The Bristol Flyers guard spoke to The Mirror ahead of GB's crunch EuroBasket Qualifiers against Germany and France later this month and reflected on a career that has taken him to the US and Europe and back to the UK.
And he recalled his introduction to the sport through an outdoor session with mum Natasha Hart, who went on to form the Newham All Star Sports Academy (NASSA) to provide basketball opportunities for kids.
“I went to the park with my mum and brother,” he said. “We just started playing basketball, some kids started joining us and it all went from there.
“My mum embraced it a lot too. She saw how many kids loved to play the game, how it could have a positive impact on their lives, and we just got into it from there.”
If, as expected, Okereafor plays against Germany and France, he will match the record of 49 consecutive GB games set by Bill McInnes in 1976.
“That’s something I’ll always take a lot of pride in,” he said. “GB is my favourite team to play for, just purely because the pride you have playing for your country is something you can’t compare to anything else.”
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