Ime Udoka, Nnamdi Vincent and Jordan Nwora are the only Nigerians in the 2nd round

Memphis Grizzlies defeated Minnesota Timberwolves 114-106 to win the series in game six and officially end the first round of the 2022 NBA Playoffs.

All eight first-round ties have now been decided with eight teams advancing to the second round while the losing eight crashed out.

The first round was littered with Nigerian representation, up to 12 players and one coach with verifiable links to the country represented 10 teams in the first round, here is how they all fared.

Nigerians in the first round

This category focuses on players who are openly Nigerian having represented the country internationally and players with obvious links to the country such as names and have yet to represent any country internationally including Nigeria.

By that description, Miami Heat guard Gabe Nnamdi Vincent, Milwaukee Bucks small forward Jordan Nwora and Boston Celtics head coach Ime Udoka are the only ones who made it into the second round.

While the likes of Precious Achiuwa the Toronto Raptors centre, Josh Okogie, Zeke Nnaji, Ayo Dosunmu, Onyeka Okongwu and Udoka Azubuike were eliminated with their teams.

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Nigerians who won

Gabe Vincent played all five games, starting two of those for the Miami Heat in the 4-1 series win against the Atlanta Hawks. He averaged 25.2 minutes, 8.4 points, 2.4 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 1.2 steals per game on 37.8% field goal shooting.

Jordan Nwora is yet to earn the trust of his coach in these playoffs so far having played three of the five first-round games having only played 13 minutes across the three games combined. 

Ime Udoka was the star of the first round, coaching his Celtics team to a 4-0 series win against the Brooklyn Nets, making it the only sweep in these playoffs so far.

Nigerians who lost

Precious Achiuwa averaged 10 points and 4.2 rebounds per game as Toronto lost in six games to the Philadelphia 76ers. 

Ayo Dosunmu only managed 4 points, 2.6 rebounds and 2.2 assists in five games as the Chicago Bulls lost to the Milwaukee Bucks 4-1.

Onyeka Okongwu was also on the wrong end of a 4-1 result, the young centre averaged just over five points and rebounds each as the Atlanta Hawks fell to Miami Heat.

Zeke Nnaji only played two of the five games and averaged 1.5 points per game as the Denver Nuggets lost 4-1 to the Golden State Warriors.

Josh Okogie played two minutes in one of the six games for the Minnesota Timberwolves as they lost their series 4-2 to the Memphis Grizzlies.

Udoka Azubuike did not play at all as the Utah Jazz big man was injured and was not available to be part of the 4-2 series loss to the Dallas Mavericks.

Players of Nigerian descent

Giannis and Thanasis Antetokounmpo, two Greek internationals of Nigerian descent both advanced to the second round with the Milwaukee Bucks with a 4-1 win against the Chicago Bulls.

Giannis averaged over 28 points and 13 rebounds to set up a second-round tie against the Boston Celtics led by Ime Udoka.

Bam Adebayo and Victor Oladipo, two American internationals with Nigerian roots were pivotal for the Miami Heat in the 4-1 series win against Atlanta Hawks.

They will now face the Philadelphia 76ers in the second round and will have to be at the top of their game to stand any chance.