David Nwaba

David Ugochukwu Nwaba[1] // ⓘ(born January 14, 1993) is an American professional basketball player for the Motor City Cruise of the NBA G League.[2] He played college basketball for Santa Monica College and Cal Poly.

David Nwaba
Nwaba with the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2019
No. 2 – Motor City Cruise
PositionShooting guard / small forward
LeagueNBA G League
Personal information
Born (1993-01-14) January 14, 1993
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Listed height6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Listed weight219 lb (99 kg)
Career information
High schoolUniversity (Los Angeles, California)
College
NBA draft2016: undrafted
Playing career2016–present
Career history
2016–2017Los Angeles D-Fenders
2017Los Angeles Lakers
2017→Los Angeles D-Fenders
2017–2018Chicago Bulls
2018–2019Cleveland Cavaliers
2019–2020Brooklyn Nets
2020–2022Houston Rockets
2022–presentMotor City Cruise
Career highlights and awards
  • NBA D-League All-Defensive Team (2017)
  • NBA D-League All-Rookie Team (2017)
  • WSC South Division Player of the Year (2013)
Stats  at NBA.com
Stats  at Basketball-Reference.com

High school career

Nwaba attended University High School in Los Angeles, where he was a two-time All-Western League Most Valuable Player honoree and all-league first team selection. As a senior in 2010–11, he averaged 22.0 points and 11.5 rebounds per game.[3]

College career

While initially joining Hawaii Pacific, Nwaba redshirted the 2011-12 season and transferred to Santa Monica College in 2012. In 2012–13, he was named Western State Conference South Division Player of the Year and to the All-California Community College Athletic Association state first team after averaging 20.5 points, 8.8 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game.[3]

In 2013, Nwaba transferred again, this time to Cal Poly. As a sophomore in 2013–14, he appeared in all 34 games with 30 starts and finished eighth among Big West Conference players and 59th among NCAA Division I players with a team-leading 52.6 (140-for-266) field-goal percentage.[4] He also finished second in the lineup with 11.7 points and 4.8 rebounds per game and 21 blocks. He was named to Big West All-Tournament Team after averaging 14.0 points and shooting 72.7 (16-for-22) percent from the floor in three contests. On December 14, 2013, he scored a career-high 22 points on 11-for-13 shooting against Cal State Dominguez Hills.[3]

As a junior in 2014–15, Nwaba finished second in Cal Poly's lineup and 15th among Big West Conference players with 11.4 points per game. He also averaged 4.7 rebounds and had 31 steals at 1.3 per game. He recorded 16 double-digit scoring games, including a season-high 21 points against Gonzaga on December 20, 2014.[3]

As a senior in 2015–16, Nwaba earned All-Big West Honorable Mention selection after averaging 12.5 points, 6.3 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1.2 steals in 30 games.[5] At the end of his Cal Poly career, Nwaba ranked 15th in program history in rebounds with a total of 465 and was one of 23 players to score more than 1,000 career points.[6]

Professional career

Los Angeles D-Fenders (2016–2017)

After graduating from Cal Poly in spring 2016 with a sociology degree, Nwaba headed to Reno, Nevada, to try out for the NBA Development League's Reno Bighorns.[6] The Bighorns were awarded his rights but later traded those rights to the Los Angeles D-Fenders on October 30, 2016.[7] Nwaba joined the D-Fenders for training camp and made the opening-night roster.[8]

Los Angeles Lakers (2017)

On February 28, 2017, Nwaba signed a 10-day contract with the Los Angeles Lakers.[9] That night, Nwaba made his NBA debut in a 109–104 loss to the Charlotte Hornets, playing six minutes of fourth-quarter action.[10] On March 11, 2017, he signed a second 10-day contract with the Lakers.[11] He made his first start for the Lakers a day later, scoring six points in a 118–116 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers.[12] On March 21, 2017, he signed a multi-year contract with the Lakers.[13] On April 1, 2017, he scored 19 points in a 115–104 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers.[14] During his rookie season with the Lakers, Nwaba was assigned back down to the D-Fenders four times.[15] On July 12, 2017, he was waived by the Lakers.[16]

Chicago Bulls (2017–2018)

On July 14, 2017, Nwaba was claimed off waivers by the Chicago Bulls.[17] Early in the 2017 season, Nwaba entered the starting lineup multiple times and was lauded by his teammates for his ability to contest shots.[18] On February 22, 2018, Nwaba scored a career-high 21 points against the Philadelphia 76ers.[19]

Cleveland Cavaliers (2018–2019)
Nwaba (left) in the 2018 Cleveland Cavaliers Wine & Gold Scrimmage

On September 8, 2018, Nwaba signed with the Cleveland Cavaliers.[20]

Brooklyn Nets (2019–2020)

On July 17, 2019, Nwaba signed with the Brooklyn Nets.[21] On December 19, Nwaba suffered a season-ending Achilles tear in a game against the San Antonio Spurs.[22] On January 3, 2020, Nwaba was waived by the Nets.[23]

Houston Rockets (2020–2022)

On June 23, 2020, Nwaba signed a two-year deal with the Houston Rockets.[24]

