41 points, 28 rebounds, five assists, three ball wins and three blocked throws. These are Elijah Ndi’s statistics in the NBBL game between the s.Oliver Würzburg Academy and the Orange Academy from Ulm last weekend. It sounds like a grown man played against children. Ndi belongs to the so-called middle NBBL vintage, so he is only in the second of three years that he can play in the youth Bundesliga (U 19) and is therefore even younger than many opponents.
It was clear early on that the Würzburg basketball players had caught a sensational talent. Shortly after Ndi arrived in Würzburg in 2019, the club invited him to a throwing game in January 2020. In the first quarter break of a Bundesliga team home game, Ndi was allowed to try three times from the three-point line and throw 250 euros each for the youth department, the fourth attempt from the center line was even rewarded with 1000 euros by the sponsor.
Not the only basketball talent in the family
Ndi didn’t convert any of the three shots – instead he hit the throw from the center line. The audience celebrated the then 15-year-old and he clearly enjoyed the attention. It is this special self-confidence that characterizes Ndi at a young age: after three misses, not many succeed in hitting from the center line.
He speaks bluntly of higher goals. The Euroleague, Europe’s top division, follows Ndi because basketball is played there more intensively, tactically and at a high level. The NBA is a dream, but “the 450 best players in the world play there,” says the 17-year-old in an interview.
Elijah isn’t the only basketball talent in the Ndi family. Like her brother, his younger sister Chanel is already a national player. In the fall, she was in the starting five for two friendlies for the U-16 team. In the summer she wants to go to the European Championships. Unlike her brother, who is two years older, the 15-year-old, who is 1.85 meters tall, is mainly at home under the basket. “Rebounds, offensively and defensively, that’s my strength,” she knows.
Many duels between the siblings
And she is very strong with her left hand, which is actually weaker, reports her big brother. “She has an extraordinary talent and you can tell that she played a lot with her brother,” praised her coach Wolfgang Ortmann. In a casual one-on-one during the photo session at the Heuchelhof in Würzburg, she even throws a three-pointer “in the face” of Elijah, as basketball players say when a goal is scored despite good defense. Otherwise, that’s not one of their strengths.
“She has an extraordinary talent and you can tell that she played a lot with her brother.”
Youth coach Wolfgang Ortmann about Chanel Ndi–
In Würzburg she plays for the TG Würzburg in the female youth Bundesliga (WNBL) in the U18 and in the U16 Bayernliga. In addition, she is allowed to practice with the women in the second division from time to time. She too has the dream of earning a living with basketball. “But in Germany that’s almost impossible with women’s basketball,” she knows. Therefore, the focus is on school and the Abitur. She is currently in the tenth grade at the Deutschhaus-Gymnasium.
Youngest scorer in Bundesliga history
Elijah’s time at this school is about to end. The high school exams are imminent. After that, the 1.95 meter lanky with the impressive arm span of 2.11 meters wants to concentrate on basketball first. His contract in Würzburg still runs for three years. “I hope to make the squad more often next year,” he says. So far he has seven Bundesliga games under his belt for Würzburg. His first one will be remembered most of all.
At the away game in Berlin in January 2021, the then Baskets coach Denis Wucherer brought the 16-year-old into play. And he promptly scored in the third attack. “I defended Marcus Eriksson, who went up for a three-pointer. I didn’t box out, I just ran forward. Cameron Hunt got the rebound and found me for two easy points,” he describes the scene with a glint in his eyes.
At the time, Ndi was the youngest player to ever score in the Bundesliga. A year later, however, he lost that title again. The U-18 national player currently plays mainly as a small forward, i.e. on the small wing position. With a view to the arm span and shoe size 51.5 (“It’s not that easy to find shoes”), he could still be facing a growth spurt.
“I was there as a wiper ten years ago.”
Elijah Ndi on his dream of taking part in the Albert Schweitzer Tournament–
In addition to the dream NBA with favorite player Kevin Durant and role model Giannis Antetokounmpo, the young basketball player who was born in Berlin and grew up in Mannheim has another goal that is closer. The prestigious Albert Schweitzer Tournament (AST) takes place in Mannheim every two years. It is considered the unofficial U-18 World Cup. “I was there as a wiper ten years ago,” Ndi recalls. Every year he followed the tournament, where a number of future NBA stars handed in their business cards, and even then made the decision that he too would like to show his talent there.
Elijah Ndi wants to go to the Albert Schweitzer tournament in Mannheim
“In the last few years it has become more and more likely,” he says, because he made his debut for Germany at the age of 15. Most recently, he was appointed to the DBB squad of 18. The AST, which usually takes place during the Easter holidays, was initially postponed. It hasn’t been canceled yet, and so the hope of participating lives on.
Chanel would definitely give it to her brother. The three children of the multicultural Ndi family (father American, mother born in Kyiv and grew up in Berlin, the grandparents have Ukrainian and Ugandan roots), the youngest currently plays in the U12 of the TGW, grew up almost completely without their father. “I have contact from time to time, but it’s rare,” says Elijah. The father knows how talented the siblings are, but nothing more. You can tell the two of them make their connection even stronger. The family has been living in Würzburg since 2019. The then youth coordinator of the Baskets, Harald Borst, had worked hard to ensure that the Ndis move to Würzburg. Frankfurt and Berlin were the other options. But the package of apartment, job for the mother, school education and basketball perspective was the decisive factor for Würzburg.
Extra shifts with Würzburg’s BBL coach Sasa Filipovski
“We are very happy to have her here,” says Chanel’s WNBL coach Wolfgang Ortmann. She definitely has the potential to get to the top, but a lot of things have to fit for that. For example, she must remain injury-free. When the family moved to Würzburg, they already had a cruciate ligament tear, which the doctors in Mannheim had not found. The operation then took place in Würzburg. Then Corona came. “You can still see the long break,” says Ortmann. But: “If your body cooperates, all paths are open to you in basketball,” he adds.
The same applies to her brother. Elijah often works on the shot with Bundesliga coach Sasa Filipovski before or after training. “It has become much more stable, but there is still room for improvement,” reports Oliver Elling. He looks after the 17-year-old in the NBBL and the Baskets regional league team. “He trusts me and lets me play through if I have to,” said the Ndi player, praising the coach Elling. “The physical requirements are exciting and he has learned a lot from understanding the game,” said the coach. Elijah is difficult to stop, says Elling, especially in transition, i.e. in the transition from defense to attack. The potential for the top is definitely there. And if he can even come close to transferring the statistics from the Ulm game to the men’s field in the coming years, there won’t be much standing in the way of a professional career as a basketball player. He would not be the first from Würzburg to successfully follow this path.
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