Ebi, who was raised in Nigeria, attended Westbury Christian School in Houston, Texas. During that time, he became a McDonald’s All-American and committed to the University of Arizona.
In a stunning move, Ebi decided to forego college and take his chances in the NBA. The Minnesota Timberwolves granted that wish with the 26th overall draft choice, which led to two years of limited playing time.
During his third year, Minnesota attempted to send Ebi to the D-League. Per the original rules, however, the D-League only accepted players during their first two seasons. Despite an appeal from the Wolves, their request was denied and Ebi was subsequently released.
Since then, Ebi has played basketball across the globe. That includes stints in Israel, Italy, France and Lebanon.
For the most part, however, Ebi has made a living on the Italian circuit. He’s played for Basket Club Ferrera of the First Division, Basket Rimini Crabs and Andrea Costa Imola of Serie A2, Sidigas Avellino of Serie A. Ebi is currently with the latter team.
Thus far in 2013, Ebi is averaging 11.2 points and 6.7 rebounds on 55.1 percent shooting from the field.
3. Torin Francis
The 2002 McDonald’s All-American Game was one of the greatest in the rich history of the exhibition. The participants included Carmelo Anthony, Chris Bosh, Dee Brown, Raymond Felton, Sean May, Rashad McCants, Shavlik Randolph, J.J. Redick and Amar’e Stoudemire.
There were few players as physically impressive as Notre Dame recruit Torin Francis.
Francis stood at least 6-10, weighed more than 250 pounds and possessed the athletic gifts to run in transition. Perhaps most importantly, Francis was a dominant rebounder who translated All-American Game success into a reputable college career.
Francis led Notre Dame in rebounding in all four of his seasons. In that time, he was named to the All-Big East Rookie Team and an Honorable Mention for the All-Big East Team.
For his career, Francis averaged 11.5 points, 8.6 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per game. That includes a senior season in which he posted 11.6 points and 9.4 rebounds.
Unfortunately, Francis required season-ending back surgery during his sophomore season and ultimately missed out an NBA career because of it.
4. Corey Stokes
When it comes to Villanova basketball, there are few players in recent memory who garnered as much hype and popularity as Scottie Reynolds and Corey Fisher. This comes with good reason, as that backcourt duo was the heart and soul of an overachieving Wildcats team.
With that being said, there are few players who meant as much to the program as Corey Stokes.
Prior to his time at Villanova, Stokes made his mark on the 2007 McDonald’s All-American Game, finishing with eight points, two rebounds, one assist and a steal on a perfect 3-for-3 shooting. That includes two three-pointers, which set the stage for Stokes’ college career.
In four years with Villanova, Stokes made 264 three-point field goals, which ranks fifth in the school’s rich history. Stokes also shot 39.0 percent from distance, which includes a senior season in which he averaged 14.9 points on 43.2 percent shooting from beyond the arc.
Even as he went undrafted, Stokes’ sharpshooting abilities have paved the way for a quality career overseas.
After stints in the NBA D-League and Germany, Stokes found his comfort zone in Sweden. In limited run, Stokes averaged 19.5 points per game As one might expect, Stokes continued to shoot at a high clip by converting 50.0 percent of his three-balls.
Regardless of where he ends up, Stokes has proven capable of shooting the lights out at any level of play.