Lior Eliyahu
 | |
| No. 8 – Hapoel Jerusalem | |
|---|---|
| Position | Power forward |
| League | Israeli Super League |
| Personal information | |
| Born |
September 9, 1985 Ramat Gan, Israel |
| Nationality | Israeli |
| Listed height | 2.06 m (6 ft 9 in) |
| Listed weight | 225 lb (102 kg) |
| Career information | |
| NBA draft | 2006 / Round: 2 / Pick: 44th overall |
| Selected by the Orlando Magic | |
| Playing career | 2003–present |
| Career history | |
| 2003–2006 | Hapoel Galil Elyon |
| 2006–2009 | Maccabi Tel Aviv |
| 2009–2010 | Caja Laboral |
| 2010–2013 | Maccabi Tel Aviv |
| 2013–present | Hapoel Jerusalem |
| Career highlights and awards | |
EuroLeague records since the 2000–01 season
| |
Lior Eliyahu (Hebrew: לִיאוֹר אֱלִיָּהוּ; born September 9, 1985) is an Israeli professional basketball player who plays for Hapoel Jerusalem of the Israeli Super League. He is 2.03 m (6 ft 8 in) in height and he weighs 105 kg (225 pounds).
He plays at the power forward position. The Minnesota Timberwolves own his NBA Draft rights.
Early life
Eliyahu is Jewish,[1] and was born in Ramat Gan, Israel.
Professional career
Eliyahu grew up in the youth system of Maccabi Ironi Ramat Gan, but moved to Galil for the 2004–05 season, in order to further his career. The move paid off when, under the guidance of Oded Katash, Eliyahu made great strides in improving his game. After the 2005–06 season, Eliyahu entered the 2006 NBA Draft, a move criticized by Hanoch Mintz, Eliyahu's coach during his time in Ramat Gan.
In pre-draft camps in Europe, Eliyahu impressed along with fellow Israeli Yotam Halperin and when the camp was finished in Treviso, Italy, both had dramatically climbed the mock draft charts. On June 28, 2006, he made national headlines in Israel by being selected by the Orlando Magic with the 44th pick of the 2006 NBA Draft. He was later traded to the Houston Rockets for cash considerations. He also impressed during matches of Maccabi against NBA teams. During the Euroleague 2006-07 season, Eliyahu averaged 10.8 points per game.
In December 2008, Eliyahu became the first Israeli to be named the Euroleague MVP of the Month during the season. He recorded a double double in all three games he played during December. Overall for the 2008–09 Euroleague season, Eliyahu averaged 14.0 points and 6.6 rebounds per game. In 2009, Eliyahu signed a 4-year contract worth €6 million euros net income with the Spanish League club Caja Laboral[2] and won Spanish national championship with his new team in 2010 scoring 18 points in the deciding game against Euroleague champions Barcelona.[3]
In September 2010 he returned to Maccabi Tel Aviv, signing a five-year contract.[4]
On June 26, 2012, the Minnesota Timberwolves traded the 18th overall pick of the 2012 NBA Draft to the Houston Rockets in exchange for Chase Budinger and the draft rights to Eliyahu.[5]
In November 2013, he signed a three-year deal with Hapoel Jerusalem.[6]
Israeli national team
Eliyahu has also been a member of the senior Israeli national basketball team. He played at the EuroBasket 2007, the EuroBasket 2009 and the EuroBasket 2011.
Awards and accomplishments
- FIBA Europe Under-20 Championship: All Tournament Team (2005)
- EuroChallenge: All-Star (2006)
Career statistics
| Legend | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game | ||
| FG% | Field-goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field-goal percentage | FT% | Free-throw percentage | ||
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game | ||
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | PIR | Performance Index Rating | ||
| Bold | Career high | ||||||
Note: The EuroLeague is not the only competition in which the player participated for the team during the season. He also played in domestic competition, and regional competition if applicable.
Euroleague
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG | PIR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006–07 | Maccabi Tel Aviv | 22 | 15 | 21.2 | .575 | .000 | .653 | 5.3 | 1.3 | .9 | .5 | 10.8 | 13.1 |
| 2007–08 | 18 | 5 | 10.1 | .549 | .000 | .591 | 1.9 | 1.1 | .4 | .1 | 3.8 | 5.1 | |
| 2008–09 | 16 | 9 | 26.5 | .624 | .000 | .667 | 6.6 | 2.4 | .6 | .3 | 14.0 | 17.6 | |
| 2009–10 | Caja Laboral | 15 | 4 | 18.4 | .632 | .000 | .400 | 3.4 | 1.3 | .7 | .3 | 8.4 | 11.1 |
| 2010–11 | Maccabi Tel Aviv | 21 | 21 | 20.3 | .601 | .200 | .739 | 3.8 | 1.0 | .8 | .5 | 10.9 | 11.8 |
| 2011–12 | 20 | 15 | 18.2 | .566 | 1.000 | .542 | 3.0 | 1.0 | .3 | .1 | 8.5 | 8.1 | |
| 2012–13 | 23 | 10 | 17.2 | .483 | .000 | .800 | 3.1 | 2.1 | .7 | .2 | 7.3 | 8.2 | |
| Career | 135 | 79 | 18.9 | .568 | .125 | .650 | 4.0 | 1.3 | .6 | .3 | 9.1 | 10.6 |
See also
References
- ↑ "Israeli Sports". Jewish Sports Review. 8 (87): 20. September–October 2011.
- ↑ "Eliyahu signs with TAU" (in Hebrew). Sports.walla.co.il. Retrieved February 1, 2011.
- ↑ "Caja Laboral win ACB Championship". Eitb.com. June 16, 2010. Retrieved September 30, 2011.
- ↑ Lior Eliyahu signed with Maccabi for 5 years (Hebrew)
- ↑
- ↑ "HAPOEL JERUSALEM lands Eliyahu on three-year deal". Eurocupbasketall.com. Retrieved 15 November 2013.
External links
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Lior Eliyahu. |
- Lior Eliyahu at draftexpress.com
- Lior Eliyahu at eurobasket.com
- Lior Eliyahu at euroleague.net