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Mounir Hima stepped into the unknown when he boarded a plane in his home country of Niger on April 11, 2017. Ultimately bound for New York City’s John F. Kennedy International Airport, it was Hima’s first time both leaving Niger and getting on a plane. He was 15 years old, alone and nervous.

Hima was sold on the idea he could be a star basketball player and attend a prestigious high school in the United States. He didn’t bring much — just a slender 6-foot-8, 170-pound frame, minimal basketball experience and a couple of bags. Hima didn’t even have a house parent to stay with. A basketball coach named Danny Crincoli was waiting at the airport to pick him up, and Hima lived with him for the first two weeks. 

“It was hard for me, being in an environment where you don’t know what people are talking about, and you don’t know what’s happening,” Hima said. “I didn’t even know what a house parent was. Now I see the bigger picture, I understand what was happening.” 

Now, Hima can look back on the incredible five-year stretch that led him to Syracuse, where he’s playing basketball as an untapped 6-foot-11, 230-pound backup center with a 7-foot-8 wingspan. Everything that’s happened since that flight — learning how to play basketball, two severe knee injuries, his brother’s death, learning English and changing high schools and colleges — is all part of his journey. But to Hima, that flight was supposed to happen — maybe not everything since, though, especially playing college basketball. 

“I think me coming to the states is destiny,” Hima said. “(But) I never thought I’d play basketball in my life.”

Hima found basketball when he went to a camp in Niger. A coach proposed he could come to the U.S., persuading Hima’s education-first parents by emphasizing the importance of school. A U.S.-based scout who had seen Hima play contacted Crincoli to see if he’d be interested. Crincoli and Hima talked before the flight and the coach was excited to host him, he said. 

At the airport, Crincoli asked another passenger on Hima’s plane if they had seen him. “Don’t worry about it,” the person told Crincoli, “you can’t miss him.” Crincoli couldn’t — and when he saw Hima, wearing a blue sweatshirt and jeans, he went in for a big hug. Crincoli later showed Hima his new school: St. Mary’s of the Assumption High School in Elizabeth, New Jersey. 

Crincoli’s wife called Hima’s mom the night of his arrival to tell her that her son was in a place where everyone cared about him. Hima said he felt welcome.

Then, Virginia Roriston came into the picture. She had worked with Crincoli, helping two players from Nigeria, Casmir Ochiaka and Calistus Anyichie, come to the U.S. and live with her. Roriston planned on just having one player, but Anyichie begged her to house him, too. And then she met Hima. 

“Intellectually, it made no sense to take him,” Roriston said. “And then when I saw him, and I don’t really know to this day… I can’t even explain it. I just did it.”

Roriston became Hima’s guardian in mid-May 2017. She quickly added him to her health insurance policy and has been there for everything Hima has gone through since. 

Mounir Hima (left) had six other siblings in his host family in the U.S that helped him pursue basketball, including Casmir Ochiaka and Calistus Anyichie as well as Virginia Roriston’s four children. Courtesy of Virginia Roriston

“I still call her my mom, my second mom here,” Hima said. “She’s been here since day one, we’ve been through a lot. She’s very close to me.” 

Hima joined a family that included six other siblings: Anyichie, Ochiaki and Roriston’s four children. Anyichie became a “big brother” to Hima, eventually going to Binghamton for basketball in 2018. Anyichie always made sure Hima ate, didn’t forget his jacket and was on time, Crincoli said. 

Anyichie tragically drowned in July 2019. Hima still concludes every Instagram post with “#RipCali.” 

“I feel that a part of Calistus, after he passed away, is forever in Mounir,” Crincoli says. 

“It was very tough,” Hima said. “It was tough for me to deal with it, for the family to deal with it. But sometimes, that’s part of life.”

In college, Hima chose to wear No. 55, with one numeral representing his five siblings in Niger and the other his five siblings in the U.S. It’s a tribute to what he left on that flight and what he has in the States. 

