2000-01 In Review: The Sonics were thrilled when Nigerian native Olumide Oyedeji, who had been playing professionally in Germany on the former team of current Maverick Dirk Nowitzki, slipped to them at the 42nd pick in the 2000 Draft. Oyedeji, who entered the NBA radar when he dominated a team of High School All-Americans, was projected going as high as in the lottery, but dropped like a rock, with even the Sonics passing on him at 17. At 42, however, the Sonics decided that Oyedeji was an extremely worthwile risk. Oyedeji began the season on the injured list after a subpar preseason, and upon activation in December did not figure significantly in the rotation. Soon he did begin to get occasional snippets of playing time while developing into a fan favorite due to his high-energy style of play. Olumide finally got his chance to shine in early January when the Sonics faced the Kings with Patrick Ewing sidelined. Oyedeji managed to stymy King star forward Chris Webber defensively, and chipped in surprising offense with 10 points. The next night, Oyedeji got the chance to match up with Shaquille O'Neal and did a decent job. But afterwards, Oyedeji returned to sporadic minutes, which limited his effectiveness. The final night of the season provided a coming out party in a sense for Olumide, as he grabbed a Rodman-esque 14 rebounds in 30 minutes of play during a Sonic blowout win.

Shooting/Scoring: Oyedeji was viewed prior to the season as virtually no threat whatsoever offensively, but he showed occasional flashes of offensive ability. He does not belong more than 10 feet from the basket. Inside of the that, he does have decent touch on floaters. His best shot remains the dunk. In the post, Oyedeji is extremely raw and unskilled, not a great combination. He is a strong free throw shooter for a young big man, hitting 9 of 12. Grade: D

Floor Game: When handling the ball, Oyedeji looks extremely awkward, and the results aren't much better. Any time he puts the ball on the ground, a turnover is a likely possibility. Passing? What passing? Olumide is only slightly more advanced than, say, Yinka Dare, in this regard, not recording his first assist of the season until the final game against San Antonio. To put it in perspective, little used Sonic reserve David Wingate recorded as many assists last season in his nine total minutes as Oyedeji did in 217! Assist/to ratio: 2/11. On the plus side, Olumide does set a mean screen, though he is prone to being called for a foul while picking. Runs the floor well for a big man. Grade: D+

Rebounding: Even if Oyedeji had no other basketball skills, he might be employable simply for his rebounding ability. On offense, because he handles the ball so little, he is able to think rebound most of the time, getting himself in excellent position. His positioning is not as good defensively because he must concern himself with defending a player. Olumide has good leaping ability, and boxes out well. Even beyond those skills, he seems to simply have a knack for finding the ball (or vice versa). Projected over starter's minutes, he would have averaged nine boards a game last season, and even that might understate his ability, as he played so infrequently. Grade: A+

Defense: In addition to his rebounding, Oyedeji also has NBA caliber-skill as a defender. He is quick enough to stay in front of virtually any big man, and probably many threes as well. He could stand to get stronger to be able to push players off the block better, but does a good job nevertheless. Olumide contests most every post-up situation, and does a good job fronting the post. However, his agressiveness can sometimes be the catalyst of his demise, leading to lobs for easy scores. Because of lack of respect from officials, extremely foul prone. Grade: B-

Intangibles: A huge fan favorite who became absolutely beloved by Seattle fans last season. A solid citizen as well. Language barrier a factor, though it never seemed to cause trouble on the court last season. Seems to be a good worker. Grade: A

Overall: At the end of last season things were looking up for Oyedeji. After he finished the season with a flourish against San Antonio, it appeared possible he would soon have a chance to become a rotation player. However, he came into summer league play looking absolutely horrible, and stank up the Los Angeles league, leading to some speculation that the Sonics would rid themselves of Oyedeji by cutting him before his contract became guaranteed. Well, he's still a Sonic, and following their off-season moves, appears to have a chance to serve as the backup to Vin Baker and fight with Predrag Drobnjak and Jerome James for bench big man minutes. This is an absolutely pivotal season for Oyedeji, at the very least for his Sonic future. If he does not demonstrate improvement, he is unlikely to be brought back next summer. A strong season, on the other hand, could vault him to the top of the Sonics' young big men and establish him as a future contender for the NBA's rebounding title. Grade: C-

December 1 Update: Oyedeji's poor summer play has carried over to the fall. He has fallen out of favor in the organization, and become merely an afterthought as even his rebounding specialist role has been usurped by Art Long. Because of the rash of injuries the Sonics have faced, Oyedeji has stayed on the active roster all season, but he's sure to come up with patella tendinitis should the Sonics finally get healthy.

January 1 Update: Aside from a couple of ocassions when the Sonics were limited roster-wise by injuries and foul trouble, Oyedeji has still been reserved for garbage time. His offensive play remains inept, and his rebounding isn't good enough to overcome that at this point of his career.

February 1 Update: Oyedeji played a grand total of just seven minutes in the month of January, seeing only the worst of garbage time. At this point, it's hard to see him playing any role with the Sonics this season, especially with Calvin Booth perhaps on the mend and the possibility of the Sonics acquiring a veteran to shore up the frontcourt.

March 1 Update: Again, Oyedeji saw very little playing time (nine minutes) in the month of February, and it appears unlikely that he will see any competitive minutes the rest of the season.

April 1 Update: So he is still on the roster! With injuries decimating the Sonics' rotation, Oyedeji actually got a chance to play in 12 of the Sonics' 16 March games. His highpoint came on March 29, playing double-digit minutes off the bench against the San Antonio Spurs, grabbing six rebounds, scoring four points, and drawing a pair of offensive fouls.