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Chima Moneke

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Chima Moneke
Moneke with Baskonia in 2025
No. 95 – Crvena zvezda
PositionPower forward
LeagueKLS
ABA League
EuroLeague
Personal information
Born (1995-12-24) 24 December 1995 (age 29)
Abuja, Nigeria
Listed height199 cm (6 ft 6 in)
Listed weight101 kg (223 lb)
Career information
High schoolUC Senior Secondary College Lake Ginninderra
(Canberra, Australia)
College
NBA draft2018: undrafted
Playing career2018–present
Career history
2018Rouen Métropole
2018–2019Denain Voltaire
2019–2020Béliers de Kemper
2020–2021Orléans Loiret
2021–2022Manresa
2022–2023Sacramento Kings
2022–2023→Stockton Kings
2023AS Monaco
2023–2025Saski Baskonia
2025–presentCrvena zvezda
Career highlights
Stats at NBA.com Edit this at Wikidata
Stats at Basketball Reference Edit this at Wikidata

Nwachukwu Iheukwumere Chima Moneke (born 24 December 1995) is a Nigerian professional basketball player for Crvena zvezda of the Basketball League of Serbia (KLS), the ABA League and the EuroLeague. At 1.99 m (6 ft 6 in) tall, he plays at the power forward position. He also represents the Nigerian national team in international competition.

Early life

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Moneke was born in Abuja, Nigeria, before moving to Canberra, Australia to begin schooling. His parents, Sydney and Eucharia Moneke, were diplomats of the Nigerian embassy. He attended Farrer Primary School and Lake Ginninderra College before traveling again throughout the world.[1][2]

College career

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In 2013, Moneke enrolled at Northeast Community College in Norfolk, Nebraska, where he stayed for two seasons (2013–15). In his sophomore season he averaged 17 ppg and 12.1 rpg which led the team to a 25–7 record.[3]

He then transferred to the University of California at Davis. After his redshirt season, he led the Aggies to an NCAA tournament berth for the first time in school history in the 2016–17 season. He was named Big West Conference tournament MVP. In the tournament they defeated North Carolina Central in the play-in game in which Moneke had 18 points and 12 rebounds. They would go on to lose to the #1 overall seed Kansas, where Moneke finished with 20 points and 9 rebounds. He averaged 14.6 points, 9.5 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per game with 14 double-doubles.[4]

In the 2017–18 season, he averaged 18.4 points, 9.6 rebounds and 1.1 blocks per performance in 21 games with the Aggies.[4]

Professional career

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Rouen Métropole (2018)

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After not being selected in the 2018 NBA draft, Moneke signed his first professional contract with Rouen Métropole of the French LNB Pro B. After the season, he signed with the South East Melbourne Phoenix of the Australian NBL before it was blown off due to problems with his passport.[5]

Denain Voltaire (2018–2019)

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In November 2018, he would leave Rouen Métropole to sign for Denain Voltaire, also from the French LNB Pro B. He averaged 14.3 points, 6.6 rebounds and 1.7 assists in 27 games.

Béliers de Kemper (2019–2020)

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In the 2019–20 season, he signed for the Béliers de Kemper of the French LNB Pro B, in which he averaged 15.8 points, 6.75 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game. The season was cancelled early due to the COVID-19 pandemic in France.

Orléans Loiret (2020–2021)

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In the 2020–21 season, he signed for the Orléans Loiret of the LNB Pro A, with averages of 12.5 points, 6 rebounds, 1.8 assists and almost a block per performance in the 21 games played.[6]

Manresa (2021–2022)

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On 13 July 2021, Moneke signed a one-year deal with the Bàsquet Manresa of the Spanish Liga Endesa and the Basketball Champions League (BCL).[7] He helped Manresa to a surprising season in the BCL as they reached the final where they lost to Tenerife in the final. Moneke was named the MVP of the 2021–22 season after averaging 13.1 points per game.[8]

In the Spanish ACB, Moneke was named to the ALL-ACB 1st team after leading Manresa to the playoffs. He averaged 14.8 points per game on 53% shooting. He was second in the entire league in rebounding with 8.4 per game. He led the entire league in total steals (56), steals per game (1.6) and defensive rebounds.

Moneke with Manresa in 2021

Sacramento Kings (2022–2023)

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On 18 July 2022, Moneke signed with the Sacramento Kings, uniting with Nigeria's national team coach Mike Brown.[9] On 6 January 2023, Moneke was waived by the Kings.[10]

AS Monaco (2023)

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On January 16, 2023, Moneke signed with AS Monaco of the LNB Élite and the EuroLeague.[11]

Saski Baskonia (2023–2025)

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On July 19, 2023, Moneke signed with Saski Baskonia of the Spanish Liga ACB and the EuroLeague.[12] On November 17, 2023, Moneke recorded a double-double with 19 points and 13 rebounds in an 88-81 win against LDLC ASVEL.[13]

Crvena zvezda (2025–present)

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On June 24, 2025, Moneke signed with Crvena zvezda of the Basketball League of Serbia (KLS), ABA League and the EuroLeague.[14]