On September 30, 2022, Nwaba was traded, along with Trey Burke, Sterling Brown, and Marquese Chriss, to the Oklahoma City Thunder in exchange for Derrick Favors, Ty Jerome, Maurice Harkless, Théo Maledon and a future second-round pick.[25] On October 17, Nwaba was waived by the Thunder.[26]

Motor City Cruise (2022–present)

On December 17, 2022, Nwaba was traded from the Lakeland Magic to the Motor City Cruise.[27]

NBA 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

Regular season
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2016–17 L.A. Lakers 20219.9.580.200.6413.2.7.6.46.0
2017–18 Chicago 702123.5.478.346.6554.71.5.8.47.9
2018–19 Cleveland 511419.3.481.320.6823.21.1.7.36.5
2019–20 Brooklyn 20013.4.521.429.6672.3.4.6.65.2
2020–21 Houston 30922.6.486.270.6913.91.01.0.79.2
2021–22 Houston 46413.2.483.306.7163.3.8.6.45.1
Career 2375019.3.490.320.6733.71.0.7.46.8

Personal life

Nwaba is the son of Theodore and Blessing Nwaba, both of whom are Nigerian of Igbo origin. He has 5 siblings: two brothers Victor and Alex, and 3 sisters Jane, Precious, and Barbara. Barbara is a professional heptathlete who competed at UC Santa Barbara, won the 2015 and 2016 National Championships title and competed in the 2016 Olympics.[3]

References
  1. "The Birth of David Nwaba". California Birth Index. David Ugochukwu Nwaba was born on January 14, 1993 in Los Angeles County, California.
  2. "Nwaba's G League Rights Acquired by Pistons' Affiliate". December 18, 2022.
  3. "David Nwaba – Cal Poly". gopoly.com. Retrieved February 28, 2017.
  4. Scroggin, Joshua D. (January 21, 2015). "Nwaba has green light on 3s now". The Tribune (San Luis Obispo, CA). pp. S1.
  5. "David Nwaba College Stats". Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved February 28, 2017.
  6. Ahmed, Naba (December 15, 2016). "Former Cal Poly guard David Nwaba joins Los Angeles D-Fenders". mustangnews.net. Retrieved February 28, 2017.
  7. Primeaux, Ryan (October 30, 2016). "D-Fenders Finalize Training Camp Roster and Schedule". NBA.com. Retrieved February 28, 2017.
  8. Primeaux, Ryan (November 10, 2016). "D-Fenders Set Opening Night Roster". NBA.com. Retrieved February 28, 2017.
  9. "Lakers Sign David Nwaba". NBA.com. February 28, 2017. Retrieved February 28, 2017.
  10. "Kemba Walker scores 30, Hornets rally past Lakers, 109-104". ESPN.com. February 28, 2017. Retrieved March 1, 2017.
  11. "Lakers Sign David Nwaba to Second 10-Day Contract". NBA.com. March 11, 2017. Retrieved March 11, 2017.
  12. "David Nwaba 2016-17 Game Log". Basketball-Reference.com. Retrieved March 14, 2017.
  13. "Lakers Sign David Nwaba to Multi-Year Contract". NBA.com. March 21, 2017. Retrieved March 21, 2017.
  14. "Clippers beat Lakers 115-104 for Doc Rivers' 800th victory". ESPN.com. April 1, 2017. Retrieved April 2, 2017.
  15. "2016-17 NBA Assignments". NBA.com. Archived from the original on January 26, 2017. Retrieved April 14, 2017.
  16. "Lakers Waive David Nwaba". NBA.com. July 12, 2017. Retrieved July 12, 2017.
  17. "BULLS CLAIM DAVID NWABA". NBA.com. July 14, 2017. Retrieved July 14, 2017.
  18. "Unheralded David Nwaba has made an impact for Bulls early in season". ChicagoTribune.com. October 27, 2017. Retrieved November 3, 2017.
  19. "Bulls' David Nwaba: Scores career-high 21 points Thursday". CBSSports.com. February 23, 2018. Retrieved February 23, 2018.
  20. "Cavaliers Sign David Nwaba". NBA.com. September 8, 2018. Retrieved September 8, 2018.
  21. "Brooklyn Nets Sign David Nwaba". NBA.com. July 17, 2019. Retrieved July 17, 2019.
  22. Winfield, Kristian; Covert, Adrian (December 19, 2019). "David Nwaba suffers torn Achilles in 4th quarter against Spurs". nydailynews.com. Archived from the original on December 20, 2019. Retrieved December 20, 2019.
  23. "Brooklyn Nets Waive David Nwaba". NBA.com. January 3, 2020. Retrieved January 3, 2020.
  24. "Rockets Sign Free Agent David Nwaba". NBA.com. June 23, 2020. Retrieved June 23, 2020.
  25. "Thunder Acquires Sterling Brown, Trey Burke, Marquese Chriss, David Nwaba and Generates Two Trade Exceptions". NBA.com. September 30, 2022. Retrieved October 1, 2022.
  26. "OKC Thunder news: David Nwaba, Trey Burke, Marquese Chriss waived". USA Today. October 17, 2022. Retrieved December 18, 2022.
  27. "2022-23 NBA G League Transactions". gleague.nba.com. December 17, 2022. Retrieved December 17, 2022.
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