Top Minnesota basketball players flock to see the ‘Nigerian Footwork Master’

On the same outdoor courts in Nigeria where they played basketball mimicking their idol Hakeem Olajuwon, Peter Arigu and Masai Ujiri returned years later to teach the game and help build better facilities for youth in their home country.

Arigu was so drawn to the moves that Olajuwon used to become an NBA superstar that he made teaching those techniques a lifelong mission overseas and now in Minnesota.

“He’s very passionate about footwork and loves working with kids,” said Ujiri, Arigu’s longtime friend and an NBA champion as president of the Toronto Raptors.

At Lifetime Fitness in St. Louis Park, Arigu can be seen each week passing on his knowledge of the lost art of footwork — and he’s trained players from the NBA, college, high school and youth levels in Minnesota and across the country.

“I have an old school way of teaching,” said Arigu, who played youth basketball in Nigeria and in junior college with Ujiri in North Dakota. “If you have good footwork, you can play this game.”

The nickname “Nigerian footwork master” stuck for the 49-year-old former small college basketball forward. His son, Isaiah Johnson-Arigu, benefitted from his father’s expertise and won a state title at Totino-Grace. He recently transferred from Miami (Fla.) to Iowa in the Big Ten.

“Even in the NBA, you see guys like Nikola Jokic, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Luka Doncic do more with their feet,” Isaiah said. “Doing that stuff that he teaches is amazing because it gets you to create space without having to do too much with the ball.”

Arigu’s been praised for his work with frontcourt players, including Creighton freshman Jackson McAndrew, last year’s Minnesota Mr. Basketball at Wayzata. He’s been recently working with Ryan Kreager from Faribault and Ahmed Nur and Erma Walker from Hopkins boys and girls teams.

St. Louis Park twins Micah and Marley Curtis credit Arigu for helping them go from unknown prospects to committing to play Division I basketball at North Dakota.

“At first it was about learning the moves and perfecting it,” Micah said. “But then you start seeing those opportunities in the game and they’re real. We’re not playing with the ball. We’re getting straight to our moves. That’s how it’s going to be now and at the next level.”

Calling for no more than 1-2 dribbles, Arigu instructs players through a variety of pivots, jabs, drop steps and spins. He won’t switch to different counter moves until they get the footwork right and finish consistently, which can be helpful to guards, wings and post players.

“Footwork was so popular when I was a kid,” Arigu said. “I saw when Hakeem came back to Nigeria to run camps. Because he helped pave the way for so many Africans, people there watched him and learned the footwork. And Hakeem’s little brother was a childhood friend.”

With the Raptors organization, Ujiri has witnessed firsthand how the professional game has grown with international influence, but he also remembers when Arigu followed him from Nigeria to the U.S. to play basketball in the mid-1990s.

At Bismarck State in North Dakota, Arigu played with Ujiri for two years. After finishing his career at the NAIA level at Cumberland in Kentucky in 2000, Arigu landed a job through Ujiri with NBA Africa and the Basketball Without Borders program. Arigu thrived in the role for 15 years.

“It was great seeing him develop a coaching niche,” Ujiri said. “Those camps pay a unique attention to the youth in Africa. ... Everybody gravitates toward the camps, the kids, the community work and how it affects a lot of the youth on the continent. We were all grateful for it. And I can see why it was an inspiration for him.”

Hundreds of Minnesota ballers have adopted the footwork Arigu perfected overseas for years, but his proudest pupil was his own son.

“He would always show me videos of Hakeem when I was younger,” Isaiah said. “I said that it was old school and I’d never do it in games, but then I started doing it after I took training more seriously.”

Isaiah said he didn’t begin to religiously train with his father until transferring from Osseo to Totino-Grace as a sophomore. He then won back-to-back Class 3A state titles and became a four-star prospect in the 2024 class before signing with Miami.

In late December, Hurricanes coach Jim Larrañaga retired. That led to Isaiah entering the portal and transferring to Iowa, where he’s expecting to sit out after enrolling in the second semester. Arigu sees his son’s best years in college are ahead with all their focus on footwork.

“I remember teaching Isaiah in the neighborhood by himself, every day spending time doing the same things over and over,” Arigu said. “There’s nobody like him at Iowa with that kind of skills.”

Five Minnesota ballers who stood out:

Steven Crowl, Wisconsin

The 7-foot senior from Eagan had his second straight 18-point game Friday in the Badgers' resounding 80-59 win against the Gophers in Madison. He also had 18 points and 10 rebounds in a win vs. Rutgers.

Maddyn Greenway, Providence Academy

In a highly anticipated matchup with Minnehaha Academy last week, Greenway outscored fellow 2025 standout Addi Mack 51-39 in the individual battle, but also came out with the 99-78 victory.

Lauren Hillesheim , Hopkins

The 5-11 senior led the No. 2 Class 4A Royals with 19 points in an 83-66 win last Friday against No. 1 Class 4A Eden Prairie, which halted a 12-game winning streak.

Curtis Jones, Iowa State

The 6-5 senior and former Cretin-Derham Hall guard had his third 20-point performance in the last four games with a team-high 26 points Saturday to help the Cyclones overcome a 13-point deficit in an 85-84 overtime win vs. Texas Tech.

Alyssa Ustby, North Carolina

The 6-1 Rochester native recorded her fourth straight double-double for North Carolina with 10 points and 12 rebounds in a 53-46 overtime win against No. 14 Duke.

400 Career wins milestone for Gophers women’s basketball coach Dawn Plitzuweit, who has the Gophers in the top 25 for the first time since 2019 in her second season.

119 Single-game scoring record in Division I for St. Thomas to start Summit League play 4-0 after a win vs. South Dakota.

36.5 Scoring average for former Illinois standout and Timberwolves rookie Terrence Shannon Jr., in NBA G League play for the Iowa Wolves. Unfortunately, he will miss the next two to four weeks with a foot injury.

9.5 Turnovers per game for the Gophers women ranking fewest in the country.

3.5 Seconds left on the clock when Taven Jenkins caught an inbounds pass and nailed a half-court buzzer-beater for Chanhassen in a 75-72 win last week over rival Chaska.

Basketball Across Minnesota will be published weekly on startribune.com. Don’t be a stranger on X after reading, as chatting about these stories makes them even more fun to share. Thanks, Marcus (@Marcus_R_Fuller on X).