[The following scouting report is part of a series on potential 2025 draft prospects from Sports Business Classroom alumni.]

Clifford Omoruyi
Frame: 6’11”,  240 lbs
Position: Center
School: Alabama
2025 Draft Age: 23
Stats via kenpom.com, sports-reference.com, and geniussports.com

Offense

After four seasons at Rutgers in the Big Ten, Omoruyi found himself in a new role with the Alabama Crimson Tide this past season. He saw his lowest playing time and usage rate since his freshman year (2020-2021), playing less than half the game and primarily looking to do two things only on the offensive end: finishing off plays around the rim and creating second chances on the glass. That said, Omoruyi thrived in this role, posting his most efficient individual season in his collegiate career (top-5 percent nationally in overall offensive efficiency on low usage—making the most of his opportunities). It’s also worth pointing out that he did this on a top-10 offense in the country that played at the fastest overall tempo and faced a top-5 collection of defenses (third nationally in defensive strength of schedule). Omorui can play with pace and has gone against some of the best competition college can offer.

As a scorer, 95 percent of his shots this season came directly at the rim for the nation’s highest rim shot volume. He rarely took a shot outside the paint, and he rarely took one outside five to six feet from the hoop. These shots were primarily a result of two actions: assisted baskets from teammates (rolls, lobs, rim runs, etc.) or putbacks from second chances. He isn’t a self-creator when it comes to finding looks, but he was a dominant play finisher—converting over 73 percent of his rim shots; the highest rate of his career, the highest rate in the SEC, and a top-10 mark in the country. Omoruyi hardly ever looked to take a shot away from the rim, so the free-throw line was the only other area where he found scoring. His activity down low got him there fairly often, where he had by far the best free-throw shooting season of his career (73 percent vs. 62 percent career). The combination of never taking jump shots, only taking highly efficient rim shots, and converting his trips to the line made him one of the nation’s most efficient bigs/players.

Omoruyi’s main job outside of finishing off assisted rim shots was earning back second chances for the Tide on the offensive glass, which he did at a solid 14 percent offensive rebound rate in conference play (fourth highest in the SEC). He was an aggressive and successful offensive rebounder on any and all missed shots, who found a high volume of highly efficient putback attempts (finishing these looks at a 70 percent rate and drawing a lot of fouls as well in doing so).

Defense

This past season at Alabama, Omoruyi played for an average SEC defense; however, the Tide still ranked in the top-25 in defensive efficiency as a team, and they played the number-one toughest offensive strength of schedule in the country. Moreover, they were better on the defensive end with Omoruyu on the floor. He is battle-tested and has proven to be an impactful interior defender year after year against quality competition.

Omoruyu has used his natural gifts of size, length, and athleticism to dominate the paint on defense, finishing in the top-10 percent nationally each of the last three seasons in block rate and defensive rebound rate. While he has consistently been effective in both areas throughout his career, he has become an elite rebounder more often and more recently. Omoruyi posted a 20 percent defensive rebound rate or higher in all five collegiate seasons. This past season at Alabama, he finished as the number two rebounder in the SEC (good for top-100 nationally). He was severely impactful on any missed shot types and made the Tide’s overall team rebounding better. 

Omoruyi had his least effective season this past year as a shot blocker since his freshman season. He still finished in the top 10 percent nationally with a 5.2 percent block rate. However, he was equally foul-prone this season at a high 5.5 percent foul rate. Notably, this was the first season since 2020-2021 that his foul rate was higher than his block rate. Just two seasons ago (2023-2024) at Rutgers, Omoruyi was deemed one of the best shot blockers in college basketball, posting a 12.7 percent block rate while committing a 4.2 percent foul rate. The differing play styles and roles between Alabama and Rutgers probably had a lot to do with this, but at the end of the day, he presents as a capable and potentially game-changing rim protector.

Looking Ahead

As for now, Omoruyi poses as a reasonably stereotypical energy big/center. He has proven himself at the highest level of college basketball as a strong rim finisher and dominant two-way rebounder, but his greatest value may come from his rim protection. His elite size and athleticism aren’t going anywhere, so there’s no reason to believe that his abilities to finish around the rim, clean the glass, and block shots won’t translate to the next level. The question is how much more can be added to his game? And can he make this same level of impact on the interior as a role player in the NBA? If all things go right, potential players’ comps could be guys like Nick Richards or Jarrett Allen on the high end.