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Michaela Onyenwere

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Michaela Onyenwere
Onyenwere with the Chicago Sky in 2024
No. 12 – Chicago Sky
PositionForward
LeagueWNBA
Personal information
Born (1999-08-10) August 10, 1999 (age 25)
Aurora, Colorado, U.S.
NationalityAmerican / Nigerian
Listed height6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Listed weight178 lb (81 kg)
Career information
High schoolGrandview (Aurora, Colorado)
CollegeUCLA (2017–2021)
WNBA draft2021: 1st round, 6th overall pick
Selected by the New York Liberty
Playing career2021–present
Career history
2021–2022New York Liberty
2021–2022Spar Girona
2022–2023CB Avenida
2023Phoenix Mercury
2023–2024OGM Ormanspor
2024–presentChicago Sky
Career highlights and awards
Stats at Basketball Reference Edit this at Wikidata

Michaela Nne Onyenwere (/ˌoʊnjənˈwɛdɛ/; born August 10, 1999) is a Nigerian-American basketball player for the Chicago Sky of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She played college basketball with the UCLA Bruins of the Pac-12 Conference.

Early life and college

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In high school, Onyenwere was named a McDonald's All-American in 2017.[1]

Following the 2017–18 season, Onyenwere was named to the Pac-12 All-Freshman Team.[1]

In the 2018–19 season, Onyenwere's sophomore season, she was named to the All-Pac-12 team and to the Media All-Pac-12 team, and she ranked second in the Pac-12 for offensive rebounds per game. After that season, she earned on a spot on the 2019 U.S. Pan-American Games Women's Basketball Team.[1]

In the 2019–20 season, Onyenwere was again named to the All-Pac-12 team, along with her teammate Japreece Dean.[2] She was named AP and USBWA Third-Team All-American.[1]

In the 2020–21 season, Onyenwere was named to the All-Pac-12 team for the third year in a row, and once again named AP and USBWA Third-Team All-American. She was also named Top 5 Finalist of the Cheryl Miller Award. Onyenwere finished her college career fourth on UCLA’s all-time scoring list with 1,888-career points.[1]

Professional career

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WNBA

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New York Liberty (2021–2022)

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Onyenwere with the New York Liberty in 2022

Onyenwere was drafted 6th overall in the 2021 WNBA draft by the New York Liberty .[3]

In her rookie season in 2021, Onyenwere was named in the 2021 WNBA All-Rookie Team and 2021 WNBA Rookie of the Year. She became the first player in franchise history to win the award.[4] Onyenwere was the leading candidate for most of the season, winning every Rookie of the Month award to become just the fifth player in WNBA history to sweep that honor during a season, and fell just two votes shy of winning unanimously. Onyenwere started in 29 of 32 games and was the most productive player in the class by some margin. She averaged 8.6 points and 2.9 rebounds per game, leading all rookies in scoring and 3-pointers made (37).[5]

Onyenwere's role diminished in her second season with the Liberty under new head coach Sandy Brondello. Onyenwere was moved to the bench and started only one game all season. She also struggled with nagging injuries since the start of the training camp, which contributed to her minutes decreasing from an average of 22.2 minutes in 2021 to 13.7 minutes in 2022. With the Liberty acquiring star frontcourt players such as Breanna Stewart and Jonquel Jones before the 2023 season, Onyenwere's roster spot was in question and she was consequently traded.[6][7]

Phoenix Mercury (2023)

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On February 11, 2023 Onyenwere was traded to the Phoenix Mercury in a four-team trade involving the New York Liberty, Phoenix Mercury, Dallas Wings, and Chicago Sky.[8] She started 27 of 40 games and set career highs in every category, but it was a disappointing season for the Mercury, who finished 12th in the league with a 9-31 record.[9]

Chicago Sky (2024–present)

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On February 6, 2024, Onyenwere was traded to the Chicago Sky alongside Brianna Turner, the 2024 No. 3 pick, a 2025 second round pick (from CHI), a 2026 first round pick, and the right to swap 2026 second round in exchange for Kahleah Copper and the rights to Morgan Bertsch.[10] Onyenwere saw limited playing time in the first half of the 2024 season, but earned a place in the starting lineup after the Olympic break, replacing Marina Mabrey, who was traded to the Connecticut Sun.[11][12]

Overseas

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In December 2021, Onyenwere joined the Catalan team Uni Girona CB of the Spanish Liga Femenina de Baloncesto.[13][14]

In December 2022, Onyenwere joined the Spanish team CB Avenida.[15]

