2026 Recruiting: Sara Okeke | Page 12 | The Boneyard
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2026 Recruiting: Sara Okeke

donalddoowop said:
There is a chance that Yanna, Ice and Gandy could be greatly improved next season and that would make it difficult for the new players to play ahead of them. Yanna has the whole Summer to work uninjured on her game to bring her back to the kind of player Geno expected her to be. The same with Ice.
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Should they chose to stay, with chronic injuries and missing a year, Yanna and Ice are not likely to challenge for starting positions or even first off the bench. Gandy seems to be an enigma, not playing yet being healthy enough to do so - perhaps so raw, even with potential, as to be a few years away.
 
dtbtbtb said:
While i hope Sara decides to come to UConn, i don't see where her path is to get major minutes her first 2 seasons at UConn, unless she outplays Olivia and/or Jana. By her third season she can have a major role for UConn (with Sarah and Jana graduating). Hopefully championships (as UConn should be a major contender for championships) are more important for her than minutes (at least for her first 2 years at UConn).
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You may be right, but from what I have seen and read, Sara Okeke will have no problem seeing plenty of playing time. Talent and desire will get you on the court. If Sara brings that to her game, she will play. While it still needs to be seen, can you imagine a high-low post of Vukosa and Okeke, Strong playing anywhere they put her, and Quinonez floating around? You could have just about any combination of guards on the floor, and we will have a wealth of talented guards. If everyone is healthy, some talented players will get sparse playing time. That may be true even if Sara commits elsewhere.
 
Here is the national ranking from Prep Girls Hoop (attached). We are still waiting for the rankings from ESPN and Prospects Nation. Shane Laflin mentioned that ESPN's ranking would be updated in the spring. ASGR already ranks Sara Okeke third and this one sixth, just behind Olivia. Interestingly, to the right of the logos of their destination teams, you can click on the check mark to see an evaluation of the players. There are 125 players listed.

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dtbtbtb said:
While i hope Sara decides to come to UConn, i don't see where her path is to get major minutes her first 2 seasons at UConn, unless she outplays Olivia and/or Jana. By her third season she can have a major role for UConn (with Sarah and Jana graduating). Hopefully championships (as UConn should be a major contender for championships) are more important for her than minutes (at least for her first 2 years at UConn).
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Wouldn't take much to outplay Jana
 
hookshot said:
Wouldn't take much to outplay Jana
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Presumably Okeke would also start the season as the first backup 4 option behind Sarah (ahead of Ayanna), so if she beat out Jana she might be the primary backup to Sarah and Olivia, and if both of those newcomers were good enough to play together Sarah could play some at the 3 opening up even more minutes for Okeke at the 4.
 
I checked to see who Sara is following, from UCONN on her Instagram, and it looks like it is just Coach Valley. I was hoping that she would be following more of the UConn players. I am hoping to see Okeke sign with the Huskies! Okeke and Vulkosa would be a dynamic one two force, as rim protectors. Fingers crossed 🤞.
 
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Sluconn Husky said:
According to Shane Laflin UConn is heavily in on 6-3 Spanish center Sara Okeke. Okeke qualifies for the 2027 WNBA draft so she could skip college altogether.
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Given that the real money for women's basketball players are endorsements, called NIL in college, and given that it's unlikely that she has high name recognition in the US, and further given that UConn players consistently top the NIL store list, her path for optimized earnings probably runs through Storrs.
 
Crossover said:
And Gandy at the 1.
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I mean, she would be able to see over any opposing guard to make passes....
Bold Strategy Cotton GIF by MOODMAN
 
CL82 said:
Given that the real money for women's basketball players are endorsements, called NIL in college, and given that it's unlikely that she has high name recognition in the US, and further given that UConn players consistently top the NIL store list, her path for optimized earnings probably runs through Storrs.
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Immigration rules are clear: their student visas prohibit them from generating NIL income on American soil. However, they do not prohibit income from partnerships based abroad. This is the case for Toby Fournier (Duke) with the clothing company Roots, headquartered in Toronto. The Canadian company, which already collaborates with the WNBA, saw a great opportunity to form a NIL partnership with Fournier. She was named ambassador for the Activewear clothing line last March.

