Rakim Sanders

Rakim Sanders
FC Barcelona Lassa
Position Shooting guard / Small forward
League Liga ACB
EuroLeague
Personal information
Born (1989-07-08) July 8, 1989
Pawtucket, Rhode Island
Nationality American
Listed height 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Listed weight 234 lb (106 kg)
Career information
High school St. Andrew's
(Barrington, Rhode Island)
College
NBA draft 2012 / Undrafted
Playing career 2012–present
Career history
2012–2013 Maccabi Tel Aviv
2012–2013 → Hapoel Gilboa Galil
2013–2014 Brose Baskets
2014–2015 Dinamo Sassari
2015–2017 Olimpia Milano
2017–present FC Barcelona
Career highlights and awards

Rakim Sanders (born July 8, 1989) is an American professional basketball player for FC Barcelona Lassa of the Liga ACB and the EuroLeague. He played college basketball with the Boston College Eagles for three seasons, and with the Fairfield Stags, for one season. At a height of 1.96 m (6'5") tall,[1] he can play at both the shooting guard and small forward positions, with small forward being his main position.

High school career

Born in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, Sanders attended St. Andrew's High School. He was the 2006–07 Gatorade Player of the Year for Rhode Island. In his junior year, he averaged 18.4 points and 5.9 rebounds per game while earning a spot of the all-state first team. He followed this up with another all-state first team spot his senior year, averaging 21.3 points per game and 8.3 rebounds per game whild shooting 53 percent from the field. Sanders finished his high school career with 2,432 points.[2]

College career

Freshman season

Sanders played right away for the Eagles, playing 28 minutes per game. He averaged 11.3 point, 4.6 rebounds, and 1 steal per game. Sanders struggled at the free throw line, hitting just 46% of his shots. However, he did have his most successful year from beyond the arc, hitting 38% of his threes.[3] On February 14, Sanders had his first double-double, scoring 14 points and adding 12 rebounds against North Carolina State. The Eagles went 14–17, despite winning 10 of their first twelve games.[4]

Sophomore season

In his sophomore year, Sanders started at small forward alongside BC stars Reggie Jackson and Tyrese Rice. It was the team's most successful year during Sanders' time at BC. The team went 22–12 (9–7 in ACC play), and lost in the first round of the NCAA Tournament to USC.[5] The season was highlighted by an 85–78 win over a North Carolina Tar Heels team that was ranked first in the country and would go on to win that season's National Championship. Sanders had 22 points, 2 blocks, and a game-high 7 steals.[6] Sanders hit two game winning shots for Boston college; one against Virginia Tech and one against Georgia Tech. Sanders had his best year in terms of scoring at BC, averaging 12.9 points per game to go along with 4.4 rebounds per game and 1.6 steals per game. He shared the team's defensive player of the year with forward Corey Raji.[2]

Junior season

The BC team was hit hard by the graduation of Tyrese Rice entering Sanders' junior year. As a result, the team struggled despite the efforts of Sanders, Jackson, and Raji, finishing 15-16.[7] Sanders averaged 11.3 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 1 steal per game. He elected to transfer at the end of the season following the departure of head coach Al Skinner.[8] Bleacher Report called Sanders "arguably the best player on the Eagles' roster."[9]

Senior season

Sanders was forced to sit out for a season before playing for Fairfield. He had high expectations entering the year. College Basketball expert Andy Katz said that Sanders had a high chance of making the Wooden Award watchlist.[10] In one season with the Stags, Sanders averaged 16.6 points per game, 8.2 rebounds per game, and 1.4 steals per game. At Fairfield, Sanders gained a reputation as a high I.Q. player. Fairfield coach Sydney Johnson said “[Sanders] plays the game almost like a coach would in terms of how he’s trying to put all the pieces together. He’s consciously aware of the bigger picture on offense and defense.”[11] Sanders eventually led the Stags to the CIT semifinals.[12] he led the team in points and rebounding, while earning first team All Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference and was also named to the All-Jesuit team, honoring the best players from 28 Jesuit universities. His point total of 615 was the second highest in school history, and he also became the first player in school history to score 600 points and grab 300 rebounds in one season. Following the season, Sanders was invited to the Portsmouth Invitational Tournament, where he was named to the all-tournament team, averaging 19.3 points and 8.7 rebounds per game.[13]

Professional career

NBA draft

In the 2012 NBA draft, Sanders went undrafted. However, he was signed to play for the Golden State Warriors' Summer League Team.[14]

Israel

After failing to catch on with an NBA team, Sanders signed a deal with Maccabi Tel Aviv, who loaned him out to Hapoel Gilboa Galil. In 29 Israeli Premier League games, he averaged 12.6 points, 4.0 rebounds, 1.7 assists, and 1.3 steals per game, while shooting 59.5% on two point field goals and 38.2% on threes. Also, in 15 games in Balkan International Basketball League play, he averaged 13.3 points, 6.3 rebounds, 1.6 assists, and 1.3 steals per game.[15]

Brose Baskets

On August 13, 2013, Sanders signed a two-year contract with the German League team Brose Baskets.[16][17]

Olimpia Milano

On November 16, 2015, he signed a contract with Olimpia Milano, and was cleared to play by January, as he was recovering from a wrist injury.[18]

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
2013–14 Brose 10 2 18.4 .500 .450 .667 3.2 .4 .8 .1 7.9 6.6
2014–15 Sassari 8 7 27.6 .406 .326 .625 3.0 .5 .9 .0 13.4 6.8
2016–17 Milano 24 11 22.5 .524 .406 .667 3.5 1.2 1.1 .2 12.5 10.4
Career 18 9 22.1 .443 .365 .639 3.1 .4 .8 .1 10.3 6.7

References

  1. ↑ Rakim Sanders altura: A | 1.96 m (in Spanish).
  2. 1 2 "Rakim Sanders".
  3. ↑ "Rakim Sanders". Retrieved 18 July 2012.
  4. ↑ "Boston College Eagles Basketball 2007-08 Schedule". Retrieved 18 July 2012.
  5. ↑ "Boston College Eagles Basketball 2008-09 Schedule". Retrieved 18 July 2012.
  6. ↑ "Boston College Eagles vs. North Carolina Tar Heels". Retrieved 18 July 2012.
  7. ↑ "Boston College Eagles Schedule - 2009-10". Retrieved 18 July 2012.
  8. ↑ "Transfer to Fairfield Likely". Retrieved 18 July 2012.
  9. ↑ Seaver, Paul. "Boston College Missing Rakim Sanders, While Road Tests Approach". Retrieved 18 July 2012.
  10. ↑ Katz, Andy. "A List of Players Who Might End Up on Wooden List". Retrieved 18 July 2012.
  11. ↑ McGAIR, BRENDAN. "Rakim Sanders just wants to be happy". The Call. Retrieved 18 July 2012.
  12. ↑ "Stags Fall Just Short in CIT Semis". Retrieved 18 July 2012.
  13. ↑ "Sanders Dominant at Portsmouth Invitational". Retrieved 18 July 2012.
  14. ↑ "Warriors Finalizing Summer League Roster".
  15. ↑ HAPOEL GALIL GILBOA basketball team.
  16. ↑ "Rakim Sanders signs a two-year deal with Bamberg". Sportando. Retrieved 13 August 2013.
  17. ↑ "BROSE BASKETS makes Rakim Sanders official". Euroleague.net. Retrieved 13 August 2013.
  18. ↑ "All’Olimpia arriva Rakim Sanders" (in Italian). 16 November 2015. Retrieved 17 November 2015.
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