Kinu Rochford

Kinu Rochford
Personal information
Born(1990-10-26)October 26, 1990
New York City, U.S.
DiedJuly 10, 2026(2026-07-10) (aged 35)
New York City, U.S.
Listed height6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
Listed weight235 lb (107 kg)
Career information
High schoolJames Madison
(Brooklyn, New York, U.S.)
College
Playing career2013–2021
PositionForward
Number3
Career history
2013Aris Leeuwarden
2014Elitzur Yavne
2015ESSM Le Portel
2015–2016Cheshire Phoenix
2016BC Boncourt Red Team
2017Garonne ASPTT
2017Sūduva-Mantinga
2017–2018Plymouth Raiders
2018–2019Þór Þorlákshöfn
2019Hamar
2019Terceira Basket
2021Golden Eagle Ylli
Career highlights

Kinu Ashton Rochford (October 26, 1990 – July 10, 2026) was an American basketball player. He played college basketball for Globe Tech and Fairleigh Dickinson before embarking on a professional career in 2013. In 2017, he won the NKL championship with Garonne Sūduva-Mantinga. Playing the forward position, he led the Icelandic Úrvalsdeild karla in rebounds during the 2018–2019 season. He also played professionally in France, Kosovo, Israel, Netherlands, United Kingdom and Switzerland.

Early life

Rochford was born in Brooklyn in New York City to Eden Rochford and Wayne Noel. He was one of three triplets, along with his sister Kye, and a brother, Kairo.[1]

High school

Rochford attended James Madison High School in Brooklyn where he averaged 10 points and 10 rebounds as a senior.[2]

College career

After receiving no Division I scholarship offers, Rochford played for Globe Institute of Technology for two years, where he averaged 14 points and 14 rebounds per game while earning the Region XV Player of the Year honors as a sophomore.[2] He transferred to Fairleigh Dickinson in 2011 on the behest of Fairleigh's head coach Greg Vetrone. During his first season with the school, Rochford posted modest numbers of 9.3 points and 6.8 rebounds per game. During his senior season, he was moved to the center positions and transformed into one of the best players of the Northeast Conference.[3] For the season he averaged 14.7 points and 8.9 rebounds in 27 games.

Professional career

Rochford's first professional stop was in 2013 with Aris Leeuwarden in the Dutch Basketball League where he averaged 12.2 points and 7.8 rebounds in 10 games. In March 2014, he joined Elitzur Yavne of the Israeli second division. In 10 games he averaged a team leading 21.3 points and 11.2 rebounds.[4]

In 2015, Rochford signed with ESSM Le Portel of the LNB Pro B, replacing injured Claude Marquis.[5] In 22 games for Le Portel, he averaged 10.6 points and 5.6 rebounds per game.

Rochford spent the 2016–2017 season with Cheshire Phoenix in the British Basketball League. He was named the BBL Player of the Month in January after averaging 17.8 points and 14.0 rebounds per game.[6] For the season, he averaged 19.6 points and 10.2 rebounds per game.

In 2016, Rochford joined Saint-Chamond Basket of the LNB Pro B. He left the club in middle of September, prior to the start of the season.[7][8] In October 2016, he signed with BC Boncourt Red Team of the Swiss Basketball League where he averaged 13.0 points and 6.4 rebounds in 7 games before being released in end of November. In January 2017, he joined Sūduva-Mantinga of the Lithuanian National Basketball League[9] where he averaged 11.2 points and 5.4 rebounds in 22 games, helping the team repeat as NKL champions.[10]

In August 2017, he signed with Garonne ASPTT of the French NM2.[11]

In October 2017, Rochford returned to the BBL and signed with Plymouth Raiders.[12] In February 2018, Rochford was released. In 14 games for the Raiders, he averaged 12.5 points and 8.9 rebounds per game.

