Yotam Halperin
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| Position | Guard |
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| Height | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) |
| Weight | 210 lb (95 kg) |
| Nationality |  Israel |
| Born | January 24, 1984 Tel Aviv, Israel |
| College | None |
| Draft | 2nd round, 53rd overall, 2006 Seattle SuperSonics |
| Pro career | 2001–present |
| Former teams | Maccabi Tel Aviv (Youth) 1998–01 Maccabi Tel Aviv 2001–05 KK Union Olimpija 2005-06 Maccabi Tel Aviv 2006–present |
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Yotam Halperin (Hebrew: יוֹתָם הַלְפֶּרִין) is an Israeli basketball player. He was born on the 24th of January, 1984, in Tel Aviv.
Yotam grew up in Tel Aviv and was the basketball star of Metrowest High School in Ra'anana. He declared himself eligible for the 2006 NBA Draft, and the Seattle SuperSonics selected him in the second round, with the 53rd overall pick. Halperin is listed at 6' 5", weighing in at 200 pounds, according to ESPN.com.
[edit] Career
Halperin played in the Maccabi Tel Aviv juniors since he was 8 years old. After finishing high school Halperin left the juniors and went to play with the "big boys." Yotam had a tough time fitting in since Maccabi Tel Aviv had so many stars, such as Ariel McDonald and Anthony Parker.
Halperin sat on the bench for the Maccabi Tel Aviv team until 2005. He got an offer from KK Union Olimpija in Ljubljana and emerged as a star in the 2005-06 season, winning the Slovenian three-point competition and putting up big numbers for Olimpija both in the Slovenian league and in the Euroleague.
He won the Slovenian National Cup and the Slovenian championship with KK Union Olimpia after completing the final series in the Slovenian playoffs (3-2 in the final to KK Union Olimpia).
Yotam is projected to be the first Israeli in the NBA. Unfortunately, his draft placement was not enough to secure him a guaranteed contract, so he returned to Israel to spend the 2006-07 season with Maccabi Tel Aviv.
The coming season will be a defining one for Halperin's career. A strong season as a starter and leader with Maccabi will likely land him a contract with the Sonics. A poor season on the other hand might mean that he will spend his career in Israel or Europe.
[edit] Strengths
Halperin has terrific size for an NBA point guard. He complements that with solid lower body strength, and a good wingspan. Halperin’s biggest strengths revolve around his offensive versatility, intelligence, experience. Halperin has the potential to play either backcourt position depending on what role his team is looking for from him. Offensively, Halperin is intriguing since he’s the type of player who can score from anywhere on the floor, being both a terrific shooter and slasher as well as possessing a solid mid-range game. He has terrific form on his jump-shot, getting nice elevation off the floor and releasing the ball quickly with range that extends to the NBA 3-point line. Halperin is equally comfortable shooting in rhythm off the dribble as he is in catch and shoot situations. He’s an outstanding ball-handler, particularly with his crossover, and has the ability to change speeds quickly and show an extra gear on his 2nd and 3rd step that most would not anticipate. Halperin reads the angles presented to him instantaneously and makes quick decisions with the ball in his hands, changing directions, contorting himself with superb body control, changing hands, and finishing beautifully off the glass, often with contact. He has an assortment of crossovers, hesitation moves, and head or body fakes he can throw at opponents. He is a fine passer in both static situations as well as on the move, driving the lane with his head up and picking up plenty of assists on the drive and dish. On the pick and roll is where Halperin particularly excels, as getting a screen set for him by a teammate is all he usually needs to create offense by getting into the lane and either finishing himself or finding the open man, or pulling up off the dribble for the jump-shot if the passing or slashing angle isn’t there. His basketball IQ is generally considered terrific and the word “heady” always comes up numerous times when discussing him with scouts and basketball people.[1]
[edit] External links
| 2006 NBA Draft | ||
|---|---|---|
| First Round Andrea Bargnani | LaMarcus Aldridge | Adam Morrison | Tyrus Thomas | Shelden Williams | Brandon Roy | Randy Foye | Rudy Gay | Patrick O'Bryant | Mouhamed Sene | J.J. Redick | Hilton Armstrong | Thabo Sefolosha | Ronnie Brewer | Cedric Simmons | Rodney Carney | Shawne Williams | Oleksiy Pecherov | Quincy Douby | Renaldo Balkman | Rajon Rondo | Marcus Williams | Josh Boone | Kyle Lowry | Shannon Brown | Jordan Farmar | Sergio Rodríguez | Maurice Ager | Mardy Collins | Joel Freeland |
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| Second Round James White | Steve Novak | Solomon Jones | Paul Davis | P.J. Tucker | Craig Smith | Bobby Jones | Kosta Perovic | David Noel | Denham Brown | James Augustine | Daniel Gibson | Marcus Vinicius | Lior Eliyahu | Alexander Johnson | Dee Brown | Paul Millsap | Vladimir Veremeenko | Leon Powe | Ryan Hollins | Cheick Samb | Guillermo Diaz | Yotam Halperin | Hassan Adams | Ejike Ugboaja | Edin Bavcic | Loukas Mavrokefalidis | J.R. Pinnock | Damir Markota | Will Blalock |
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