Perhaps Sara could form a partnership with Lois, for example, a well-known Spanish jeans manufacturer that also does business in the US. The NCAA wants to expand its audience. Next season will mark the fourth consecutive year that teams will play their opening game in Europe. South Carolina, which opened its season in 2023 against Notre Dame, will return there next year, this time with French player Alicia Tournebize in its ranks. She joined the team at the beginning of the year and hopes to finish her studies in 2029. She would have been in the 2027 WNBA draft if she had stayed in Europe.

I believe we are currently seeing a reversal of the trend, as Shane Laflin (ESPN) pointed out in a recent article. It seems that the most promising international players are choosing the NCAA route to the WNBA instead of European professional teams. Blanca Quinonez made that choice, and so did Tournebize. In her case, however, as in Blanca's, if they don't want to further delay their WNBA draft, they will have to complete their college career in three years.



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Thanks @From Canada .

We do not know the visa status of Sarah or Tounebize. It is possible that they applied for work permits (especially in the case of Tournabize who was briefly a pro in France). The district court in Louisiana cast serious doubts on the policy of only granting student visas to student athletes in the (ongoing) Last Tear Poa case.
 
From Canada said:
Immigration rules are clear: their student visas prohibit them from generating NIL income on American soil. However, they do not prohibit income from partnerships based abroad. This is the case for Toby Fournier (Duke) with the clothing company Roots, headquartered in Toronto. The Canadian company, which already collaborates with the WNBA, saw a great opportunity to form a NIL partnership with Fournier. She was named ambassador for the Activewear clothing line last March.

Perhaps Sara could form a partnership with Lois, for example, a well-known Spanish jeans manufacturer that also does business in the US. The NCAA wants to expand its audience. Next season will mark the fourth consecutive year that teams will play their opening game in Europe. South Carolina, which opened its season in 2023 against Notre Dame, will return there next year, this time with French player Alicia Tournebize in its ranks. She joined the team at the beginning of the year and hopes to finish her studies in 2029. She would have been in the 2027 WNBA draft if she had stayed in Europe.

I believe we are currently seeing a reversal of the trend, as Shane Laflin (ESPN) pointed out in a recent article. It seems that the most promising international players are choosing the NCAA route to the WNBA instead of European professional teams. Blanca Quinonez made that choice, and so did Tournebize. In her case, however, as in Blanca's, if they don't want to further delay their WNBA draft, they will have to complete their college career in three years.



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The point I was trying to make is that being a member of UConn women's basketball would raise her profile and increase her brand. This is true independent of any NIL money she earned. This increase in brand could then be monetized at the next level.

That said, you are absolutely correct about the work prohibition on student visas. Note, that the determining factor is not the nationality of the sponsoring company, but where the work is performed. So for example, a foreign born athlete on a student visa could get an NIL deal from a US company without jeopardizing their visa so long as they do not perform services within the US. One player on the men's team shot a commercial either in the Caribbean or in Bermuda as a workaround. Similarly, she could shoot commercials before she comes to the US and they could be shown in the US at any time. The thing that is tricky is that she would have to monitor her social media and not promote the brand on social media while in the US. (I remember Nika Muhl talking about that.)
 
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Have Sara and Big O played on any all star teams together like that USA vs the World (when Jovana played with Olivia)? That would be good to know if they played and liked doing that…
 
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DefenseBB said:
Have Sara and Big O played on any all star teams together like that USA vs the World (when Jovana played with Olivia)? That would be good to know if they played and liked doing that…
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She wasn’t on the team last year. I’ve been waiting patiently for the Nike Hoop Summit to release the World roster for this year, high chance we see all three.
 
