By Johnny Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
Carrying the experience of 322 games played in the NBA, Semi Ojeleye emerges as a new player for Turkish Airlines EuroLeague outfit Virtus Segafredo Bologna.
“The journey continues! Next stop, Italy. Jesus, keep walking with me!” he wrote on a post shared on Twitter adding the hashtag Virtus.
Ojeleye, 27, split the 2021-22 season between the Los Angeles Clippers and Milwaukee Bucks after spending the previous four seasons at the Boston Celtics. Opting to move his talents overseas, Virtus Bologna is the next destination.
Over recent weeks, he has been rumored to be considered by teams shaping Europe’s premier club continental competition. The latest link to Virtus Bologna matched the search for an upgrade to the forward positions.
The team coached by former Toronto Raptors assistant and current Spain senior national team selector Sergio Scariolo opened up the offseason by bringing in Jordan Mickey, Ismael Bako, and Iffe Lundberg. Plenty of players are projected to come back, including Milos Teodosic, Marco Belinelli, and Daniel Hackett. Still, there was room for forwards, especially considering the proven defensive abilities of Ojeleye and a potential excellent fit for the European style of basketball.
Being linked to the Italian team based in Bologna was first reported by BasketNews.
After his college years at Duke and SMU, the Kansas-born forward was selected by the Celtics with the 37th overall pick of the 2017 NBA draft. As a free agent, he switched to the Milwaukee Bucks last August and was traded to the Los Angeles Clippers in February before being waived in late March. Generating 3.3 points and 2.5 rebounds per contest depicted his efforts in 2021-22.
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