EVERYONE called him "Big O." Even at eight years old, NBA rookie Onyeka Okongwu lived up to this nickname, especially as he was surrounded by much smaller Filipino kids during the early days of his career.
Just this Tuesday, Okongwu officially signed with the Atlanta Hawks after he was picked 6th in the first round of the recent 2020 NBA Draft last week.
It's all full circle not just for himself, but also for his modest family in Chino Hills, as well as his old grassroots youth team in Alex Cabagnot and Cris Gopez's basketball recreation league, Edge Basketball International.
Before he approached Compton Magic, Okongwu used to train in the Edge program when he was young. It was there that he mastered the fundamentals of the game, coming in as a young kid with great potential, fitting physique, and raw, untrained skill.
"We had him at eight years old," said Gopez, who is Cabagnot's cousin and a good friend of Okongwu. "And we were very lucky to do majority of his grooming and get him ready for the next chapter. He was surrounded by us Filipinos."
The mentor shared: "When I first saw him, he was extremely young, and I knew he was special, why? Because he was bigger than any other kid in the camp."
With the camp based in La Verne, very much near Chino Hills, his mom Kate agreed to have him enrolled in Edge after finding out it was run by Filipinos.
Kate is a nurse and had a great deal of experience working with Filipinos in the medical field.
"At first, they were very skeptical 'cause the mom didn't want to travel [Editor's Note: The Edge program involved a lot of travel]. But then, she told us, 'You now what? I'm okay with Onyeka being surrounded by you guys.' She trusted a group of Filipino parents since it was easy for her to be comfortable around Filipino families having worked with them," Gopez, who is also the co-founder of Fil-Am Nation Select program, narrated.
And that's where it all started.
One time, Edge had matches in the courts of the University of Southern California (USC).
"I remember, he was at nine years old, we had a tournament at USC, he told us, 'This is where I want to go'," Gopez continued.
After steering Chino Hills to three state championships in high school, the 6-foot-9 center made waves in USC, capping off his career as one of the most intriguing and promising college stars. He was also the first lottery pick from the school since 2009.
During his stay in USC, the Nigerian-American has also kept his connection with his former coaches. They often train together in a local gym.
"The great thing about our relationship is it's just like any best friend would have. We can call each other anytime, we know where each other lives, and we just communicate from time to time to update," Gopez said. "When he was in USC, we often [saw] each other in 24 fitness, a local fitness center. It was never scheduled, but when we see each other, we train together."
Okongwu also invited Gopez to the Draft Party, and that's when it all sunk in to both of them how far they'd come.
"Yes, it's every player's dream to make it to the NBA, but it is also every coach's dream to produce an NBA-quality player. I'm just super excited for him. I can't thank him enough to be able to be recognized as one of his coaches, part of his journey," he said.
Gopez shared that, during that night, they also caught up on each other's lives. He couldn't be any prouder of the boy.
"All the hard work he's put in, it was definitely worth it. It takes a winning pedigree to make it to the NBA," Gopez said. "I gave him a hug and we said it together: 'We did it.'"
Gopez remains honored to have mentored Okongwu during his early days. Up to now, he's by the sidelines, always ready to accommodate him at any given time.
"I'm not taking full credit [for] his development, but what I could only share is I've been there in his beginning," he said.
Now, as Okongwu is touted to boost the Hawks this coming NBA season with his athleticism and skills.
Gopez can only say: "I am Filipino coach, and I now have an NBA player."
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