NBL All Star and Former Canadian National Team Member Signs with Storm
October 7, 2014 - National Basketball League of Canada (NBL Canada)
Island Storm News Release
(Charlottetown, PE) Olu Famutimi, a 6'6" swingman from Toronto, will join the Island STORM when training camp opens in Charlottetown in 2 weeks' time. The STORM traded their 1st round pick in the recent NBL Canada Draft to the Halifax Rainmen for the rights to Famutimi.
Famutimi was a big thorn in the STORM side last season while playing for the Halifax Rainmen as six times he scored over 20 points against the Island and grabbed over 10 rebounds in two of those games. For the Rainmen last season, Famutimi averaged 13.4 points, 6 rebounds, and nearly 1.5 steals per game.
An NBL Canada All-Star, Famutimi was also a member of Canada's National Basketball team from 2007 to 2010. He is a very experienced player having played throughout Europe, winning a Turkish Pro League Championship in 2012 while being named a 2nd team all-star.
Coming out of high school, Famutimi was a McDonald's All-American selection and played in the same McDonalds All-American game as NBA stars LeBron James and Chris Paul. He played his college basketball at the University of Arkansas where he made the SEC All-Freshman Team in his first year as a Razorback.
After his college career, Famutimi was invited to play in the NBA Summer Pro League on four different occasions with Toronto Raptors, New York Knicks, Seattle Supersonics, and Milwaukee Bucks. He was also invited to the San Antonio Spurs training camp in 2006 and finished that year playing for the Arkansas RimRockers of the NBA D-League averaging 11.5 points and 5.5 rebounds in 45 games.
"Olu is a big time signing for us," says STORM Head Coach Joe Salerno. "We decided to roll the dice a bit at the draft, trading our first round pick to Halifax for the rights to Olu, not knowing 100% if he would sign with us or not. I was confident we would be able to get a deal done with him and as of yesterday the gamble was all worth it."
Salerno says he likes the veteran presents Famutimi brings to his lineup."Not many guys in the NBL have the experience Olu has. From being a member of the Canadian National team for 3 years to multiple invites from NBA teams to play on their summer league rosters, to playing and winning at a very high level in Europe, Olu has had a very successful playing career. He is a savvy veteran who understands how to play. It's impossible for a guy like Olu not to immediately make your ball club better. In my opinion he was the best Canadian in the NBL last season and we couldn't be happier to have him."
The Island STORM also announced this week they will be playing the Saint John Mill Rats in an exhibition game Thursday October 28th at Three Oaks Senior High School in Summerside. Tickets for the STORM/Mill Rats game on October 28th are $5 each and on sale at Three Oaks Senior High School. Every cent of the $5 admission goes toward the "In Our Own Backyard" program at the school. As an added bonus, each ticket purchased to exhibition game at Three Oaks High School will also receive a voucher good for a free ticket to the Island STORM home opener Thursday November 6th at 7 pm at Eastlink Centre in Charlottetown.
Meanwhile, season tickets for the upcoming season are now on sale as well as single game tickets for all STORM games.
STORM Fans purchasing VIP floor seat season tickets or luxury boxes for the coming season will enjoy the Exclusive VIP Pre-Game Reception before each and every STORM home game at Red Shores Racetrack and Casino with a VIP Parking Pass for the first 70 STORM Fans purchasing 2 or more season tickets.
All STORM season ticket holders will receive an "Everybody Loves a STORM Day" Ice Scraper and an invitation to our exclusive STORM season ticket holder pre-season reception and mid-season reception to meet all the STORM Players and Coaching Staff.
For details on STORM tickets and purchases visit the Eastlink Centre Box Office, open Monday to Friday from 11am to 5pm or phone the box office at 902-629-6625.
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