A 22-year-old Navarrese from Tudela, who is 2.03m tall and weighs 112 kilos, the son of Nigerian emigrants, with British training and who has played in the United States and Germany, is the sensation of the Spanish basketball team. His name is Great Osobor and this Thursday he debuted in an official match against Denmark at the start of qualification for the 2027 World Cup and also in Chus Mateo’s debut on the bench. Spain won 64-74 and Osobor emerged with 12 points, eight rebounds (three offensive) and two steals in 18 minutes on the court, a performance in which he exhibited both his bulk to fight in the low post and his quickness of hands and legs to recover the ball and run. “I’m very versatile, I do things that other players my size can’t do,” the big man congratulated himself. “He has a lot of quality. He must learn things but I am glad that the mistakes are due to youth,” Chus Mateo praised him. And his partner Oriol Paulí pointed out bluntly: “He is an animal.”
The story of Great Osobor is that of a hustler who today enjoys the applause after a journey away from the spotlight. His family moved from Nigeria to Tudela for work and in Navarra the boy began playing soccer and basketball. He opted for the basket because he was “too tall” to kick the ball, until at the age of 13 his parents packed their bags again, this time to fly to Bradford, in England. Osobor progressed with the orange ball to the British second division before crossing the pond and trying his luck at three American universities, Montana, Utah and Washington, always under the guidance of coach Danny Sprinkle and at the same time studying Sociology and Criminology. His Summer League contest with the Houston Rockets was another step toward his big dream of one day playing in the NBA.
Several ACB clubs were interested in him this past summer after his call-up with Spain B that prepared the recent Eurobasket together with the majors. Osobor left good feelings in the group led by Jaume Ponsarnau, and Chus Mateo visited him in Germany when he was named coach in place of Sergio Scariolo. Science City Jena, today ranked ninth in the Bundesliga, was Osobor’s new destination, strangely without a place in the Spanish League, disadvantaged because he does not occupy a training player’s place due to his filming abroad.
“He is very powerful and explosive,” Ponsarnau, his coach in that youth team of promising youngsters, defines him; “From there he gets an advantage that he consolidates with his body. He has a lot of size, very long arms, and that allows him to reach the rebound, go for the dunk and steal balls without having to jump or move much. Physically he still has to evolve, but that explosiveness is in him. As a person, Great had never been in national team dynamics and it was unknown how he would integrate into the group. It was a surprise. Extroverted, eager to learn and talk to his teammates, very attentive and with good team values. work.”
This qualifying window for the next World Cup is also a showcase for Osobor, who against Denmark took the opportunity at the first opportunity and showed off muscle and speed. This Sunday, in the second international duel, a pair of centers awaits him in Tenerife who will raise the bar, the Georgians Shengelia (Barcelona now allows him to be with their national team) and Shermadini, two old rockers. A new challenge for someone used to sticking out his elbows to earn an opportunity.
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