Someone on an unrelated page of Sara Okeke or UCONN posted this trying to send positive vibes for Sara to sign with the Huskies. I think Sara looks good in a UCONN jersey, fingers crossed 🤞 for her to end up a Husky.
 

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darrell said:
She wasn’t on the team last year. I’ve been waiting patiently for the Nike Hoop Summit to release the World roster for this year, high chance we see all three.
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I think there's a good chance that Sara Okeke will be at the Nike Hoop Summit on April 11. Last year, Big O and Jovana were there, and they could well be back this year. It would be Olivia's third time. The age limit to participate in the event is 19, which means that players must have been born on or after April 12, 2006.

Basketball USA has announced the team roster, and six players were born in 2007 and six in 2008, all of whom are high school seniors.

Last year, seven of the players on the world team had committed to the NCAA, and with Jovana and Olivia, that brings the total to nine.

I enjoy watching the FIBA age-group championships, and I have noted the names of players on a list who I believe could be invited. I have not included athletes born in 2006, as the US team does not have any. I added a few names born in 2009, as it's not uncommon for the world team to have younger players. It's worth mentioning that Awa Fam and Nell Angloma, ranked 2nd and 7th in the latest WNBA draft simulation, would be eligible. The names that appear in bold are my favorites. If there is an asterisk (*), it means that the player is currently playing in a high school in the US, and if she has committed to the NCAA, the location is also noted. The list appears at the bottom.

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2026 Nike Hoop Summit World Team (?)​


Joyce Isi Etute* PF 2008/07/30 Luxembourg 6’0 (Texas)

Sitaya Fagan SF 2008/03/24 Australia 6’2 (USC)

Anna Gardziella SF-SG 2008/03/17 Finland 6’0

Callie Hinder C 2007/08/16 Australia 6’6 (Arizona)

Annie Kibedi PF 2008/05/24 Belgium 6’2 (Oklahoma State)

Anna Liepina PF-C 2007/04/16 Latvia 6’3 (Miami)

Chanté Murray SF 2008/05/04 Canada 5’11 (Rutgers)

Somto Okafor SG 2008/09/11 Spain/Nigeria 5’9 (UCLA)

Sara Okeke* PF-C 2007/11/16 Spain 6’4 (???)

Jovana Popovic PG 2007/10/05 Serbia 5’9 (UConn)

Savvy Swords* SF-PF 2008/01/18 Canada 6’2 (Kentucky)

Tjasa Turnsek SF-PF 2007/05/15 Slovenia 6’2

Sther Ubaka* PF-SF 2007/09/12 Brasil 5’11 (Vanderbilt)

Laura Vilcinskas C 2008/06/08 Belgium 6’5 (TCU)

Lea Vukic PF 2007/08/09 Croatia 6’0 (Yale)

Olivia Vukosa* C-PF 2008/09/07 Croatia/USA 6’4 (UConn)

Jordyn Wheeler SF 2008/05/11 Canada 5’11 (Stanford)

Zhang Ziyu C 2007/05/02 China 7’2

2009
Avery Arije PG 2009/02/12 Canada 5’11

Chance Berry SG-PG 2009/01/06 Canada 5’9

Isabel Hassan SG-SF 2009/06/14 Italy 6’2

Isabel Hernandez PG 2009/12/04 Spain 5’9

Madison Ryan SG-SF 2009/03/31 Australia 6’0
 
From Canada said:
I think there's a good chance that Sara Okeke will be at the Nike Hoop Summit on April 11. Last year, Big O and Jovana were there, and they could well be back this year. It would be Olivia's third time. The age limit to participate in the event is 19, which means that players must have been born on or after April 12, 2006.

Basketball USA has announced the team roster, and six players were born in 2007 and six in 2008, all of whom are high school seniors.

Last year, seven of the players on the world team had committed to the NCAA, and with Jovana and Olivia, that brings the total to nine.