In September 2018, Rochford moved to the Icelandic Úrvalsdeild karla and signed with Þór Þorlákshöfn[13] where he quickly became one of the league's best players.[14] On 1 April 2019, Rochford scored 23 points in the fifth and deciding game of Þór's 3–2 upset against Tindastóll in the first round of the playoffs. With 7 seconds left of the game, he helped steal an inbound pass from Tindastóll that led to Halldór Garðar Hermannsson scoring the game winning basket with 2 seconds left.[15] In the semi-finals, Þór lost to KR 1–3.[16] During the regular season, he averaged 19.1 points and led the league with 12.2 rebounds per game.[17]

He continued his career in Iceland the following season, signing with 1. deild karla club Hamar in September 2019.[18] On 17 October, he posted seasons high 27 points and 20 rebounds in a victory against Breiðablik. After only four games, where he averaged 11.8 points and 9.3 rebounds, Hamar released Rochford from his contract.[19]

In December 2019, he joined Terceira Basket where he averaged 11.8 points and 10.2 rebounds in 6 games. His last professional stint was with Golden Eagle Ylli in the Kosovo Basketball Superleague in 2021.[20]

Later life and death

Following his basketball career, Rochford worked as a coordinator for WIN, a homeless service provider in New York City.[21]

Rochford was shot and killed on July 10, 2026, at the age of 35, during a basketball tournament in Harlem, New York City. The shooting also wounded two other people.[22][23] The days after his death, several of his former teams[24][25][26][27] and teammates paid tribute,[28] and New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani tweeted his condolences for his family.[29] On July 12, hundreds of people attended his vigil in Brooklyn, New York.[30]

Career statistics

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high

College

Source[31]

* Led Northeast Conference
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2011–12 Farleigh Dickinson 291925.5.559.000.4796.81.0.8.99.3
2012–13 Farleigh Dickinson 272429.0.592*–.6738.9*2.0.71.314.7
Career 564327.2.578.000.5937.81.4.81.111.9

Professional

Source[32][33]

* Led league
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2018–19 Þór Þorlákshöfn 222230.5.568.250.68112.2*3.91.41.419.1
2019–20 Hamar 4421.0.459.250.8009.33.5.50.311.8