National team career

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He debuted with the Nigeria men's national basketball team in 2020, playing three qualifying matches for the Afrobasket. In 2021, he was summoned for the pre-selection to compete in the 2020 Summer Olympics.[citation needed]

Career statistics

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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  PIR  Performance index rating
 Bold  Career high

NBA

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2022–23 Sacramento 2 0 4.0 .500 — .000 1.0 .5 — — 1.0
Career 2 0 4.0 .500 — .000 1.0 .5 — — 1.0

EuroLeague

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG PIR
2022–23 Monaco 16 1 12.6 .476 .000 .885 3.1 .5 .3 .2 3.9 4.6
2023–24 Baskonia 34 7 24.7 .531 .353 .764 6.6 1.4 1.1 .5 13.6 18.3
2024–25 Baskonia 33 29 28.2 .495 .295 .813 6.1 2.3 .9 .3 14.0 18.6
Career 83 37 24.8 .511 .316 .792 5.7 1.6 .9 .4 11.9 15.8

Basketball Champions League

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2021–22 Manresa 15 8 22.2 .588 .350 .713 6.3 1.1 1.2 .5 13.9
Career 15 8 22.2 .588 .350 .713 6.3 1.1 1.2 .5 13.9

Domestic leagues

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Year Team League GP MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2018–19 France Rouen Métropole Pro B 3 16.0 .286 1.000 .667 3.3 .7 1.7 .3 4.3
2018–19 France Denain Voltaire Pro B 27 27.2 .556 .417 .803 6.6 1.7 1.2 .5 14.3
2019–20 France UJAP Quimper Pro B 24 27.6 .563 .383 .726 6.7 1.7 1.2 .8 15.8
2020–21 France Orléans Loiret LNB Élite 31 23.4 .628 .333 .781 6.4 1.5 1.0 .4 13.7
2021–22 Spain Manresa ACB 36 24.1 .521 .290 .735 8.2 1.5 1.6 .5 14.5
2022–23 United States Stockton Kings G League 2 28.2 .375 .000 .500 7.0 1.5 .5 — 7.5
2022–23 France Monaco LNB Élite 11 18.1 .720 .500 .838 4.0 1.1 1.1 .4 9.7
2023–24 Spain Baskonia ACB 28 24.6 .542 .415 .777 6.6 1.6 .9 .4 15.2
2024–25 Spain Baskonia ACB 31 25.1 .481 .365 .791 5.0 2.4 .7 .4 12.7

College

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2015–16 UC Davis Redshirt Redshirt
2016–17 UC Davis 36 33 27.3 .527 — .645 9.5 .8 .9 1.4 14.6
2017–18 UC Davis 21 21 30.0 .515 .375 .714 9.6 1.0 1.0 1.1 18.4
Career 57 54 28.3 .522 .375 .674 9.5 .9 .9 1.3 16.0

Personal

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Moneke attended Canberra High School and Lake Ginninderra College in Canberra, Australia where he played high school basketball with Danté Exum.[5]

References

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  1. ^ "Chima Moneke: la locomotora de Abuya". acb.com (in Spanish). 10 February 2022. Retrieved 24 June 2025.
  2. ^ Dutton, Chris (8 October 2022). "Chima Moneke ready to make NBA world take notice at Sacramento Kings". canberratimes.com.au. Retrieved 24 June 2025.
  3. ^ "FORMER NORTHEAST MEN'S BASKETBALL STANDOUT CHIMA MONEKE BECOMES A KING". northeasthawks.com. 27 July 2022. Retrieved 24 June 2025.
  4. ^ a b Haynes, Savannah (6 October 2022). "Get to Know Chima Moneke". nba.com. Retrieved 24 June 2025.
  5. ^ a b "De la Pro B à la NBA, Chima Moneke retrace son incroyable ascension : "Le voyage a été compliqué mais la destination finale est encore plus savoureuse"". BeBasket (in French). 18 July 2022. Retrieved 19 July 2022.
  6. ^ "Chima Moneke, l'ailier de l'OLB, est entré dans l'histoire du basket cette nuit". larep.fr (in French). 11 July 2021. Retrieved 13 July 2021.
  7. ^ Skerletic, Dario (12 July 2021). "Chima Moneke reportedly in advanced talks to join BAXI Manresa". sportando.basketball. Retrieved 13 July 2021.
  8. ^ "Moneke named MVP of the Season". FIBA.basketball. 7 May 2022. Retrieved 19 July 2022.
  9. ^ Maher, Rory (18 July 2022). "Kings Sign Chima Moneke, Won't Bring Over Sasha Vezenkov". Hoops Rumors. Retrieved 19 July 2022.
  10. ^ "Kings Waive Chima Moneke". NBA.com. 6 January 2023. Retrieved 7 January 2023.
  11. ^ Maggi, Alessandro (16 January 2023). "AS Monaco signs Chima Moneke". Sportando. Retrieved 16 January 2023.
  12. ^ "Chima Moneke officially joins Baskonia". basketnews.com. Retrieved 23 June 2025.
  13. ^ "LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne vs Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz 2023-11-17 19:00 | EuroLeague". Euroleague Basketball. Retrieved 23 June 2025.
  14. ^ "Crvena zvezda Sign Chima Moneke". 24 June 2025.
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