Savannah State alum Ezinne Kalu’s WNBA debut followed years of work toward dream

When Savannah State University alumna Ezinne Kalu made her WNBA debut in September, becoming the first athlete from a historically Black college to play in the league in over 15 years, it reinforced her long-held belief: Delayed does not mean denied.

It’s a phrase that has guided Kalu since she went undrafted out of college in 2015 and spent nearly a decade playing overseas in Portugal, Germany and France. After leading D’Tigress, Nigeria’s national women’s basketball team, to the quarterfinals of the 2024 Paris Games in August and showcasing her playing abilities on an international stage, she finally got the chance to fulfill her lifelong dream.

She signed a seven-day hardship contract with the Atlanta Dream on Sept. 17 and scored the first basket of her WNBA career against the New York Liberty on Sept. 19. Before Kalu, the last time an HBCU alum played in the WNBA was 2008, when Howard University forward Andrea Gardner played with the Washington Mystics.

“I’m always a firm believer in when your numbers call, you go ahead and answer that phone,” Kalu told Andscape. “I just happened to be ready, and it was a really good experience. Everything just came full circle with me being from Jersey. I had so many family members come out to the game, and it was exciting.”

Kalu, a 32-year-old rookie in the league, calls her three-game stint with the Atlanta Dream a blessing.

“Once I got my first WNBA basket, the girls made me feel right at home,” she said. “They were so hyped and amped up, and we had a special moment in the locker room, throwing water on me for the first basket. Just being in that moment and [to] have that experience is so indescribable.”

As a native of Newark, New Jersey, she grew up admiring the Rutgers University women’s basketball program, led at the time by Basketball Hall of Fame coach C. Vivian Stringer. One of Kalu’s favorite players was alumna Cappie Pondexter, then a point guard with the New York Liberty.

“I watched the girls that really got out the mud, Epiphanny Prince [and] Cappie Pondexter. Cappie was my favorite. Watching her play for Rutgers and then playing for the Liberty, it was just a sight to see, and I mimic my game, the intensity, the passion from her,” Kalu said. “We follow each other on Instagram. I tell her to this day how she’s still the inspiration because I don’t feel like people get their flowers. She was one of the key people I watched growing up.”

Kalu played volleyball before gravitating to basketball during high school. She received interest from regional schools for college, but during her official visit to Savannah State, she met NFL Hall of Famer Shannon Sharpe. The encounter solidified her decision to go to an HBCU.

“I didn’t know what HBCU was until I got to high school,” Kalu said. “So going to Savannah State and then experiencing all those things, being around people who look like me, having teachers who look like me, being a part of sports where athletics is such a big deal for HBCUs and just having my teammates … made me feel like I was at home.”

Savannah State women’s basketball coach Cedric Baker said Kalu was a student of the game who never shied away from the weight room and thoroughly read through scouting reports. In 2015, her preparation helped her lead the Tigers to their only Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference tournament championship, Baker said.

“It takes a special person to be that first. … She was just determined, a great teammate, a very sweet and magnetic personality,” Baker said. “However, she did hold her teammates accountable on both ends, defensively and offensively.”

Kalu spent five seasons at Savannah State, becoming the university’s first and only women’s basketball player to score 2,000 points in her collegiate career. 

Baker, who has kept up with Kalu’s career since, said he has seen improvements in her game, such as her ball handling and mid-range shot. 

“Coming from small institutions, we probably have to work twice as hard just to get a fair look or an opportunity,” Baker said. “So I think she’s always been grateful for the opportunity but also knowing that there are a lot of cards stacked against her as well.”

While at Savannah State, Kalu also represented the Nigerian junior national team before working her way up to captain the senior national team in 2016. Since then, Kalu has watched the senior national team grow and change with new and younger talent on the roster.

When D’Tigress coach Rena Wakama took over the team in June 2023, she and Kalu discovered they were the same age. They first met at a combine during their senior year of college. Despite coming off of a season-ending knee injury in 2021, Kalu was able to work her way back to full strength and provide the veteran leadership that Wakama believed the team needed.

“She brought exactly what I was looking for to the table. I told her before she came to the first practice I was looking for a vet, leadership, determination, grit. I’m looking for someone that is literally an extension of me on a court,” Wakama said. “She embodied that from start to finish. … My guards have to be the toughest ones on the court. She’s got that.”

Kalu averaged 18.5 points in the Paris Games, fourth best in points per game behind WNBA players Emma Meesseman, Satou Sabally and A’ja Wilson.

As talented as Kalu was on the court, her teammates and coaches said her infectious personality in the locker room helped younger players get acclimated to international basketball. Her teammates nicknamed her Granny.

“She’s just such a threat on the court with how aggressive she is, how relentless she is,” Nigerian national team player Lauren Ebo said. “They were probably a little shocked by her, because she’s small. I definitely look up to her, like, she carries herself with pride, and she knows what she can bring. 

“She is such a veteran, and it’s actually really easy to build that connection with her. Even off the court, where my emotions get the best of me about something, she understands, and she knew how to handle it. She made it easier to deal with that kind of stress.”

Kalu laughs when she hears “Granny” as a nickname, but she embraces it, knowing it takes her 20 minutes to warm up before practice and she needs additional bags of ice for post-practice recovery. Kalu said she has learned how to take better care of her body as she gets older, especially after suffering an ACL tear in college and another knee injury playing professionally. 

According to Kalu, her resilience has made her who she is today.

“I’ve been through so much physically, mentally, just really staying the course and using my strength, my desire and passion for the game I love as a way to propel me,” Kalu said. “No matter what, through all the injuries, through all the family issues or just whatever I’m going through, just really staying 10 toes down in what I’m doing.” 

At only 5-feet-8, Kalu sometimes has to guard players nearly four inches taller than her. According to Wakama, Kalu is fearless and hustles the entire game, regardless of her opponent’s height.

“She just showed up to work every single day and just continued to play hard as hell,” Wakama said. “That kind of inspired me, like, ‘Hey, doesn’t matter what’s happening, just do your best and the rest will take care of itself.’ So her heart and will carried our team.”

Wakama congratulated Kalu when she signed with the Dream, and Baker and Savannah State’s women’s basketball players watched Kalu’s debut game with pride.

“I strive to be an inspiration for the people that look like me, that went to an [HBCU] like how I did,” Kalu said. “When people think of HBCUs, they’re not the first school they want to go to for athletics. It’s always the top, top, top schools, the schools that you see on TV. Personally for me [representing HBCUs] is a cape I don’t mind wearing. 

“The moment didn’t come right then and there, but for it to come full circle now, I am definitely ready [for] the next moment for my number to be called.”