References

  1. ↑ "Kinu Rochford - 2012-13 - Men's Basketball". FDU Knights Athletics. Retrieved 2026-07-12.
  2. 1 2 Joseph Staszewski (9 August 2012). "FDU, James Madison standout Rochford on long road to success". New York Post. Retrieved 13 January 2019.
  3. ↑ Howie Kussoy (12 January 2013). "Rochford blossoms at Fairleigh". New York Post. Retrieved 13 January 2019.
  4. ↑ "Elitzur Yavne basketball stats, results, box score, scout report and video online". Scouting4u.com. Archived from the original on 13 January 2019. Retrieved 13 January 2019.
  5. ↑ "Basket - Pro B : Kinu Rochford remplace Claude Marquis au Portel (VIDÉO)". La Voix du Nord (in French). 29 January 2015. Retrieved 13 January 2019.
  6. ↑ Dave Powell (3 February 2016). "Cheshire Phoenix star Kinu Rochford named BBL Player of the Month". Cheshire Live. Retrieved 13 January 2019.
  7. ↑ "Kinu Rochford quitte le SCB". Le Progrès (in French). 16 September 2016. Retrieved 13 January 2019.
  8. ↑ "Saint-Chamond se sépare de Kinu Rochford". bebasket.fr (in French). 15 September 2016. Archived from the original on 13 January 2019. Retrieved 13 January 2019.
  9. ↑ "Kinu Rochfordas: apie nustebinusį krepšinį Lietuvoje ir pažintį su garsiais NBA žaidėjais". basketnews.lt (in Lithuanian). 23 February 2017. Retrieved 13 January 2019.
  10. ↑ "Tritaškiais prapliupusi "Sūduva-Mantinga" apgynė Mezon-NKL čempionų titulą". basketnews.lt (in Lithuanian). 22 April 2017. Retrieved 13 January 2019.
  11. ↑ "L'ancien du Portel Kinu Rochford signe à Garonne". bebasket.fr (in French). 4 August 2017. Archived from the original on 13 January 2019. Retrieved 13 January 2019.
  12. ↑ "Raiders add Kinu Rochford to complete recruitment puzzle". bbl.org.uk. 10 October 2017. Retrieved 13 January 2019.
  13. ↑ Ólafur Þór Jónsson (15 September 2018). "Kinu Rochford til liðs við Þór Þorlákshöfn". Karfan.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 13 January 2019.
  14. ↑ Anton Ingi Leifsson (12 January 2019). "Var algjörlega búinn á því, lagðist í gólfið og fékk þrúgusykur frá sjúkraþjálfaranum". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 13 January 2019.
  15. ↑ Jóhann Ingi Hafþórsson (1 April 2019). "Þór áfram eftir lygilega endurkomu". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). Retrieved 1 April 2019.
  16. ↑ Ingvi Þór Sæmundsson (19 April 2019). "Rochford útskýrir sósufagnið". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 21 April 2019.
  17. ↑ "Úrvalsdeild karla Domino's deild karla (2018-2019 Tímabil) - Tölfræði". kki.is (in Icelandic). Icelandic Basketball Association. Retrieved 21 April 2019.
  18. ↑ Davíð Eldur (26 September 2019). "Kinu Rochford í Blómabæinn". Karfan.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 26 September 2019.
  19. ↑ Henry Birgir Gunnarsson (30 October 2019). "Kinu látinn fara frá Hamri". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 30 October 2019.
  20. ↑ "Kinu Rochford Player Profile, Fairleigh Dickinson - RealGM". basketball.realgm.com. Retrieved 2026-07-11.
  21. ↑ Dean Moses; Robert Pozarycki (12 July 2026). "Police seek witnesses in Harlem shooting of basketball star Kinu Rochford". amNY. Retrieved 12 July 2026.
  22. ↑ Valur Páll Eiríksson (11 July 2026). "Kinu Rochford sagður myrtur". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 11 July 2026.
  23. ↑ Thomas Tracy (11 July 2026). "European basketball player Kinu Rochford killed as bullets fly at Harlem basketball tournament". New York Daily News. Retrieved 11 July 2026.
  24. ↑ Charlotte Cox (16 July 2026). "Raiders chair 'devastated' by former player's death". BBC. Retrieved 12 July 2026.
  25. ↑ "FDU Mourns the Passing of Former Men's Basketball Player Kinu Rochford". FDU Knights Athletics. 2026-07-11. Retrieved 2026-07-13.
  26. ↑ "Körfuknattleiksdeild Þórs í Þorlákshöfn kveður í dag góðan dreng og fyrrum leikmann liðsins, Kinu Rochford, með miklum trega" (in Icelandic). Þór Þorlákshöfn. 11 July 2026. Retrieved 13 July 2026 – via Facebook.com.
  27. ↑ "With great sadness, news coming from the US that our hugely popular former player, Kinu Rochford, tragically lost his life yesterday". Plymouth Raiders. 11 July 2026. Retrieved 13 July 2026 – via Facebook.com.
  28. ↑ Ingvi Þór Sæmundsson (14 July 2026). "Minnist Kinu Rochford: „Einn af þeim eftirminnilegri sem maður hefur verið með í liði"". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 16 July 2026.
  29. ↑ "Ex-Ellesmere Port basketball star dies in New York as tributes paid". Chester and District Standard. 2026-07-12. Retrieved 2026-07-13.
  30. ↑ Naveen Dhaliwal (12 July 2026). "Hundreds attend vigil for man killed in Harlem basketball tournament shooting". CBS News. Retrieved 13 July 2026.
  31. ↑ "Kinu Rochford College Stats". College Basketball at Sports Reference. Retrieved 12 July 2026.
  32. ↑ "Kinu Rochford Úrvalsdeild Stats". Körfustatt.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 12 July 2026.
  33. ↑ "1. deild karla (2019-2020 Tímabil) Kinu Rochford Stats". Icelandic Basketball Federation (in Icelandic). Retrieved 12 July 2026.
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