Joe Mvuezolo Jr: Sheffield Sharks sign ex-Surrey Scorchers and Leicester Riders forward

The 25 year old from London most recently represented Dragons Rhoendorf in Germany’s third tier and has also had spells in Austria, with Ece Bulls Kapfenberg, and Spain, where he played for CB Moron and Algeciras in the country’s third division.

He becomes the seventh player to commit to Sheffield Sharks for the 2021/22 season after Aaron Anderson, Marcus Delpeche, Mike Tuck, Jordan Ratinho, Nate Montgomery and Oscar Baldwin agreed one-year deals.

Sheffield Sharks head coach Atiba Lyons said: “Joe can play on both ends of the floor, has talent as a solid defender from the help side and is a great rim protector.

“His signing gives us size, athleticism and depth, which are attributes that will prove invaluable to us in the coming season.”

Lyons has targeted height and athleticism as two areas to improve this year as he bids to improve on last term’s fifth spot and first round Play Off exit.

Mvuezolo, who stands at 6ft 6ins, honed his skills at London’s Barking Abbey Basketball Academy before heading off to Montana State University in America.

He also featured for London City Royals in 2019 during their brief stint in the British Basketball League (BBL).

Sheffield Sharks begin the new season against Cheshire Phoenix at Ponds Forge on Friday, 24 September before travelling to Scotland to take on Glasgow Rocks two days later.

The club has organised three friendlies before the start of the season, including one at Ponds Forge.