What Auburn basketball is getting in JUCO big Emeka Opurum

A young center who makes tons of plays at both rims, the Nigerian native will fit right in with the Tigers' frontcourt reload.

(Emeka Opurum/Instagram)

AUBURN — Auburn basketball is doubling up in more ways than one.

Less than a full day after picking up Mississippi State big man KeShawn Murphy out of the transfer portal, Auburn landed a commitment from another piece to its frontcourt reload.

Emeka Opurum, a 7-foot, 200-pound center originally from Lagos, Nigeria, announced his pledge to the Tigers on Wednesday morning. Opurum only played one season at Butler Community College in Kansas, so he’ll have multiple years of eligibility remaining at the Division I level.

Opurum made the most of his one season in JUCO ball. He was the Jayhawk Conference Defensive Player of the Year after recording 87 blocks in 33 games, which is an average of 2.6 per contest.

“He is one of those guys who can impact the game and not score a point,” Butler head coach Eric Nitsche said of Opurum back in November. “That Indian Hills game, yeah, we were making threes, but he can really wall up at the rim. Defensively, I think at this level and at the highest level, what they look at with guys that are that long and big is can they move laterally? Can you put them in ball-screen defense?”

“And Emeka can do all of that. He has size 19 shoes, but he can move them laterally.”

In his 25 starts for the Grizzlies, Opurum averaged 9.4 points and 8.1 rebounds per game while shooting a dominant 67.2% from the field. He had 13 games with double-digit points and 10 games with double-digit rebounds, including a 20-and-19 game against No. 5-ranked Cowley College toward the end of the season.

Over the last few weeks, Opurum’s stock has exploded as a recruit, with several high-major teams lining up for offers. Ultimately, Opurum chose Auburn over Big East champion St. John’s, Iowa and Indiana — who just recently beat out several SEC schools, including Kentucky, for high-scoring guard Lamar Wilkerson.

Opurum should fit in nicely for Auburn at the center spot, helping replace what the Tigers lost with Johni Broome and — perhaps more specifically — Dylan Cardwell. His work as a defender and as a rebounder could provide instant impact on the Plains, even though he’s more on the raw side of the spectrum as a prospect.

But the potential is definitely there, because Opurum has the tools that few possess.

While there isn’t a ton of film on Opurum, considering he played just one season of JUCO ball, there’s enough for us to do a breakdown of his game here at The Observer.

(In case you missed it Tuesday, here’s our breakdown of Murphy.)

What Auburn basketball is getting in MSU transfer KeShawn Murphy

Let’s start with the dominant defensive skill set that made him an award-winner during his one season at Butler Community College.