Okogie revels in ‘best moment of my life’

Timberwolves select former Tech standout No. 20 in first round.

Up against the jubilant throng gathered in the side room at Boogalou Restaurant Lounge in Midtown, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver’s voice had no chance of being heard through the end of the sentence.

The moment was flush with anticipation, excitement and happiness. Family, friends and teammates of Josh Okogie had descended upon the establishment Thursday night to celebrate the former Georgia Tech guard’s selection in the NBA draft. Now, two hours after the draft had begun, a WSB-TV Channel 2 Action News cameraman, tipped off by Okogie’s agent, flipped on the lights and began recording. Guests rose from their seats and surrounded Okogie, watching the broadcast on a projection screen at the front of the room.

“With the 20th pick in the 2018 NBA draft, the Minnesota Timberwolves select Josh …”

With his parents, Pius and Anthonia, by his side, Okogie raised his right fist as the room exploded into cheers, screams and whoops, drowning out Silver. Recording the celebration on their phones, the guests converged on Okogie, who ducked his head before re-emerging, grinning uncontrollably. Soon Okogie, typically calm and poised, was overcome with emotion and tears began to flow. He buried his head in the shoulder of a team- mate from Shiloh High before slipping out of the club to gather himself outside.

“It’s just the best moment of my life, by far,” Okogie said, his eyes wet with tears and his voice quivering.

Okogie’s journey to this moment might be traced back to the one when Pius and Anthonia Okogie received green cards to move to the U.S. from Nigeria through a lottery administered by the State Department. Josh was about 3½

years old, Pius said Thursday as the first picks of the draft were being made.

“Two years and nine months,” Anthonia corrected.

In America, their fourth child developed a passion for basketball. In middle school, he woke at 5 a.m. to work on his skills with a trainer before going to school. During holiday breaks, he worked out twice a day.

“He loved basketball,” Pius said. “Apart from school, the next thing is basketball.”

A standout career at Shiloh produced one scholarship offer from an ACC school, Tech. Despite that, he made the ACC all-freshman team in 2017 and earned third-team All-ACC this past season, prompting his decision to leave Tech after two seasons.

A performance at the NBA draft combine pushed him up draft boards, from a possible second-round pick without a discernible standout trait to a first-rounder prized for his athletic ability and relentless effort.

A pastor at Jubilee Christian Church-Redemption Chapel in Stockbridge, Pius said they applied for the green-card lottery in hopes of seeking an adventure. On Thursday, the Okogie family marked the completion of one adventure and the beginning of another with a party that featured a cake in Josh’s image and black and gold T-shirts made for the occasion.

“Look at what is happening (Thursday),” Pius said, incredulous. “We thank God for everything.”

Just before the draft began, Okogie took a seat in a quiet spot in the back of the lounge, encircled by mentors and his agent, Calvin Andrews. Okogie said Andrews reminded him it would be OK no matter who selected him and also to breathe. Okogie, calm as ever, needed no such prompting. He was asked if he felt weird that this was actually happening.

“No,” he said. “I was planning this in high school.”

JOHN AMIS / AP Former Tech guard Josh Okogie (5), with teammate Justin Moore last season, was selected by Minnesota with the 20th pick in the NBA draft Thursday.