Former Temple University men’s basketball players Josh Brown and Obi Enechionyia have agreed to sign professional contracts with teams overseas.
Brown signed with Croatia’s KK ALKAR in the Premijer Liga last week. In late August, Enechionyia signed with Real Betis Energia Plus, a team based in Seville, Spain that plays in LEB Oro.
Brown started at point guard during his junior and redshirt-senior seasons. He set a school record for games played with 139 over his five-year career from 2013-18. He is tied for ninth on Temple’s all-time list in career assists. He’ll join a KK Alkar team that finished ninth in the Croatian A-1 Liga with a 7-17 record last season.
Enechionyia most recently played for the Detroit Pistons’ NBA Summer League team. In six games, the 6-foot-10-inch forward averaged 3.2 points and 10.8 minutes.
“They’re both very good players,” senior guard Shizz Alston Jr. said. “Obi can shoot the ball very well. …Josh is real smart, one of the smarter guys I’ve played with, great defender. So I’m happy for both of those guys with their opportunities.”
¡Por dentro y también por fuera! ?? ¡Así juega @obienechionyia! ??#Enechionyia2020 #BetisBaloncesto pic.twitter.com/LSSu1GqwQN
— Real Betis EPlus (@RealBetisEPlus) August 31, 2018
Enechionyia will join a team that finished 18th in Liga ACB during the 2017-18 season. As a result of its place in the standings, Real Betis Energia Plus was relegated to LEB Oro. Within an eight-month interval ending in May, the team fired two different coaches. Last season, Real Betis Energia Plus only won seven of its 34 games. In its past two seasons, the team finished 16th and 18th in Liga ACB.
Enechionyia finished his Temple career as the 2018 American Athletic Conference Scholar-Athlete of the Year. He became the 24th player in team history to record 600 career rebounds and finished with 614 to rank 23rd all-time.
He also finished his career as one of the most accomplished shot-blockers, ranking seventh on Temple’s all-time blocked shots list with 170.
“I think Obi has the talent and the skill set, the height, the athleticism to play in the NBA,” Alston said. “I still think he’ll get there one day, hopefully next year. But Josh, that’s what he was going to do. He wanted to prove himself overseas, and maybe hopefully he’ll get a chance at the NBA one day. But I was a little surprised about Obi. I thought that he had the talent to play in the NBA right away.”
Alston said Brown and Enechionyia will be missed by the program, but the Owls are ready for several players to step up.
“It’s just me and [junior guard Quinton Rose], but me and Quinton were the leading scorers last year,” Alston said. “We’ll plan to do that again, and guys like [sophomore guard Nate Pierre-Louis], [junior guard] Alani Moore II, and [sophomore forward] De’Vondre Perry, those guys are gonna step up and take the place of Obi and Josh.”
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