Wow...this is awesome. Chima has been chasing his dream and maybe he just caught it. I may have to go to a few Kings games if he sticks.

Considering new kings head coach Mike brown also coached Chima on the Nigerian national team, and that Chima’s deal is partially guaranteed, there is a pretty good chance that he makes the final roster. Of course it’s only summer so there is still plenty of time for things to change.

Wow! That would be something. Have we ever had an Aggie play even in the summer league?

Someone on Reddit said that Corey Hawkins played in a couple of summer league games.

"Have we ever had an Aggie play even in the summer league?"

If I read this right, (always a big IF,) Corey played in 4 Las Vegas summer league games for Golden State in 2026-17.
https://basketball.realgm.com/player/Corey-Hawkins/Summary/9308

Yeah Corey definitely did after he went undrafted

And according to Wikipedia Hawkins played two pre-season games with the Miami Heat before being released.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corey_Hawkins_(basketball)

Moneke is not the first Aggie to sign with the Kings' franchise. The then Kansas City Kings drafted Preston Neumayr in the 8th round (176th pick overall) of the 1983 NBA draft. He didn't make it in the NBA, but went on to medical school at UCSD and UCSF and is still a practicing physician in the Bay Area.

One of our best guards ever.

Don’t remember if this was posted here before , but this is an interesting interview with Chima pre-nba signing. Not sure if it was cut out or if you could read more into it, but he doesn’t mention UCDavis at all.

Well, he was suspended from the team right before the end of the regular season. Was it ever released why he was sent home from that road trip?

There was never an official statement, beyond the “violations of team rules” while they were in so cal. Now that he’s back in the area with the kings, I have seen an unsubstantiated rumor. I’m not going to write it here as I have no idea if it’s true but if you go to the kings subreddit you can probably find it.

I really hope he makes the team. Would love to see him succeed.

I very much admired Chima's hustle and basketball IQ. I suspect his biggest problem in the NBA is that he is a "tweener": too small to be an effective power forward and too slow to be an effective wing. If he can find the right niche on the Kings, he might make the roster, but I wouldn't bet on it. If he has learned to shoot the 3 really well, that might do it. His stats in Europe are equivocal: https://www.proballers.com/basketball/player/72691/chima-moneke

I see that Chima got 8 minutes against the Lakers yesterday. Good for 2 points and 2 rebounds.

A block and a steal as well

Well done Chima!!!

Wow.

Awesome! Looks like I'll have to take in a few Kings games this year for sure.

Chima takes an elbow to the jaw from LeBron James.

...Moneke’s two-year, $2.7 million deal will be guaranteed for $500,000 (fully guaranteed Jan. 10

Making the team in Sacramento represents a major step in Moneke’s career. It also provides a homecoming of sorts for the 26-year-old forward who went undrafted after leading UC Davis to the NCAA Tournament in 2018. Moneke spent the past four years overseas, playing professionally in France and Spain while awaiting his first big break in the NBA.

Kings coach Mike Brown got to know Okpala and Moneke well during their time together with the Nigerian national team. Known for their defensive prowess, both players spent time guarding LeBron James in a 133-86 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday, helping the Kings hold James to 10 points on 4-of-13 shooting.

“As training camp has gone on, (Moneke) is trending upwards,” Brown said. “I think the initial shock of being in the NBA and the speed and athleticism and all that stuff caught him off guard a little bit, but he belongs on this level and he can help us. I think KZ, too. Both of those guys were two of my first calls, even before I really got the job.”

Read more at: https://www.sacbee.com/sports/nba/sacramento-kings/article267363562.html#storylink=cpy

My son the Gael thinks we need to go to a few games. Now if we can get the parking ap and ticket ap and....

Is Chima the first Aggie to make an NBA roster? I can't recall any others, even though ti thought Corey Hawkins had a real shot at it.

As far as I remember he is the first.

I think Chima is the first to make a regular season roster. Hawkins made some summer league rosters, but I'm not sure he even played in the summer league. He had injuries one summer. He played some NBA D-League or G-League games. He was on the Miami Heat roster and played a couple of preseason games before being cut. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corey_Hawkins_(basketball)

Chima is the first. Preston N was drafted but did no make an NBA roster. Kudos to Chima!!!

Is chima dressed to play?

An ESPN Story on Chima:
https://www.espn.com/espn/story/_/id/34327322/from-nigeria-australia-sacramento-how-chima-moneke-ended-kings

He dressed but did not get off the bench.

Chima got into the Kings' game against Memphis: 6 minutes, 2 boards plus an assist, but two fouls for a -9 on the +/-.

I watched Chima last night. He played aggressively, which did result in two fouls. On offense he mostly stood in the corner and then crashed the glass. The announcers said that even in the practices they watched they never saw Chima working with the 1’s, which probably lead to him looking a little out of place. Hopefully his hustle will earn him some additional court time

I note that despite having as much as a 36 point lead near the end of the 3rd quarter over the Nets yesterday, Chima did not get into the game even though 14 Kings players saw some action and 6 bench players got double digit minutes. This does not look good. I wonder if anyone knows if he is hurt, being sent to the G-league or been cut?