For the first time in the Coach Ryan Odom era, a Virginia Cavalier
is heading to the NBA. Senior center Ugonna Onyenso was picked in the second round of the 2026 NBA Draft
, going No. 53 overall to the New York Knicks
. New York will trade Onyenso to the Detroit Pistons
as part of a previous deal.
"I'm really really excited," Onyenso said on the NBA's broadcast. "I'm really grateful for this opportunity."
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Onyenso, hailing from Nigeria, becomes the first Virginia basketball alum selected since Ryan Dunn
went at No. 24 overall to the Phoenix Suns
in the 2024 class. Onyenso is the 48th Cavalier to ever be chosen in the NBA Draft. Odom and assistant coach Darius Theus were present with Onyenso at the draft in Brooklyn
, N.Y. when he was selected.
Onyenso spent one season in Charlottesville after spending two years at Kentucky and one at Kansas State. As a Cavalier, Onyenso led the ACC and ranked second nationally in blocks with 2.9 rejections per game. He also set the ACC Tournament record for blocks with 21 in just three games.
With Onyenso as one of the nation's top secondary centers, Virginia reached the ACC Championship game - falling five points short of the title. The Cavaliers went on to earn an NCAA Tournament bid as a No. 3 seed. Ultimately, Virginia lost 79-72 to No. 6 seed Tennessee in the second round.
247Sports ranked Onyenso as the No. 43 center in the 2025 transfer class. About one year later, Onyenso became an NBA draftee before every transfer center ranked ahead of him except for Aday Mara, Jayden Quaintance
and Henri Veesaar
.
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Even though he was not a starter for the Cavaliers and averaged 18.6 minutes per game, Onyenso was a pivotal piece of Odom's defense. Onyenso became a fixture on ACC highlight segments for his elite rim defense and thunderous blocks.
He was more than just a blocker, though. Onyenso also ranked third on the team in rebounds with 176, consistently generating more possessions for Virginia. Of Virginia's nine-man rotation, Onyenso had the fewest turnovers.
In addition to kickstarting more offense, Onyenso is capable of shouldering some scoring. He led all Cavaliers with a 56.8 field goal percentage in ACC play and finished the season with a scoring average of 6.5 points per game.
As for Odom and Virginia, they will continue to prepare for the 2026-27 campaign
as they celebrate the addition of Onyenso to the brotherhood of Cavaliers in the NBA.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/virginia as Ugonna Onyenso selected No. 53 overall in 2026 NBA Draft By The Detroit Pistons
.