I enjoy watching the FIBA age-group championships, and I have noted the names of players on a list who I believe could be invited. I have not included athletes born in 2006, as the US team does not have any. I added a few names born in 2009, as it's not uncommon for the world team to have younger players. It's worth mentioning that Awa Fam and Nell Angloma, ranked 2nd and 7th in the latest WNBA draft simulation, would be eligible. The names that appear in bold are my favorites. If there is an asterisk (*), it means that the player is currently playing in a high school in the US, and if she has committed to the NCAA, the location is also noted. The list appears at the bottom.

Translated with DeepL.com (free version)

2026 Nike Hoop Summit World Team (?)​


Joyce Isi Etute* PF 2008/07/30 Luxembourg 6’0 (Texas)

Sitaya Fagan SF 2008/03/24 Australia 6’2 (USC)

Anna Gardziella SF-SG 2008/03/17 Finland 6’0

Callie Hinder C 2007/08/16 Australia 6’6 (Arizona)

Annie Kibedi PF 2008/05/24 Belgium 6’2 (Oklahoma State)

Anna Liepina PF-C 2007/04/16 Latvia 6’3 (Miami)

Chanté Murray SF 2008/05/04 Canada 5’11 (Rutgers)

Somto Okafor SG 2008/09/11 Spain/Nigeria 5’9 (UCLA)

Sara Okeke* PF-C 2007/11/16 Spain 6’4 (???)

Jovana Popovic PG 2007/10/05 Serbia 5’9 (UConn)

Savvy Swords* SF-PF 2008/01/18 Canada 6’2 (Kentucky)

Tjasa Turnsek SF-PF 2007/05/15 Slovenia 6’2

Sther Ubaka* PF-SF 2007/09/12 Brasil 5’11 (Vanderbilt)

Laura Vilcinskas C 2008/06/08 Belgium 6’5 (TCU)

Lea Vukic PF 2007/08/09 Croatia 6’0 (Yale)

Olivia Vukosa* C-PF 2008/09/07 Croatia/USA 6’4 (UConn)

Jordyn Wheeler SF 2008/05/11 Canada 5’11 (Stanford)

Zhang Ziyu C 2007/05/02 China 7’2

2009
Avery Arije PG 2009/02/12 Canada 5’11

Chance Berry SG-PG 2009/01/06 Canada 5’9

Isabel Hassan SG-SF 2009/06/14 Italy 6’2

Isabel Hernandez PG 2009/12/04 Spain 5’9

Madison Ryan SG-SF 2009/03/31 Australia 6’0
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Thanks for posting this
 
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southie said:
Okeke started following Ohio State head coach on Instagram a couple of weeks ago; so, she's been pretty transparent with her "follows" as they seem to have led to official visits (Kentucky, Indiana, Texas, Ohio State). Southern Cal could be next.
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Sure hope UCONN gets a follow from Sara and an official visit.
 
southie said:
Okeke started following Ohio State head coach on Instagram a couple of weeks ago; so, she's been pretty transparent with her "follows" as they seem to have led to official visits (Kentucky, Indiana, Texas, Ohio State). Southern Cal could be next.
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Confirmed via an On3 article (paywalled) that she’ll be visiting “a couple more programs in early March, including USC”. Spoke a bit about her visits to Kentucky, Indiana and Texas as well.

Hoping UConn is still in the mix.
 
darrell said:
Confirmed via an On3 article (paywalled) that she’ll be visiting “a couple more programs in early March, including USC”. Spoke a bit about her visits to Kentucky, Indiana and Texas as well.

Hoping UConn is still in the mix.
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Her most recent follows on Instagram were of more folks/accounts affiliated with Indiana.
 
darrell said:
Confirmed via an On3 article (paywalled) that she’ll be visiting “a couple more programs in early March, including USC”. Spoke a bit about her visits to Kentucky, Indiana and Texas as well.

Hoping UConn is still in the mix.
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It is interesting that the national recruiting services all list UCONN as a school of top interest. Hopefully, UCONN is more than a “school of interest” and she schedules an official visit soon.
 
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