Entering his fourth season in the NBA, it's make or break for Nnaji, who has yet to carve out a consistent role for himself. He finished well outside the top 300 in standard leagues for the third straight season, averaging 5.2 points and 2.6 rebounds in 13.7 minutes per game. Despite the loss of Jeff Green and Bruce Brown, it's hard to envisage a situation in which Nnaji plays more than about 15 minutes per night, outside short-term periods as a result of injuries to other players. He is still only 22 years of age, meaning the scope for him to improve does exist, albeit on a small scale. Read Past Outlooks
$Signed a three-year, $24.53 million contract with the Nuggets in October of 2023. Contract includes $7.47 million player option for 2027-28.
Personal Bio/PreCareer Summary
Ezekiel Tobechukwu "Zeke" Nnaji was born in Minneapolis on January 9, 2001. His last name is pronounced "Nah-jee". Zeke's father Alphan is from Nigeria and his mother Janel is from Minnesota. Nnaji has a younger sister, Maya, who is a highly regarded high school basketball player. As a youngster, Nnaji originally played baseball and soccer. He has played the piano since the first grade and composes his own music. Nnaji started his high school career at Lakeville North High School in Lakeville, Minnesota, but later transferred to Hopkins High School in Minnetonka. As a senior at Hopkins, Nnaji averaged 24.1 points and 9.4 rebounds per game. He also led Hopkins to a Minnesota 4A state title over Lakeville North. For college, Nnaji attended the University of Arizona for one season before declaring himself eligible for the 2020 NBA Draft. Fans can follow the Wildcat product on Twitter via @ZekeNnaji_Hoopz. Nnaji entered his first and only season with Arizona as an under-the-radar prospect due largely to the fact Chase Jeter was expected to see a large share of center minutes. Instead, Nnaji shined right out of the gates and continued to dominate the stat sheets while Jeter missed time down the stretch. The Lakeville, MN native ended up leading the Wildcats in scoring (16.1 PPG), rebounding (8.6 RPG) and field goal percentage (.570). He reached double figures in all but three games in the 2019-20 campaign, with his best scoring effort coming early, when he racked up 26 points and 11 boards Nov. 14 against San Jose State. At the conclusion of the season, Nnaji was named Pac-12 Rookie of the Year, in addition to earning first-team all-Pac-12 honors. With hopes of sneaking into the first round, Nnaji officially declared for the 2020 NBA Draft just a few weeks after the season's conclusion.
Eight points from bench
FDenver Nuggets
November 28, 2023
Nnaji recorded eight points (3-8 FG, 2-5 FT), seven rebounds and three blocks in 12 minutes during Monday's 113-104 win over the Clippers.
ANALYSIS Nnaji was expected to draw the start with Nikola Jokic (back) out, but the Nuggets elected to play the matchup and pit DeAndre Jordan against his former team. While the decision succeeded with flying colors, Nnaji still had an impact in 12 minutes on the court. Although one shouldn't expect Jordan to stay this productive, Monday's switch puts a question mark next to Nnaji's future as Jokic's direct replacement.
2023 NBA Per Game Split Stats - Starting/Off Bench
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2023 NBA Per Game Split Stats - Days Rest
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2023 NBA Per Game Split Stats - Vs Opp
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2023 NBA Per Game Split Stats - By Result
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Advanced Stats
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2023
2022
2021
2020
Stat Review
How does Zeke Nnaji compare to other players?
This section compares his stats with all players from the previous three seasons (minimum 200 minutes played)*. The bar represents the player's percentile rank. For example, if the bar is halfway across, then the player falls into the 50th percentile for that stat and it would be considered average.
True Shooting %
An advanced statistic that measures a player's efficiency at shooting the ball that takes field goal percentage, free throw percentage, and three point percentage into account.
Effective Field Goal %
A statistic that adjusts field goal percentage to account for the fact that three-point field goals count for three points while field goals only count for two points.
3-Point Attempt Rate
Percentage of field goal attempts from three point range.
Free Throw Rate
Number of free throw attempts per field goal attempt.
Offensive Rebound %
An estimate of the percentage of available offensive rebounds a player grabbed while they were on the floor.
Defensive Rebound %
An estimate of the percentage of available defensive rebounds a player grabbed while they were on the floor.
