Nicola Akele (born 7 November 1995) is a Congolese-Italian professional basketball player for Virtus Bologna of the Italian Lega Basket Serie A (LBA) and the EuroLeague.

He missed half of the 2012–13 season with heart issues and started playing regularly for Reyer's senior team in the Serie A in the following year.

[3] For his next season, Akele attended IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida, where he played for one of the best prep teams in the United States.

On 4 January 2016, he was named Atlantic 10 Conference Rookie of the Week after averaging eight points, 2.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game in wins over Brown and Saint Louis.

[10] On 24 December, he was named the top Italian player in Round 14 after posting a season-high 21 points, six rebounds and three assists in a 93–72 win over Varese.