Chapter One
Being the 6th overall pick obviously comes with lofty expectations. Udoh didn’t live up those expectations, but to be fair, he was never known to be an offensive player. During his rookie season, Udoh averaged 4.1 points per game on 43.7 percent shooting from the field. However, he did average 1.5 blocks per game despite limited playing time. He averaged 3 blocks per-36 minutes. That has always been Udoh’s niche — blocking shots.
During the 2011-2012 season, Udoh’s second year, he found himself on the move as part of a big trade that landed Golden State Andrew Bogut. Meanwhile, Udoh became a member of the Milwaukee Bucks. Through his first 23 games with the Bucks, Udoh averaged about six points, five rebounds and two blocks per game. Not bad, considering he averaged barely over 20 minutes per game. Udoh spent two more years in Milwaukee, averaging 3.9 points, 3.4 rebounds and 1.1 blocks per game from 2012-2014.
Ekpe became a free agent for the first time in his career in 2014. He was considering offers from contending teams, and ultimately chose to sign with the Los Angeles Clippers. Unfortunately, it wasn’t the best fit. Udoh averaged just 3.9 minutes per game through 33 games. His contract was only for one year, so that less than stellar opportunity-wise season with the Clippers forced Ekpe to continue his professional basketball career in a different country: Turkey.