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10 Best Jewish Basketball Players Of All Time

Basketball is one of the most well-liked sports in the world thanks to the millions of fans it has gained across the globe. The sport has been embraced by many people worldwide without discrimination and has been played by the biggest names in basketball. With players coming from different nations, Jewish basketballers have not been left behind either. As evidenced by the way some Jewish players have displayed their skills and talents on the court, they have embraced the opportunity to play the game and leave their mark on it. 

Jewish basketball players have made a significant impact on the game by excelling in a variety of positions throughout the paint while competing at the highest level. Their influence extends beyond the court, as they have motivated aspiring young athletes to treat basketball seriously to achieve greatness. Let us find out who are the 10 best Jewish basketball players of all time.

1. Dolph Schayes

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Adolph Schayes was a top scorer and rebounder in addition to being a 12-time NBA All-Star and a 12-time All-NBA selection in his professional basketball career in the NBA He led the Syracuse Nationals to the NBA championship in 1955. 

From 1948 to 1964, Schayes spent his entire professional career with the Nationals and their successor, the Philadelphia 76ers. He guided his squad into the playoffs 15 times throughout his 16-year career. Schayes joined the newly formed 76ers as their player-coach after the Nationals relocated to Philadelphia. 

2. Amar’e Stoudemire

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Former NBA basketball player Amar’e Stoudemire, an American-Israeli, competed in the league from 2002 until 2020. He was chosen by the Phoenix Suns as the ninth overall choice in the 2002 NBA draft, and it was there that he earned the NBA Rookie of the Year Award in 2003. He appeared in the NBA All-Star Game six times and was five times named to the All-NBA Team, including a first-team selection in 2007.

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3. Jordan Farmar

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Jordan Farmar is an Israeli-American former professional basketball player who played professionally from 2006 to 2016. He was named the Los Angeles Times High School Player of the Year in 2003-04 during his time in high school. 

He was selected National Freshman of the Year in 2004-05 by Rivals.com while playing college basketball for the UCLA Bruins. The Los Angeles Lakers selected him 26th overall in the first round of the 2006 NBA draft. He went on to win two NBA championships with the Lakers, the first one coming in 2009 and the other in 2010.

4. Art Heyman

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The New York Knicks made the first selection of Arthur Heyman in the 1963 NBA Draft. He continued to play professionally for 310 games in the NBA and ABA. He averaged 15.4 points per game in his debut season with the organization and was named to the NBA All-Rookie organization.

Heyman left New York in 1965, and in 1966, he joined the Hartford Capitols of the Eastern Professional Basketball League following brief spells with the Cincinnati Royals and Philadelphia 76ers. He competed in the ABA for the following three seasons, spending time with the Americans, Pittsburgh/Minnesota Pipers, and Miami Floridians. In 1968, while playing for the Pittsburgh Pipers, he won the league championship while averaging over 20 points per game.

5. Nat Holman

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Nat Holman was a Jewish professional basketball player who was born in New York City’s Lower East Side to Russian immigrants. The Original Celtics, who had no connection to the Boston Celtics, included Holman as a key member. Holman was a role model for future playmakers and was also a talented passer and excellent floor leader.

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6. Sid Tannenbaum

Sidney Tanenbaum, a Jewish-American basketball player, was born in Brooklyn, New York, and raised in the Brownsville district of the borough. He was a two-time unanimous first-team All-American in 1946 and 1947, as well as a two-time Haggerty Award winner in both years. Later, he played professional basketball for the Baltimore Bullets and the New York Knicks. 

7. Rudy LaRusso

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Rudolph LaRusso was a professional basketball player who played for Minneapolis / Los Angeles Lakers and San Francisco Warriors. He was a five-time All-Star who was renowned for his presence, tenacity, tight defense, and rebounding.

8. Omri Casspi

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Omri Casspi is a former professional basketball player from Israel who primarily played small forward but could also play power forward. Casspi became the first Israeli to be chosen in the first round of an NBA draft when the Sacramento Kings selected him with the 23rd overall pick in 2009. Casspi made his NBA debut with the Kings in 2009, making him the first Israeli to do so.

Casspi was selected to take part in the NBA All-Star Weekend Rookie Challenge as a rookie. He was acquired in a trade with the Cleveland Cavaliers in June 2011 and signed a contract with the Houston Rockets in July 2013. Casspi was part of a three-team transaction that sent him to the New Orleans Pelicans in July 2014, however, he was later released. Before the start of the 2014–15 season, he then went back to Sacramento. Along with DeMarcus Cousin, he was traded to the Pelicans in February 2017. He then signed with the Warriors in the offseason. He was released following an injury in April and joined Memphis in July 2018.

9. Danny Schayes

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Daniel Schayes, a retired professional basketball player from the United States, spent 18 seasons (1981–1999) competing in the National Basketball Association. Schayes, the son of professional basketball player and Hall of Fame inductee Dolph Schayes and Naomi Eva, was born into a Jewish household in Syracuse, New York. The parents of his father were born in Romania and moved to America.

10. Ernie Grunfeld

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Former NBA basketball player Ernest Grunfeld, a Romanian-American, competed in the league from 1977 until 1986. Ernest was born in Satu Mare, Romania but he immigrated to the United States in 1964 at just eight years old. He is of Jewish descent and his parents are Holocaust survivors. He became the school’s top scorer all-time as a student at the University of Tennessee, breaking a previous record.

At the 1976 Summer Olympics and the 1975 Pan American Games, he took home gold medals for Team USA. He played for the Milwaukee Bucks to start his professional career. He was the general manager of the National Basketball Association’s New York Knicks from 1989 to 1999, the general manager of the Milwaukee Bucks from 1999 to 2003, and from 2003 to 2019 he was the president of basketball operations for the Washington Wizards.

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