Ike Diogu has known for a while that his jersey was going to be enshrined in the rafters of Desert Financial Arena. The former Sun Devil big man’s accolades make him overly qualified for the honor, but logistics – and a fan-less pandemic season – made it hard to get Diogu to Tempe for a ceremony.
Until now, during Saturday night’s contest between Arizona State and Colorado, Diogu will become the eighth Sun Devil men’s basketball player to see his maroon and gold jersey appear in the rafters at Desert Financial Arena. So, will the joyful Diogu shed some tears when the expected becomes reality?
“I hope not,” Diogu told reporters Thursday afternoon. “But it might happen. I will be extremely happy. It’ll be good to see a bunch of old faces and to get back into the arena and step onto the floor again. Just going to be really, really happy. So, I can’t tell you what will happen. I hope I don’t cry, but who knows.”
Diogu’s three-year Sun Devil career ended upon the completion of the 2004-05 season when the second-team All-American declared for the NBA Draft and was selected ninth overall by the Golden State Warriors. Since then, Arizona State has changed head coaches twice and gone to the NCAA tournament on four occasions.
The program has changed, but the connection for Diogu to it hasn’t. Speaking with great admiration for his time spent in Tempe, Diogu explained of how his connection has remained with the university through multiple coaching staffs.
“I owe so much to the program,” Diogu said of his long-standing connection to ASU. “They helped jump-start my pro career and gave me my opportunity to be a pro, so I’m forever indebted to ASU. They’ve always taken care of me even though coach (Rob) Evans and his staff is gone, (Herb) Sendek’s staff was good, and now coach (Bobby) Hurley’s staff.
“I really like coming back. I love watching the games, and I’ve loved some of the teams in the past – especially the team that started 12-0; that was a lot of fun to be able to brag that they got so high in the rankings. That was all of our dream to have that type of impact.”
Diogu’s professional career has spanned the globe. Since leaving the NBA in 2012, Diogu has played in China, Puerto Rico, Japan, Iran, and Mexico – as well as a stint in what was then the NBA Development League. Despite all the movement, Diogu is steadfast in his commitment to supporting ASU and, specifically, holds a distinct passion for the Sun Devil football program.
“I’m a huge football fan. Women’s basketball, too,” Diogu says, “but football, every year I have my expectations set, and if anybody bets me when it comes to the football team, it’s a no-brainer. I’m a huge fan of Sun Devil football.”
During his three seasons in Tempe, Diogu started all 91 games he played in for the Sun Devils and scored in double figures in every contest as well. A model of consistency, Diogu never averaged fewer than 19 points per game in a season and was named the program’s first consensus All-American following his junior season when he averaged 22.6 points per game to go along with 9.8 rebounds and 2.3 blocks.
“When I came into college, I didn’t really have any expectations,” Diogu explained. In his sophomore and junior seasons, Diogu was a top 10 scorer in the country. “I didn’t say, ‘I want to be all Pac-10’ or this or that. I just wanted to come in, and I knew there was a lot of seniors, so I wanted to contribute to a solid freshman season, hopefully, go on to have a four-year career and see what happens after that.”
The freshman season that Diogu speaks of was a trend-breaker for the Sun Devils. The 2002-03 ASU team led the program to its first NCAA tournament win since 1995 with a win over Memphis and a 22-point effort from the freshman forward.
“A top moment for me is always going to be my freshman year Selection Sunday,” said Diogu. “I remember sitting down and hearing our name called because we didn’t know if we were going to get in. We lost a game to Oregon in the Pac-10 tournament, so we were kind of on edge when we were watching Selection Sunday, so to hear our name called was awesome.”
The 38-year-old hasn’t officially called it quits yet. But with a pandemic shortened season with Astros de Jalisco in Mexico ending in December, he’s finally found time to return to Tempe to be honored. Diogu ranks top 5 in ASU history in points, rebounds, and blocks. A two-time Olympian, Diogu is also one of the most accomplished Nigerian basketball players ever.
Diogu will join these ASU jerseys in the rafters: Eddie House (5 )Byron Scott (11) Fat Lever (12) James Harden (13) Joe Caldwell (32) Lionel Hollins (33) and Alton Lister (53) /
“You’re talking about some of the greatest players to ever play basketball,” Diogu said. “James is going to go down as one of the greatest offensive threats that the world has ever seen. So, Fat Lever, Byron Scott, Alton Lister, the list goes on. To be able to be in the same breath as those guys is really amazing and something that I never ever would have imagined happening.”
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