Sports

God’sgift continues journey at St. John’s

If you were God, you proba bly would carry some sort of identification because, let’s face it, there are a lot of doubters out there.

So God’sgift Achiuwa, the rugged 6-foot-9 forward from Nigeria who will don a St. John’s jersey next season, always has ID on hand.

“Everybody says the same thing, that they don’t really believe me,” Achiuwa told The Post in an exclusive interview. “They say, ‘Hey, just tell me your real name.’ Sometimes I have to show them my ID for them to believe me.”

Achiuwa, who goes by Gift, could be one of those unbelievable young men and unstoppable players who comes along once in a generation.

Not since the days of Patrick Ewing and Hakeem Olajuwon has college basketball had foreign-born centers who think of defense and others, as Achiuwa does, before offense and themselves.

He is as polite and soft-spoken as he is relentless on the court and baritone-voiced. Clint Eastwood has nothing on Achiuwa, who would make you tremble if he uttered that famous “Dirty Harry” line, “Go ahead, make my day.”

But Achiuwa, an action-film fan, is not about to join the NRA anytime soon. The son of Donatus, a minister who teaches the word in Nigeria, and Eunice, who often assists her husband, actually described himself as a student-athlete.

When he’s not in the gym or classroom — he is taking summer classes at St. John’s after transferring from Erie Community College in Buffalo — he probably is relaxing in his dorm room, sleeping or listening to some of his favorite gospel singers, T.D. Jakes and Donnie McClurkin.

“I’m just a student and also an athlete,” he said. “The two places people can find me are on the basketball court and in class. I think if you want to know me, come look for me in those two places. That’s all I can say.”

Achiuwa’s story, some of which he is reluctant to discuss because he still is adjusting to life in a new country, is one that will fascinate and enthrall Red Storm fans.

More than two years ago, at the age of 18, he left his parents and siblings — Promise, God’s Will, Precious, Grace and Peace — in Nigeria because college basketball offers opportunities he could never find in Africa.

“There are so many adjustments,” Achiuwa said. “The food, the people, the weather. The accent is different here from the English we speak in Nigeria.”

And, of course, there is the loneliness.

“I would like to talk to [my family] every day because I miss them,” he said.

Achiuwa would love for his siblings to visit in the winter to experience snow. Two years ago, he experienced his first white Christmas.

If you’ve ever seen a puppy or toddler play in the snow for the first time, you would have been blown away to see the chiseled 6-foot-9, 240-pound Achiuwa in the white stuff. Imagine Christmas in Rockefeller Center, surrounded by God’s Will, Grace, Peace, Precious, Promise and Gift.

“I’d never seen anything like that before,” he said. “It was a great experience. I was happy seeing that.”

Johnnies fans will be thrilled to see him on the court. He averaged 22.3 points, 11.7 rebounds and 2.2 blocked shots at Erie, where he was a junior college All-American.

St. John’s coach Steve Lavin is bringing in a bevy of talented freshmen swingmen following the departure of nine seniors, so it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Achiuwa in the starting lineup from Day One. His toughness, rebounding and maturity could be the anchor next season for one of America’s youngest college basketball teams.

To have this story unfold right before our eyes is extraordinary. Gift disdained basketball when he first saw the sport.

“I used to play soccer,” he said. “I didn’t like basketball because they score too many points in the game. Defense is what I like. I feel defense is the most important thing to do on the court.”

Gift was asked if he had thought of names for his children, should he ever start a family.

“I haven’t thought of that yet,” he said with a chuckle.

Something tells me they too will have to carry ID.

lenn.robbins@nypost.com