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NBA Draft: Ugonna Onyenso’s College Coach Says He’s ‘One Of The Best Shot Blockers I’ve Ever Seen’
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- NBA Draft: Ugonna Onyenso’s College Coach Says He’s ‘One Of The Best Shot Blockers I’ve Ever Seen’
On day two of the 2026 NBA Draft, the Detroit Pistons made a bit of a surprise move when they agreed to trade Isaiah Stewart to the Memphis Grizzlies for a trio of future second round picks. Though Stewart had been included in potential trade discussion for the two weeks prior to the draft, the gutsy trade allowed the Pistons to shed $15 million in cap space while re-acquiring the same picks that they used to move up in the draft on day one to select Stanford guard Ebuka Okorie .
On the surface, Detroit lost their top shot blocker and the longest-tenured Piston on the roster all in one fail swoop, but the organization made another trade later in the second round to acquire Virginia center Ugonna Onyenso , who solidified himself as one of college basketball's premier shot-swatters last season.
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Playing for the Cavaliers, Onyenso averaged nearly three blocks per game a year ago, which made the imposing center an easy selection for the ACC All-Defensive team. So, even though the Pistons parted ways with one of the NBA's most feared rim protectors, Detroit made a savvy move to pick up a low-risk, high-reward player in Onyenso who offers a similar defensive profile to that of Beef Stew.
But fortunately for the Pistons, Onyenso is far from a one-dimensional player, and his college coach thinks that he may just be scratching the surface on his untapped potential as an offensive weapon as well.
"We had no idea that he could shoot when we first got him," Virginia coach Ryan Odom said . "And so, we began to work with him in this time last year, and he was shooting in the gym with some of our coaches and GAs. We began to watch him and were like, hold on a second. This guy can shoot. I asked him, 'have you ever attempted a three in practice?' And he was like 'no, I've never even really worked on it'. So, we began to just put some time into it while not losing sight of what he really brings to a team right now. I think that's the biggest thing about Ugonna, he's not going to get ahead of himself. He's not going to be the guy that's saying well you have to let me shoot threes. He knows what he brings to the table as a player to help a team win, and that's rim protection. He's one of the best shot blockers I've ever seen. If that's something that you want, you're going to get that with him. His timing is impeccable, but he has the ability to improve, which I love."
Based on that evaluation, Onyenso could continue to further develop his offensive game and his feel for the outside shot once he joins either the Motor City Cruise or the Detroit Pistons at the next level. But with Stewart out of the picture in Motown, it's possible that Onyenso could push Tolu Smith for the team's third-string center position depending on how he adapts to NBA-level competition.
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From an offensive perspective, the Pistons struggled mightily with floor spacing in the regular season and the playoffs, and Detroit rarely used their big men on the perimeter even though Stewart displayed some three-point shooting chops and Jalen Duren continued to develop his mid-range game. If Onyenso could pop out from time to time with a legitimate threat to knock down a triple, then defense would have an entirely new element of the Pistons' offense to keep in the back of their mind.
Since Onyenso was selected in the second round of the draft (originally by the Houston Rockets before he was traded to the New York Knicks then the Pistons), he will not receive a guaranteed NBA contract, so the expectation is that he'll sign a two-way deal. That would allow for Onyenso to enjoy regular playing time in the G-League as he finds his footing in the professional basketball realm, but there is obviously a very real path from the Cruise to the Pistons after Daniss Jenkins forged a similar journey last season.
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