Eli Abaev (Hebrew: אלי אבייב; born December 13, 1998) is an American-Israeli basketball player for Maccabi Haifa of the Liga Leumit. He plays at the power forward and center positions.[1] He played college basketball for Eastern Florida State College, Austin Peay State University, and Florida Gulf Coast University.
| No. 14 – Maccabi Haifa | |
|---|---|
| Position | Power forward / center |
| League | Liga Leumit |
| Personal information | |
| Born | December 13, 1998 Coral Springs, Florida, U.S. |
| Listed height | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) |
| Listed weight | 205 lb (93 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Zion Lutheran (Deerfield Beach, Florida) |
| College |
|
| NBA draft | 2021: undrafted |
| Playing career | 2021–present |
| Career history | |
| 2021–2022 | Hapoel Be'er Sheva |
| 2022–present | Maccabi Haifa B.C. |
Early life edit
Abaev was born in Israel and moved to the United States as a child. His hometown is Coral Springs, Florida, and he is Jewish.[2][3][4][5][1] He is 6' 8" (203 cm) tall.[1] He weighs 205 pounds (93 kg).[1]
He played at Zion Lutheran High School in Deerfield Beach.[4][6] There, Abaev averaged 12 points and 8 rebounds per game on 56% shooting from the floor for the Lions.[4][6]
College edit
Abaev began his college career playing for Eastern Florida State College for two years.[7] In 2016–17 in his first season, as the Titans were national runners-up, as a freshman he shot 59.8% from the floor, and had 7.4 rebounds per game.[4][8][9] He was named to the 2017 National Junior College Athletic Association Division I Championship All-Tournament team.[4][8][9]
In 2017–18 Abaev helped the Titans finish third in the NJCAA National Championship Tournament.[4][8][10] He averaged 9.1 points and 9.8 rebounds (2nd in NJCAA Region 8) per game, shot 52.9% from the floor, and received First Team All-Mid-Florida Conference honors.[4][8][10]
He transferred to Austin Peay State University, and in 2018–19 due to a lower-body injury he redshirted.[4][11][12]
As a redshirt junior in 2019–20 he played for Austin Peay.[7][4] In 2019–20 Abaev averaged 7.9 points and 7.7 rebounds (4th in the Ohio Valley Conference) per game for the Austin Peay Governors, shooting 50.6% from the field.[4][11][12]
Abaev then transferred and attended Florida Gulf Coast University, graduating in 2021.[12][1] In 2020–21 he played for the Florida Gulf Coast Eagles.[5][11] He averaged 7.1 points, 7.4 rebounds (3rd in the Atlantic Sun Conference), and 0.7 blocks (4th) per game.[5][11]
Professional career edit
Abaev started his professional career playing for Hapoel Be'er Sheva in the Israeli Basketball Premier League, with whom he signed on June 21, 2021.[1][9][13][14]
International edit
Abaev played for Team USA in the 2019 European Maccabi Games, winning a gold medal and averaging 17.0 points and 15.3 rebounds in six games.[4] In the gold medal game against Team Russia, he scored 23 points and had 28 rebounds.[12]
See also edit
References edit
- ^ a b c d e f "Eli Abaev Player Profile, Hapoel Altshuler Shaham Beer Sheva, News, Stats". Eurobasket.
- ^ Rauchbach, Jake (August 12, 2019). "Team USA Wins Gold At Maccabiah Games". Basketball Insiders | NBA Rumors And Basketball News.
- ^ "APSU’s Abaev set to compete in 2019 European Maccabi Games," Clarksville Now.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Eli Abaev – Men's Basketball". Austin Peay State University Athletics.
- ^ a b c "Eli Abaev Stats, News, Bio". ESPN.
- ^ a b "Zion Lutheran", Miami Herald.
- ^ a b "Austin Peay State University Basketball signs Eli Abaev". Clarksville Online. May 1, 2018.
- ^ a b c d "Eli Abaev". EFSC Titans.
- ^ a b c "Eli Abaev Player Profile, Florida Gulf Coast, NCAA Stats, International Stats, Game Logs, Bests, Awards – RealGM". basketball.realgm.com.
- ^ a b "Ali named Mid-Florida Conference Player of Year, six players honored". efsctitans.com. February 27, 2018.
- ^ a b c d "Eli Abaev College Stats". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved August 4, 2023.
- ^ a b c d "Men's Basketball Adds Graduate Transfer Eli Abaev". FGCU Athletics. April 15, 2020. Retrieved August 4, 2023.
- ^ "אלי אבייב חתם לשנתיים בהפועל באר שבע – ספורט 5". www.sport5.co.il.
- ^ "אלי אבייב הישראלי-אמריקאי חתם בהפועל באר שבע". Maariv. June 21, 2021.