Kebu Stewart
Kebu Omar Stewart | |
|---|---|
| Born | December 19, 1973 United States |
| Occupation(s) | Former professional basketball player, college basketball assistant coach |
| Years active | 1997–2008 (player) |
| Known for | Professional basketball career including NBA and international play; assistant coach at Occidental College |
Kebu Omar Stewart (born December 19, 1973) is a former professional basketball athlete from the United States who now works as an assistant coach in college basketball. His playing career included a short tenure in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as well as extensive experience competing internationally.
High school and college career
During his high school years, Stewart distinguished himself as a prolific scorer at renowned programs such as Oak Hill Academy and Our Saviour Lutheran in the Bronx, where he averaged close to 36 points per game and received honorable mention All American recognition in the 1991–92 season.
He initially committed to UNLV but was unable to compete his freshman year due to academic ineligibility, resulting in a redshirt season. When he became eligible in January of the 1993–94 season, he played for the Runnin' Rebels, earning the distinction of Big West Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Year—the first freshman ever to receive this award—while posting averages of 19 points and 12 rebounds per contest. Following reported disagreements with the coaching staff, Stewart was suspended and subsequently transferred to Division II Cal State Bakersfield. There, he achieved Division II Player of the Year and California Collegiate Athletic Association Player of the Year honors during his senior year, leading his team to an NCAA Division II national title and topping Division II rebounding charts with an average of 13.4 rebounds per game in 1996–97.
Professional career
Selected in the second round of the 1997 NBA draft by the Philadelphia 76ers, Stewart appeared in 15 games during the 1997–98 NBA season, averaging 2.7 points and 2.1 rebounds per outing. He then competed with the Sioux Falls Skyforce in the Continental Basketball Association (CBA) from 1998 through 2000, earning All-CBA First Team accolades in 2000.
Stewart’s international career launched with Hapoel Jerusalem in Israel for the 2000–01 season, followed by engagements with Russian clubs Avtodor Saratov and UNICS between 2001 and 2003. Brief periods with Poland’s Prokom Trefl Sopot and Spain’s Adecco Estudiantes preceded his late-2003 signing with Serbia and Montenegro’s NIS Vojvodina. After two seasons there, he joined Italy’s Vertical Vision Cantù for the 2005–06 campaign. The following year saw him split time between South Korea’s Seoul SK Knights and Serbia’s Crvena zvezda. Stewart concluded his professional playing career midway through the 2007–08 season with Latvia’s Barons/LMT Rīga.
Coaching career
Currently, Stewart holds an assistant coaching position at Occidental College, a member of the NCAA Division III located in Los Angeles, California.