***

Two months after Hima arrived, he tore his meniscus in an offseason workout. Playing basketball for the first time, Hima was still adapting to the floor and pace of the game, he said. He had surgery June 22 and began rehab. Still, Hima kept smiling, telling Crincoli, “I’m good coach, I’m good coach.” 

Without basketball, Hima adjusted more to life in the U.S. He spent that summer learning English at the New York Language School in Manhattan. He took the train from the Short Hills station near Roriston’s house into the city — something she was nervous about. Roriston took Hima on a dry run, taking photographs of signs and adding arrows to create a pictogram so he could find his way. 

The school helped significantly, Hima said, but he had to keep learning. He already spoke Zarma and Hausa — dialects native to Niger — in addition to French, but English was still tough. Mark Taylor, Hima’s coach at St. Benedict’s High School in New Jersey, said they could communicate in English upon first meeting in 2018, but Hima improved “drastically” over his first year at the school. Hima was fluent by his senior year, Taylor said. 

“It’s just a grind, an ambition to learn faster, an ambition to want to go to school to do great and an ambition to understand what people say around me that helped me pick it up faster,” Hima said.

Hima returned in the fall of 2017 with St. Mary’s junior varsity team. He played sparingly, still learning basic elements like running the floor and jumping, Crincoli said. Hima thought he was a shooter, and once got kicked out of practice by Crincoli for taking a stepback corner 3. 

In April 2018, Hima tore his ACL while playing with the NJ Roadrunners AAU team, having surgery in June. Roriston realized Hima couldn’t short circuit the rehab, meaning he wouldn’t play basketball for a year. 

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After the school year ended, Hima transferred from St. Mary’s to St. Benedict’s —  a prominent program that has sent over 100 players to Division I schools. Hima wanted greater visibility. Crincoli was disappointed, but supported Hima’s decision. 

Hima first visited St. Benedict’s in the summer of 2018. The coaches there knew he wouldn’t play for at least a year, instead focusing on school and rehab. They didn’t mind. Taylor said they accepted Hima less because of his basketball ability and potential — neither of which they had seen — and more because of his outgoing personality.

St. Benedict’s assistant Arthur Pierson knew Hima wasn’t going to play for a while, but his attitude stood out when they first met. Pierson told Taylor they needed to get Hima, even if he was injured. 

“This man is pretty special,” Pierson thought to himself. 

Pierson noticed that Hima was a special athlete during the recovery, since he “perfected” all his rehab. He returned late in his junior season, playing a few possessions to get a feel for the game, but Hima initially struggled to overcome the mental fear of another knee injury, Taylor said. 

Hima was a raw player, but had natural talent, Pierson said. The potential and confidence were there. Toby Okani, a high school and Duquesne teammate, said he had never seen a forward or center bring the ball up himself until he saw Hima do it in a practice.

“You knew he might be the next big thing,” Okani said. “And it’s ridiculous how much he has to grow, and that he’s not anywhere near his peak.”

St. Benedict’s focused on acclimating Hima to the game, working on his defense, rebounding and timing on blocks. Small group drills that focused on post moves, jump hooks and short jumpers, along with 4-on-4 and 3-on-3 drills, helped Hima improve. 

Mounir Hima (left) arrived in New York on April 11, 2017, where Danny Crincoli (right) waited for him at the airport. Crincoli helped support Hima throughout his journey to Syracuse. Courtesy of Virginia Roriston

Hima also had to work on his frame to compete inside. Given his height, Roriston told Hima he should eat 6-8,000 calories a day to gain weight. Roriston’s boys ate in three-hour intervals from 7 a.m to 7 p.m., and Hima needed a minimum of 1,000 calories per meal. Roriston showed Hima how to make protein shakes with MCT oil and peanut butter to sneak in extra calories. She cooked 30-40 pounds of chicken a week for them, too. 

It was hard for Hima to eat that much, but he worked at it. Okani said it was “crazy” seeing how much Hima ate in high school after his ACL injury. Hima ate before and after practice while he hit the weight room frequently, adding 50 pounds since coming to the U.S. 