Total Rebound %
An estimate of the percentage of available rebounds a player grabbed while they were on the floor.
Assist %
An estimate of the percentage of teammate field goals a player assisted while they were on the floor.
Steal %
An estimate of the percentage of opponent possessions that end with a steal by the player while they were on the floor.
Block %
An estimate of the percentage of opponent two-point field goal attempts blocked by the player while they were on the floor.
Turnover %
An estimate of turnovers committed per 100 plays.
Usage %
An estimate of the percentage of team plays used by a player while they were on the floor.
Fantasy Points Per Game
NBA Fantasy Points Per Game.
Fantasy Points Per Minute
NBA Fantasy Points Per Minute.
True Shooting %
55.3%
Effective Field Goal %
52.0%
3-Point Attempt Rate
13.7%
Free Throw Rate
54.9%
Offensive Rebound %
12.7%
Defensive Rebound %
11.7%
Total Rebound %
12.2%
Assist %
5.1%
Steal %
0.7%
Block %
4.3%
Turnover %
12.2%
Usage %
15.9%
Fantasy Points Per Game
8.6
Fantasy Points Per Minute
0.8
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Total
Per Game
Per 36
NBA Historical Fantasy Stats
How are these ratings calculated?
Our historical fantasy ratings are standard scores calculated using 8-Category settings with 12 teams and 13 players per team.
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NBA Per Game Historical Fantasy Stats
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NBA Per 36 Historical Fantasy Stats
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Historical ADP
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Nuggets Depth Chart
Our full team depth charts are reserved for RotoWire subscribers.
Average Fantasy Points are determined when Zeke Nnaji was active vs. non-active during the season. Click here to view average fantasy points for a different time period.
Minutes
FanDuel
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Recent RotoWire Articles Featuring Zeke Nnaji See More
As one of the few star players who figures to play regular minutes Saturday, Kawhi Leonhard is likely worth utilizing in daily lineups with value plays galore elsewhere due to the multitude of resting players.
Jimmy Butler should log a regular workload Thursday as the Heat hope to climb out of the Play-In Tournament. He could be without Bam Adebayo, a scenario where he's averaging 49.3 FanDuel points per 36 minutes.
ANALYSIS Green sprained his left finger and fractured his left hand and will be reassessed in four weeks, so the Nuggets might have to look at other options off the bench to operate as the backup power forward behind Aaron Gordon. Nnaji has the inside track to earn that role, though he's averaging only 3.9 points and 1.4 rebounds across 9.5 minutes per game in 2022-23.
Nnaji managed to carve out a somewhat consistent role for himself last season before going down with multiple knee injuries. Seemingly healthy again, he should open the season as a part of the rotation, although he will have to earn his stripes again. While he is well off the radar in fantasy, he could be a name to watch in deeper formats should he get upwards of 20 minutes per night.
The 6-foot-11 big is a strong rebounder and inside scorer, helped by his smooth athleticism. Questions remain about Nnaji's rim-protection ability and three-point shooting, but he has shown some upside as a shooter in the mid-range, not to mention hitting 76 percent of his free throws. He might slot in as a backup to Nikola Jokic, so his upside in 2020-21 is limited. Nnaji will also have to compete with Bol Bol for reserve center minutes, plus anyone that Denver potentially brings in during free agency.
More Fantasy News
Good to go Wednesday
FDenver Nuggets
November 22, 2023
Nnaji (ankle) is available for Wednesday's game versus the Magic.
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Dealing with minor ankle sprain
FDenver Nuggets
Ankle
November 21, 2023
Nnaji is probable for Wednesday's matchup against Orlando due to a right ankle sprain.
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Scores nine in defeat
FDenver Nuggets
November 2, 2023
Nnaji produced nine points (4-9 FG, 1-3 3Pt), five rebounds and two blocks in 18 minutes during Wednesday's 110-89 loss to Minnesota.
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Signs contract extension Saturday
FDenver Nuggets
October 21, 2023
Nnaji signed a four-year, $32 million contract extension with the Nuggets on Saturday, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reports.
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Puts up 17 points off bench
FDenver Nuggets
October 11, 2023
Nnaji recorded 17 points (5-8 FG, 1-2 3Pt, 6-7 FT), six rebounds, an assist, a steal and a blocked shot across 21 minutes in Tuesday's 115-107 win over the Suns
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