By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
Toronto Raptors forward Ogugua ‘O.G.’ Anunoby Jr. has become a part-owner of the London Lions as the club has officially announced without giving any other details about the nature of the transaction.
Per the press release: The 25-year-old Toronto Raptors player joins majority owners 777 Partners after purchasing a minority stake in the club. London-born Anunoby has played over 250 games for Toronto and became the first-ever British basketball player to win an NBA Championship with the team in 2019.
The young wing has played five seasons in the NBA after being drafted in the first round in 2017, stating that a key goal of his is to ‘inspire kids in Great Britain who want to play basketball and show that they can make it to the league from Britain’. Anunoby now joins the ranks of a cohort of decision makers at the club determined to guide both the club and the wider sport to new heights, attracting the best of British and international talent.
Anunoby’s investment comes as basketball in the UK continues its meteoric rise in popularity. The British Basketball League confirmed record attendances last season as over 15,000 people descended upon The O2 Arena when the Lions faced Leicester Riders in the BBL Play-Off Final. The London-based side have also reported record viewership figures for their EuroCup games this season on BT Sport, supported in no small part by a record-breaking run across both men’s and women’s teams.
Over the course of the last 18 months alone, the Lions became the first side ever to win both the BBL Cup and WBBL Cup in the same event in January, whilst the men’s team have reached the EuroCup playoffs – a feat not achieved by any other UK team in history. The women’s team are also solidifying their claim as one of the most successful teams in women’s sport, having achieved an unprecedented feat of 52 consecutive wins in the WBBL earlier this season and going unbeaten domestically for over 650 days.
“It’s great to see everything that is going on in British basketball right now, which is why I am really excited to join the London Lions. I just want to do my part as a role model to all the young hoopers in London and across the entire UK. I look forward to visiting the team in the off-season and can’t wait to help build with the organization.”, Anunoby said in a press release.