Derek Ogbeide strengthens the center position!

Under both hoops, Cedevita Olimpija’s team has been strengthened by Derek Ogbeide, who played in Italy in the past two seasons and will now move to Ljubljana.

The new addition to Cedevita Olimpija at the center position is the 206 cm tall, 27-year-old Derek Ogbeide. He has signed a one-year contract with the Ljubljana club.

“With the addition of Derek Ogbeide, we have completed the team roster for the new season. Ogbeide became acquainted with European basketball five years ago and has already played in the Basketball Champions League, so he has experience playing in international competitions. He will undoubtedly be able to further develop his game with appearances in the EuroCup and ABA League, while also helping our team achieve its set goals,” said Chechu Mulero, Sports Director of Cedevita Olimpija.

“We are pleased to have Derek Ogbeide join us. Derek is a different type of player compared to Martinas Geben, who will accompany him in the center position. He is an up-and-coming player who started his career in lower leagues, and last season he showcased solid play on both ends of the court in the Italian national championship, both in offense and defense. He has a lot of room for improvement and potential that we need to utilize in our game. We expect good energy from him, as he is a physical, athletic, agile, and high-jumping player with a solid mid-range shot,” said Head Coach of Cedevita Olimpija, Zvezdan Mitrović.

“I’m very happy and extremly excited to be joining Cedevita Olimpija. For this season, I expect a lot of good things, I expect a lot of progress and growth with the team, and a very exciting and dinamic style of play, attached with the strong focus. Just a really strong team that plays together, and that it can be seen, and I hope we get to the point of creating that within ourselves,” said Derek Ogbeide.

After spending four years at the University of Georgia, Derek Ogbeide first experienced European basketball in Cyprus, where he wore the Petrolina team’s jersey. He spent two seasons there, won the Cypriot national championship and cup in the 2020/21 season, and was selected as the league’s most valuable player. At the beginning of the 2021/22 season, he moved to the Greek team PAOK, where he stayed until January 2022, followed by a move to Turkish team Torku Konyaspor. He spent the 2022/23 season in Rimini and the 2023/24 season in Pistoia.

In the PAOK jersey, he also played in the Basketball Champions League, appearing in seven games, averaging 3.1 points and 2.9 rebounds per game in 11.4 minutes on the court. In the Italian national championship, he played in 30 games during the 2023/24 season, averaging 11.6 points and 8.6 rebounds per game in 28.0 minutes.