Halil Kanacević

Halil Kanacević
No. 45 – Bnei Herzliya
Position Power forward / Center
League Israeli Premier League
Personal information
Born (1991-10-23) October 23, 1991
Staten Island, New York
Nationality American / Montenegrin
Listed height 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
Listed weight 260 lb (118 kg)
Career information
High school Curtis (Staten Island, New York)
College
NBA draft 2014 / Undrafted
Playing career 2014–present
Career history
2014 Virtus Roma
2014–2015 Union Olimpija
2015–2016 CAI Zaragoza
2016 Budućnost
2016–present Bnei Herzliya
Career highlights and awards

Halil Kanacević (born October 23, 1991) is an American-born Montenegrin professional basketball player for Bnei Herzliya of the Israeli Premier League. Previously, he played basketball with Saint Joseph's University, where he helped lead the team to the 2014 Atlantic 10 championship.

High school career

Kanacević attended and played basketball for Curtis High School. Although Halil excelled, Curtis was a chronically overlooked high school in basketball circles, and had the misfortune of barely missing chances to make long runs in New York high school basketball competition.[1] Due to this, he was often overlooked in the recruiting process, although he received offers from University of Central Florida, Manhattan College, Quinnipiac, and Hofstra. He eventually committed to Hofstra.

College career

Kanacević originally committed to Hofstra, but after a season he decided in May 2010 to move to Saint Joseph's University.[2] He made his March Madness debut in 2014, when St. Joseph's was eliminated by eventual tournament-winners Connecticut in the first round; he scored 12 points in St. Joseph's 81-89 loss.[3] During his four years at St. Joseph's, Kanacević scored 1,093 points, the school record.[4] At St. Joseph's, he was coached by Phil Martelli.[4]

Professional career

Kanacević signed his first professional contract with Virtus Roma in April 2014.[5] After only a few months, he terminated his contract with Roma and moved to KK Union Olimpija on a one-year deal.[6] In July 2015, Kanacević joined the Washington Wizards in the NBA's 2015 Summer League.[7] On August 27, 2015, it was announced that CAI Zaragoza of Spain signed Kanacević.[8] On January 6, 2016, he parted ways with Zaragoza[9] and one week later he signed with Montenegrin KK Budućnost for the rest of the season.[10] In June 2016, he signed with Israeli club Bnei Herzliya.[11]

International career

In 2011, when Halil traveled back to visit his uncle Rizo Popović, he played for Montenegro's national men's U20 basketball team. He averaged almost 5 points and rebounds per game during the 2011 FIBA Europe Under-20 Championship.[12]

Personal life

He was born in the U.S. and raised in South Beach, Staten Island; his family are ethnic Albanians born in Ostros, Bar and emigrated to the U.S. from Montenegro, then part of Yugoslavia, in the late 1980s.

References

  1. ↑ Begley, Ian. Daily News: Curtis star Halil Kanacevic wants to put Staten Island on the map. February 24, 2009
  2. ↑ Sass, Max. The Hofstra Chronicle: Freshman Halil Kanacevic to transfer to St. Joseph's. May 6, 2010
  3. ↑ ESPN: Halil Kanacevic Game-by-Game Stats
  4. 1 2 Cormac Gordon (March 12, 2014). "St. Joseph's University college hoop player Halil Kanacevic proves he's a rare bird". Retrieved December 15, 2015.
  5. ↑ Verlin, Josh. City of Basketball Love: HALIL KANACEVIC SIGNS CONTRACT IN ITALY’S TOP LEAGUE. April 14, 2014
  6. ↑ Eurocup Basketball: Union Olimpija sign big man Kanacevic. 13 August 2014
  7. ↑ Castillo, Jorge. Washington Post: Wizards announce summer league minicamp roster. July 2, 2015. Retrieved December 14, 2015.
  8. ↑ Eurocup Basketball: CAI Zaragoza lands Kanacevic. August 27, 2015. Retrieved December 14, 2015.
  9. ↑ "Halil Kanacevic, CAI Zaragoza part ways". Sportando.com. 5 January 2016. Retrieved 5 January 2016.
  10. ↑ "Halil Kanacevic encuentra acomodo en el KK Buducnost" (in Spanish). ACB.com. 11 January 2016.
  11. ↑ "Will play at Hayovel arena:Halil Kanacević signed for Bnei Herzliya" (in Hebrew). Basket.co.il. 27 June 2016.
  12. ↑ Halil Kanacević | U20 European Championship Men 2011 | FIBA Europe
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