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Kelechi Okoroha, MD

MN Timberwolves Team Doctor

May Clinic Sports Medicine


Kelechi R. Okoroha MD is a fellowship‐trained orthopedic surgeon specializing in sports medicine, joint preservation and cartilage restoration of the hip, knee, shoulder and elbow. He provides minimally‐invasive, state‐of‐the‐art non‐surgical and surgical treatments for his patients. He has a strong research background in the management of injuries in the non‐elite and elite athlete including NBA, NFL and MLB players. He also has research interest in pain management following surgery and ways to reduce opioids postoperatively. Dr. Okoroha has specialized training and technical expertise in the areas of complex hip, knee and shoulder injuries including hip preservation surgery, cartilage/meniscus restoration surgery, ligament reconstruction surgery and shoulder replacement surgery.

Dr. Okoroha was born in Houston and was a competitive basketball player growing up. He earned his undergraduate degree with a major in Molecular and Cellular Biology and a minor in chemistry at Xavier University of Louisiana while serving as a team captain of their competitive basketball team. He subsequently earned his medical degree (MD) at Howard University College of Medicine in Washington D.C. and completed his Orthopedic Surgery Residency at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit Michigan where he served as the Chief resident. He was then selected and completed a specialized sports medicine fellowship at the renowned Rush University Medical Center in Chicago Illinois. While in Chicago, Dr. Okoroha served as a team physician and was involved in medical and surgical care of the Chicago Bulls, Chicago White Sox, Chicago Fire, Chicago Steel, DePaul University as well as a variety of local colleges and high schools. 

Currently Dr. Okoroha serves as an Assistant Professor in Orthopaedic Surgery and is an Orthopedic Sports Medicine Surgeon at the Mayo Clinic Health System. Mayo Clinic Sports Medicine serves as the official team physicians for the Minnesota Timberwolves and Minnesota Lynx. Dr. Okoroha has published over 100 peer reviewed manuscripts , book chapters and abstracts. He has presented more than 150 academic sports papers at Orthopedic conferences both nationally and internationally. Dr. Okoroha currently serves as a reviewer for the American Journal of Sports Medicine and Arthroscopy journals.

Dr. Okoroha is passionate about providing the highest level of care and expertise to his patients. He strives to bring satisfaction to every patient by providing an individualized treatment plan to get patients back to previous levels of activity, lifestyle or sport. Dr. Okoroha understands the needs and desires of his patients and provides premier sports medicine orthopedic care to the state of Minnesota and beyond.