Hima became a key contributor for St. Benedict’s, which finished as the top team in New Jersey his senior year. He led the team with 16 blocks and was second in rebounds. Hima impressed Pierson with his shot blocking, rim running and finishing abilities despite missing two years with injuries. 

“You could tell he was going to be a player,” Taylor said. 

***

Hima showed enough his senior year to garner D-I attention, collecting offers from several Atlantic 10 schools and committing to Duquesne. 

There was a slight hiccup his first year — since Hima arrived in the U.S. in spring 2017 and hadn’t finished his freshman year of high school, there was a void in his transcript. He didn’t have four years of high school to show the NCAA and had to redshirt. But Hima responded with a 4.0 GPA.

The next season, Hima still didn’t get many opportunities. He averaged less than 10 minutes and two points per game and didn’t start until late February 2022. There was a three-block performance against George Washington, nine points at St. Bonaventure and 10 rebounds versus Davidson, but not consistent minutes. 

“I don’t think the coach gave him enough opportunities, and didn’t utilize what Mounir’s strengths were,” Taylor said. “He played, would do okay, and then he wouldn’t play at all.”

Hima and Okani said they began falling out of love with basketball at Duquesne last year because of the lack of opportunities. Hima was going to stay, Roriston said, but head coach Keith Dambrot told him he would receive similar playing time the next season. A Duquesne spokesman declined to comment, calling Mounir a “wonderful person” who was respected by teammates for his attitude and work ethic. Hima entered the transfer portal on April 26.

Taylor had a close relationship with Syracuse assistant Gerry McNamara and saw a match between Hima’s frame and SU’s 2-3 zone. Frank Anselem had entered the transfer portal, and Bourama Sidibe had graduated, which meant McNamara was looking for a big. 

“Listen,” Taylor told him. “I got the guy.” 

McNamara was the first Power Five coach to call Hima. Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim called right after, telling Hima that SU needed him. Hima got calls from 25 other schools, but Syracuse was the only one he visited. Allen Griffin said the Orange were attracted to Hima because of his size, wingspan and physicality. The coaches told Hima he would get 5-15 minutes a game as Jesse Edwards’ backup. 

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The day after visiting Syracuse in May, Roriston and Hima had visits planned for Brown and Bryant, but Hima told Roriston he wouldn’t commit to Brown even if he liked it. 

So instead of driving to Rhode Island, they went to Roriston’s son Chip’s apartment in Boston, where Hima hopped on a Zoom with Boeheim, Juli Boeheim, McNamara, Adrian Autry and Taylor and Roriston’ son Robert. His commitment was official. 

Coaches have been helping improve Hima’s finishing around the basket, along with positioning and defensive rotations. Griffin wants Hima to just concentrate on cleaning the glass and protecting the rim. The scoring will come, Griffin said. Boeheim doesn’t yell at Hima much, Roriston said, a good thing since the center responds better to teaching. 

“(Boeheim’s) building confidence in this young man. I can see it,” Roriston said. “I could see him shriveling away at Duquesne because the coach didn’t have confidence in him. And I see him standing tall and excelling because Boeheim’s letting him work through stuff.”

The first game where Roriston saw what Hima could be — what the coaches who recruited him over the years hoped he could do — was against St. John’s in November. Hima had seven blocks and eight rebounds in 19 minutes. “Holy crap,” Roriston thought to herself. “This is what I’ve been waiting for.” 

Roriston calls Hima a turtle, alluding to the “Tortoise and the Hare” fable. Hima had a slow start, not picking up a basketball until high school, not knowing English when he came to the U.S., getting set back by two injuries and playing at three schools before arriving at Syracuse. Throughout, Roriston said, Hima’s been surrounded by rabbits while steadily moving along and believing in himself.

After overcoming all of it, Hima has one more challenge in front of him: conquering basketball. When Hima crosses the line, people will wonder how he did it, Roriston said. 

But she knows. 

“I truly believe, and have — even when he was at his lowest — that he was going to be great,” Roriston said.

Published on January 19, 2023 at 12:06 am

Contact Connor: [email protected] | @csmith17_