Why are Igbo Nigerians so good at football?

[NYC Rebel]

Giannis hears fluent Igbo and speaks it to a degree

@Bonk @NYC Rebel

‘The Greek Freak’ wants to go back to his Nigerian roots

An Igbo woman is Giannis mother and of course raised her son to be Igbo. Stop claiming Giannis. He can't even speak your language. If you got a Igbo father, you're Igbo. Igbo mother, you're Igbo. Regardless if the other parent is Igbo, Jamaican, Black American, Yoruba or other. Just facts.

Annuoby
Iggy
Giannis
The Okafor's
I am forgetting some more people
Ezeli before his injuries ended his career

He's both.

Either way, I'm happy he's acknowledging his roots as he always should.

 

[ReggieFlare]

Man this thread got derailed

Igbo dudes in general seem to be real brolic. I remember one of my homies joked that they eat rocks for dinner

On the other hand, most Yoruba in my experience tend to be more lanky, which may explain the trend of more prominent Yoruba players on the NBA. No documented facts on this, just going by my own family and what I've experienced.

 

[thatrapsfan]

Hall of Famer Hakeem Olajuwon, who is arguably the greatest international basketball player of all time and one of the greatest NBA players, also has a Nigerian connection with Antetokounmpo. Olajuwon told The Undefeated that he and Antetokounmpo are Yoruba.

“I know from his last name that we are from the same tribe, the Yoruba tribe. His last name, which in Yoruba is spelled Adetokunbo, means ‘the crown has returned from overseas,’ ” Olajuwon said.

Interesting

 

[#1 pick]

How's a Cameroon a close second when there's no half-decent Igbo player in the NBA?

The GOAT African player in NBA history, Hakeem Olajuwon, is Yoruba.
The only other African number one pick, the bust, Olowkandy, is Yoruba.
The GOAT young player in the NBA right now, Giannis Antetoukumpo, is Yoruba.
Then Victor Oladipo and Al Farooq Aminu are Yorubas.

The best Igbo player in the NBA isn't even as good as Al Farooq Aminu. And of all the rookies of Nigerian descent in the draft, Bam Adebayo (another Yoruba) is getting the most shine from NBA analysts and, Sam Ojeleye (Yoruba) is already getting minutes. Igbo don't thrive like that in the NBA and Okafor who was meant to be good hasn't even lived up to the hype. There aren't no Africans with the same pedigree as Yorubas in the NBA.

OP.

I think it's because there are more Igbos in the US and I believe the Nigerian nightmare, Christian Okoye, kind of paved the way for them. Unlike the UK for example where there more Yorubas. And they tend to be stockier. But Jay Ajayi is Yoruba and he's pretty good at what he does. And Green Bay legend, Kabeer Gbaja-Biamila, is Yoruba. I believe there are about 10-15 Yorubas on NFL roster and, Nelson Agholor who has been decent for the Eagles this year, is Edo.

The thread is unnecessary, though. Some of you just like unnecessary pissing contests - it must be an American and a Nigerian thing.

@Bonk, boy have things changed since 2017. We learned that Giannis speaks only Igbo and his mother is Igbo. Oladipo's mother is Igbo and where he got his athleticism from as he claims. 90% of Nigeria's national team is Igbo. 8 players drafted, all but one is Igbo and he's Ibibio which is still Biafra. Giannis' mother was the best athlete in their family even though their father played soccer professionally in Nigeria as did his oldest brother, his mother was a track star and she's really tall as well.

I looked at the top 150 of the 24/7 class of 2022 and all of the Africans but one are Igbo. The only one who isn't is from Ghana. There are like 11 of them as well. 2021 had a lot of Ghanaians and even an Housa.

Igbos presence is dominating Basketball in terms of Africa. Already dominating football. Already dominated soccer. I don't know what else to say in terms of sports. Let's be real, we get Biafra tomorrow and we would dominate Africa for the next 1000 years.

 

[#1 pick]

Three Yorubas coming up soon
Charles Bassey - 2nd rounder
Manny Obaseki - Going D1 - top 50 recruit
Kevin Obanor - Going back to school, potential 1st rounder

Housa
Aminu Mohammed - Top 15 recruit, going to Georgetown.

 

[Amare's Right Hook]

They fit into the 3-4

 

[UpAndComing]

Igbo kwenu!

Kwezuo nu !!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Professor Emeritus]

This Yoruba vs. Igbo stuff is hilarious. There's virtually no genetic difference between Yoruba and Igbo, they're far too close historically to have developed any sort of genetic difference. People are taking random anecdotes and trying to make conclusive statements from it, which is why it's not surprising that in just 5 years the strength of the anecdotes has switched completely.

Genetic structure in four West African population groups | BMC Genomic Data | Full Text

Genetic variations among three major ethnic groups in Nigeria using RAPD

 

[RadaMillz]

please excuse my ignorance but from what I have observed
igbo = excel in NFL
Yoruba = excel in Basketball

 

[#1 pick]

please excuse my ignorance but from what I have observed
igbo = excel in NFL
Yoruba = excel in Basketball

Igbos are dominant in both sports in 2021. In 2017 and before, it was Yorubas by a significant margin for Basketball. Even the scrubs