In the 2023–2024 offseason, she played in OGM Ormanspor of the Turkish Women's Basketball Super League.[16]

Career statistics

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

WNBA

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Regular season

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Stats current through end of 2024 regular season

WNBA regular season statistics
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG TO PPG
2021 New York 32 29 22.2 .401 .327 .836 2.9 0.6 0.4 0.3 1.1 8.6
2022 New York 34 1 13.7 .377 .300 .836 2.1 0.4 0.4 0.2 0.7 4.7
2023 Phoenix 40 27 23.8 .404 .315 .759 3.7 1.3 0.8 0.5 2.0 8.9
2024 Chicago 34 18 18.7 .415 .368 .610 1.8 1.0 0.6 0.4 1.3 6.6
Career 4 years, 3 teams 140 75 19.8 .402 .327 .773 2.7 0.8 0.6 0.3 1.3 7.3

Playoffs

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WNBA playoff statistics
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG TO PPG
2021 New York 1 0 9.0 .000 — — 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
2022 New York 3 0 7.3 .364 .000 1.000 1.3 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 4.7
Career 2 years, 1 team 4 0 7.8 .333 .000 1.000 1.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 3.5

College

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NCAA statistics[17]
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG TO PPG
2017–18 UCLA 35 1 17.1 47.2 16.7 82.2 4.7 0.5 1.1 0.4 0.7 6.9
2018–19 UCLA 35 35 31.9 47.4 33.9 83.2 8.5 1.1 1.1 0.9 1.9 18.3
2019–20 UCLA 30 30 30.3 46.6 25.7 79.3 8.5 1.5 1.5 0.7 2.0 18.9
2020–21 UCLA 23 23 31.3 42.1 33.3 80.0 7.2 2.0 1.1 0.4 2.5 19.1
Career 123 89 27.2 45.9 30.4 81.0 7.2 1.2 1.2 0.6 1.7 15.3

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e "Michaela Onyenwere - Women's Basketball Roster". UCLA Athletics. Retrieved April 20, 2020.
  2. ^ Nguyen, Thuc Nhi (March 3, 2020). "UCLA's Michaela Onyenwere and Japreece Dean selected All-Pac-12". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 20, 2020.
  3. ^ Valenzuela, Sarah (15 April 2021). "Liberty select UCLA's Michaela Onyenwere No. 6 in 2021 Draft". nydailynews.com. Retrieved 2021-10-06.
  4. ^ Powell, Jackie (2021-11-19). "Michaela Onyenwere accepts Rookie of the Year Award". The Next. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  5. ^ "2021 WNBA Rookie of the Year: New York Liberty forward Michaela Onyenwere runs away with award". CBSSports.com. 5 October 2021. Retrieved 2021-10-06.
  6. ^ Powell, Jackie (2023-02-13). "Liberty trade Michaela Onyenwere to clear roster spot". The Next. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  7. ^ "Michaela Onyenwere looking to rebound in new opportunity with Phoenix Mercury". Yahoo Sports. 2023-05-12. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  8. ^ Fleurantin, Brian (2023-02-12). "NY Liberty trade Michaela Onyenwere to Phoenix Mercury as part of four team trade". NetsDaily. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  9. ^ Morrison, Jesse (2023-08-22). "Michaela Onyenwere regaining groove this season with Phoenix Mercury". The Next. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  10. ^ Wingfield, Sydney (2024-02-23). "Onyenwere and Allen look forward to playing with Chicago Sky". The Next. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  11. ^ "Sky forward Michaela Onyenwere earns starting role after Marina Mabrey trade". Chicago Sun-Times. 2024-08-14. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  12. ^ Hirsh, Alissa (2024-09-11). "Revelations from the Chicago Sky's seven-game losing streak". The Next. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  13. ^ "Michaela Onyenwere, mejor rookie de la WNBA, se incorpora al Girona". Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). 2021-12-03. Retrieved 2022-01-14.
  14. ^ Roura, Jordi (2022-01-11). "Michaela Onyenwere acabarà la temporada a l'Spar Girona". Diari de Girona (in Catalan). Retrieved 2022-01-14.
  15. ^ Sánchez, Teresa (2022-12-13). "Michaela Onyenwere, el 'cuchillo' que necesitaba Avenida: "Tengo mentalidad de jugadora ofensiva"". Tribuna Salamanca (in Spanish). Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  16. ^ "Ormanspor lands Michaela Onyenwere". www.eurobasket.com. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  17. ^ "Michaela Onyenwere College Stats". Sports-Reference. Retrieved April 16, 2024.
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