To hear Stanford University basketball player Chiney Ogwumike talk, it’s easy to see why her disappointment over falling short of a national title this past spring is diminishing.
Consider this: She has two more years to compete for a college championship. As a sophomore, she was named an Associated Press All-American and will likely pile up more honors over the next two seasons.
Best of all, she says, her older sister and just-departed teammate Nneka Ogwumike recently started as a rookie with the Los Angeles Sparks of the WNBA, offering Chiney unique insight into a professional player’s career. Chiney and her friends on campus are already mapping out the Sparks’ home games this season for which they’ll make the 11-hour round-trip drive to cheer on Nneka.
“I came to rely on Nneka for guidance on the court and will definitely miss that,” Chiney says. “But her move to the WNBA is a great opportunity and exciting new chapter. I’m really happy for her.”
The Ogwumikes made history when both were named All-Americans, Nneka to the first team, Chiney to the second team. They were the first sisters to achieve this the same season, and the feat has yet to be accomplished in men’s college basketball. Nneka and Chiney are both forwards and at Stanford were a formidable frontcourt.
The Cardinals advanced to the Final Four this past season before losing to Baylor University, and this year marked Nneka’s fourth straight trip to the Final Four. A three-time All-American who was the No.1 overall draft pick in the WNBA this year, Nneka holds no regrets about her college playing days, saying, “The journey is what it was all about, not so much the outcome.”
The Ogwumikes’ parting as teammates is a familiar process. They grew up playing basketball at home in a Houston suburb, and won a state championship as high school teammates. In college, they found themselves campus celebrities for their on-court accomplishments, which included Nneka averaging 22 points per regular season game this past year and Chiney 15 points. Off the court, they were almost inseparable, eating most of their meals together, doing homework together.
