved to the United States to complete middle school at West Oaks Academy in Orlando, Florida, where he played varsity basketball.[3][5] In June 2015, he drew attention from national media outlets, including ESPN and The Washington Post, for his extraordinary size after featuring in a viral highlight video.[7][8]

High school career

Entering his freshman year, Marial transferred to Arlington Country Day School in Jacksonville, Florida, following his former head coach at West Oaks Academy, Shaun Wiseman.[9] In November, he moved to Cheshire Academy in Cheshire, Connecticut because of its superior academics.[2] In August 2016, Marial played in Adidas Nations, averaging 7.2 points and 5.2 rebounds per game while shooting 72.7 percent from the field.[10] On 28 July 2017, heading into his junior year, he transferred to IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida.[11] His season was limited to 17 games because of foot and shin injuries. Marial was sidelined with a hairline fracture in his shin while playing Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) basketball in the summer of 2018.[12] For his senior year, he joined AZ Compass Preparatory School in Chandler, Arizona.[5]

Recruiting

As early as his freshman year in high school, Marial was receiving offers from major NCAA Division I programs, including Florida State, Iowa, and West Virginia.[13] In January 2017, he emerged as one of the best players in the 2019 class. ESPN ranked him third overall,[14] and 247Sports rated him as the second-best center in his class.[15] In the following years, however, he plummeted down rankings, partly because he struggled with injuries and changed high schools several times.[5][16] On 6 May 2019, Marial committed to play college basketball for Maryland. He was attracted to Maryland because he liked its coaching staff and players, and due to the improvement Bruno Fernando, who had a similar background as Marial, displayed with the program.[16] When Marial finished high school, he was considered a four-star recruit by ESPN and Rivals and a three-star recruit by 247Sports.[17][18][19]

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Chol Marial
C		 Chandler, AZ AZ Compass Prep (AZ) 7 ft 2 in (2.18 m) 225 lb (102 kg) May 6, 2019 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports:3/5 stars    ESPN:4/5 stars   ESPN grade: 88
Overall recruiting rankings:   247Sports: 171  ESPN: 58
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "Maryland 2019 Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved July 13, 2019.
  • "2019 Maryland Terrapins Recruiting Class". ESPN.com. Retrieved July 13, 2019.
  • "2019 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved July 13, 2019.

College career

Marial missed the first 12 games of his freshman season after undergoing surgery to repair stress fractures in both legs.[20] He played sparingly during his two years at Maryland.[21] After his sophomore season, Marial transferred to Oregon State.[22]

Career statistics
Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high

College
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2019–20 Maryland 1205.4.500–.0001.6.2.1.4.8
2020–21 Maryland 1816.2.370.125.5001.1.1.1.61.6
Career 3015.9.405.125.4441.3.1.1.51.3

Personal life

Marial is a cousin of NBA free agent Thon Maker.[15] He is a member of the Dinka ethnic group. Marial speaks Dinka, Arabic, and English.[3]

References
  1. Danis, Daniel (7 May 2019). "S.Sudanese youngster signed to a U.S Basketball team excites fans". Eye Radio. Retrieved 12 July 2019.
  2. Lipshez, Ken (8 February 2016). "Cheshire Academy has Chol Marial, and it's a very big deal". Archived from the original on 13 June 2017. Retrieved 13 July 2019.
  3. "Cheshire Academy's Chol Marial a big-time prospect". New Haven Register. 23 February 2017. Retrieved 13 July 2019.
  4. "11th Basketball Without Borders, Africa Wraps Up in Johannesburg". National Basketball Association. Retrieved 12 July 2019.
  5. Zagoria, Adam (29 November 2018). "7-foot-2 Unicorn Chol Marial Dreaming of College, NBA Future". Forbes. Retrieved 12 July 2019.
  6. "Chol Marial". MENA Basketball Showcase. Retrieved 13 July 2019.
  7. Boren, Cindy (9 June 2015). "A 7-foot-3 eighth grader is really good at basketball, obviously". The Washington Post. Retrieved 13 July 2019.
  8. Auguste, David (5 June 2015). "Meet Chol Marial, quite possibly the tallest middle-school baller in the world". ESPN. Retrieved 13 July 2019.
  9. Hickman, Jason (25 January 2016). "See 7-foot-3 freshman Chol Marial in action". MaxPreps. Retrieved 13 July 2019.
  10. Tomes, Evan; Visenberg, Michael (6 August 2016). "adidas Nations: Top International Prospects". NBADraftnet. Archived from the original on 17 July 2019. Retrieved 13 July 2019.
  11. "7-foot-3 basketball prospect Chol Marial transferring to IMG Academy". MaxPreps. 28 July 2017. Retrieved 13 July 2019.
  12. Obert, Richard (4 October 2018). "Chol Marial, a 7-2 basketball phenom, is ready to leave mark on the Valley". The Arizona Republic. Retrieved 13 July 2019.
  13. Evans, Corey (17 February 2016). "Chol Marial tracks towards being elite". HoopSeen. Retrieved 13 July 2019.
  14. "Everything you need to know about updated ESPN 25". ESPN. 27 January 2019. Retrieved 13 July 2019.
  15. Zagoria, Adam (10 February 2017). "7-Foot-2 Chol Marial is Thon Maker's Cousin, Could Follow Him to NBA". Zagsblog. Retrieved 13 July 2019.
  16. Borzello, Jeff (6 May 2019). "ESPN 100 center Marial signs with Maryland". ESPN. Retrieved 13 July 2019.
  17. "Chol Marial". ESPN. Retrieved 13 July 2019.
  18. "Chol Marial, 2019 Center". Rivals. Retrieved 13 July 2019.
  19. "Chol Marial, Compass Prep, Center". 247Sports. Retrieved 13 July 2019.
  20. McNulty, Kevin F. (25 November 2020). "After battling injuries, Chol Marial is ready to make an impact for Maryland basketball". The Diamondback. Retrieved 14 April 2021.
  21. Oyefusi, Daniel (31 March 2021). "Maryland men's basketball center Chol Marial enters transfer portal". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved 14 April 2021.
  22. Daschel, Nick (14 April 2021). "Oregon State lands a 7-foot-2 center in Maryland transfer Chol Marial". The Oregonian. Retrieved 14 April 2021.
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