Okpara Joins Stanford Men’s Basketball
STANFORD, Calif. – Stanford men's basketball has announced its third incoming undergraduate transfer under Kyle Smith, the Anne and Tony Joseph Director of Men's Basketball, with the addition of Chisom Okpara from Harvard.
"Chisom is a great addition to our program. He gives us a producer who will help complete our frontcourt," said Smith. "His experience, size, strength and skill will augment the personnel we have already. He is not afraid of contact and can really help take some of the scoring load off of Maxime with his ability to find scoring opportunities inside, outside and at the foul line."
Okpara, a 6-8 forward from Bronxville, New York, finished his sophomore year at Harvard in 2023-24, where he averaged 16.5 points, 5.0 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game while shooting 47.9 percent from the field and 33.8 percent from 3-point range. He ranked second in the Ivy League in free throws made (111) and sixth in scoring, finishing in double figures 24 times. He finished with a career-best 26 points against Holy Cross on Dec. 21.
"Chisom has an infectious personality that can galvanize this group of guys into a cohesive group," finished Smith. "We are blessed to have him officially on the Farm."
Okpara owns five weekly honors from the Ivy League, as he was named the Ivy league Player of the Week on Dec. 26 last season and was a four-time Ivy League Rookie of the Week in 2022-23. He was named Harvard's most improved player in 2024.
A four-star recruit out of high school per ESPN, and a three-star signing from 247 Sports, Rivals and On3, Okpara was a consensus top-seven player from Indiana in the class of 2023 out of the La Lumiere School and a top-25 small forward in the country. He originally chose Harvard over several high major programs.
The second transfer to Stanford in the family, Okpara's sister, Chidimma, played for the Stanford women's tennis team in 2023-24 after spending her first four seasons at Dartmouth.
Okpara is the third incoming transfer under Kyle Smith, joining Oziyah Sellers (USC) and Derin Saran (UC Irvine).