Being part of Boeheim’s Army in the TBT Tournament gave former Syracuse and NBA big man Arinze Onuaku a timely platform.
The 5-on-5 grand prize tournament, which has featured current and former pros such as Onuaku, inspired Syracuse fans to support when the Boeheim’s Army team surfaced with rosters full of former ‘Cuse standouts.
Onuaku designed some shirts for fans supporting the team during the tournament, which then turned into general interest for more shirts and hoodies when the tournament was over. He started coming up with more designs, slogans, and positive affirmations both for hoopers and the everyday person that could go onto clothes.
This includes The Walking Bucket hoodie, a popular term for which he crafted his own distinct definition.
The demand led him to create his own clothing line and collection. That and the challenge of finding fits for a 6’9, 265-pound man.
You can check out Arinze’s online collection here.
Onuaku was the 52nd player in Syracuse men’s basketball history to score 1,000 career points.
He was a member of the 2008 team that played in the legendary six-overtime game against UConn in the Big East Tournament.
I caught up with Arinze to talk about his brand and vision, including the inspiration he gets from his first-generation Nigerian parents, and a lot more. Watch the full interview below on YouTube.
