Kyle O’Quinn spent all of about 15 minutes in the national consciousness during his time as a college basketball player.
He’s a product of Norfolk State, which is a program that maybe half of the nation’s college basketball fans would be able to identify as a Division I school. But that number was much, much lower prior to March, when O’Quinn went for 26 points and 14 boards as he lead the Spartans to a win over No. 2 seed Missouri in the first round of the NCAA tournament. (I can guarantee that there won’t be a soul in the state of Kansas that forgets about Norfolk State for at least a decade.)
O’Quinn eventually got drafted in the second round of the 2012 draft by the Orlando Magic, becoming an inspiring story in the process. Eight years ago, he was just another 5-foot-11 freshman in Queens, NY. Even as he grew into his now 6-foot-10 frame, O’Quinn wasn’t much of a hoops phenom; he only played a single season of high school ball.
And now?
O’Quinn’s officially an NBA player. He signed a three-year, $2.5 million contract with the Magic on Wednesday night.
Think about that. He had as many contract offers when leaving college as he did scholarship offers when leaving high school.
Congrats, Kyle. Now be sure to always remain this entertaining with a camera in front of you.
Rob Dauster is the editor of the college basketball website Ballin’ is a Habit. You can find him on twitter @robdauster.