Introduction
Ezekiel Tobechukwu "Zeke" Nnaji (born January 9, 2001) is an American college basketball player for the Arizona Wildcats of the Pac-12 Conference.
Early life
Nnaji played baseball and soccer before starting basketball due to his height. He has played the piano since first grade. Nnaji composes his own music.
High school career
Nnaji started playing high school basketball for Lakeville North High School in Lakeville, Minnesota, before transferring to Hopkins High School in Minnetonka, Minnesota. As a senior, he averaged 24.1 points and 9.4 rebounds per game and led Hopkins to a Minnesota 4A state title over Lakeville North. Nnaji had 14 points and grabbing 12 rebounds in the championship game. He played for the Adidas-sponsored D1 Minnesota club alongside Matthew Hurt. Nnaji was invited to the Iverson Classic game. Nnaji was ranked 22nd in his class and a five-star recruit by Rivals.com but was considered a four-star recruit by most other recruiting services. He committed to play college basketball for Arizona over offers from Kansas, Kentucky, North Carolina, and UCLA.
College career
On November 6, 2019, Nnaji made his college debut, scoring 20 points in 21 minutes to help Arizona defeat Northern Arizona, 91–52. Five days later, he was named Pac-12 Conference Freshman of the Week. Nnaji won the same award in the following week, most notably posting 26 points and 11 rebounds in an 87–39 win over San Jose State. He became the first Arizona player to score 20 points and collect 10 rebounds in his in his first three games since Brandon Ashley did so against Long Beach State in the 2012–13 season. At the conclusion of the regular season, Nnaji was named first-team All-Pac-12 and Pac-12 Freshman of the Year. Nnaji averaged 16.1 points per game on 57 percent shooting and grabbed 8.6 rebounds per game as a freshman. Following the season he declared for the 2020 NBA draft.
Career statistics
| 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 | Arizona | 32 | 32 | 30.7 | .570 | .294 | .760 | 8.6 | .8 | .7 | .9 | 16.1 |
Personal life
Nnaji's father, Apham, is from Nigeria, while his mother, Janel, is from Minnesota. His younger sister, Maya, is a highly regarded high school basketball recruit at Hopkins High School.