2020-21 Player Preview: Yvonne Ejim

The Canadian pipeline of Gonzaga players has added another gem in 6’1 forward Yvonne Ejim. The Calgary, Alberta native will join fellow Canadian Louise Forsyth already on the roster and follows in the footsteps of Emma Wolfram (2018) and Jenelle Bekkering (2011 Elite Eight member).

Not only did Ejim have a prolific high school career, but she also spent time on the Canadian National Team in FIBA tournaments. During the Summer of 2018, she put together a nice performance at the U17 competition, averaging 6.9 points and 6.9 rebounds. As a junior at the high school, she averaged an eye-popping 24.8 points on an efficient 56.4 percent shooting to go with 15.5 rebounds, 3.5 assists, and 4.3 steals. Those numbers were good enough to win the honor of Miss Basketball Alberta. She is one of the more prolific scorers coming out of Canada in this class.

Ejim has the ability to play all over the floor. She has the handles of a guard, but the body and length of a forward. In all likelihood, she will slot in as a post player offensively with the chance to guard pretty much anyone based on match-ups defensively. She rebounds the heck out of the ball and works really well in ball screens.

When someone with that kind of scoring prowess enters college, you would expect them to find minutes right away. The problem is that this Gonzaga team has a ridiculous amount of returning talent. The Wirth twins will start at the two forward spots and their top back-up, Melody Kempton, averaged 20 minutes a season ago. True center Ana Virjoghe is looking to expand on her limited role and Eliza Hollingsworth is coming off a redshirt season. There is a ton of competition for front court minutes and it’s hard to imagine Ejim carving a huge role. But with her athleticism and ability to score, along with Coach Fortier’s willingness to play through her post players, Ejim could be next in line as Gonzaga’s premier forward after the Wirths graduate.