İsmet Akpınar ( tr, İsmet Akpınar, born May 22, 1995) is a Turkish-German professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

player for Fenerbahçe of the

Turkish Basketball Super League Turkish may refer to: *a Turkic language spoken by the Turks * of or about Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities and mi ...

(BSL) and the EuroLeague.

Early years

Akpınar started his career in the BC Hamburg youth ranks. At the age of 16, he made his professional debut with

SC Rist Wedel Sportclub Rist Wedel e.V., more commonly known as Rist Wedel, is a German basketball club based in Wedel. The men's team currently plays in the ProB, the third-tier national division. The women's team plays in the 2. Damen-Basketball-Bundesliga. ...

in the

ProB The ProB is the third-tier level league of professional club basketball in Germany. The league comprises 24 teams, separated into a Northern and a Southern Division. Officially, the ProB is part of the '' 2. Basketball Bundesliga'', which con ...

, the third tier of German basketball, earning ''

Eurobasket.com Eurobasket.com also commonly referred to as "Eurobasket News", is a basketball-centered website that provide coverages of every professional and semi-professional leagues around the world. Although primarily focusing on European basketball, th ...

'' All-German ProB Rookie of the Year honors following the 2011–12 season. At the same time, he excelled at the youth level playing for Piraten Hamburg and was named JBBL (under-16 Bundesliga) Player of the Year in 2011 as well as NBBL (under-19 Bundesliga) Rookie of the Year the following season.

Professional career

In February 2013, Akpınar agreed on a four-year deal with Bundesliga side Alba Berlin. In the 2016-17 season, he received the BBL Best German Young Player Award. On June 7, 2017, he signed with

ratiopharm Ulm Ratiopharm Ulm, officially stylized as ratiopharm Ulm, is a professional basketball club based in Ulm, Germany. The club has two teams, one professional team, which plays in the Basketball Bundesliga, the major German professional league and one ...

. In the 2017–18 season, he was invited for the

BBL All-Star Game The BBL All-Star Game is the annual All-Star Game of the German first division basketball league, the Basketball Bundesliga (BBL). The event is based on the original NBA concept, and includes a slam dunk contest and a three-point shootout. Sinc ...

for the first time in his career. On July 30, 2019, he has signed contract with

Beşiktaş Sompo Japan Beşiktaş () is a district and municipality of Istanbul, Turkey, located on the European shore of the Bosphorus strait. It is bordered on the north by Sarıyer and Şişli, on the west by Kağıthane and Şişli, on the south by Beyoğlu, a ...

of the

Basketbol Süper Ligi The Basketball Super League ( tr, Basketbol Süper Ligi; BSL), also known as the Türkiye Sigorta Basketbol Süper Ligi for sponsorship reasons, is the top men's professional basketball division of the Turkish basketball league system. It replace ...

. On May 25, 2020, he has signed with Bayern Munich of the Basketball Bundesliga (BBL). On July 11, 2020, he has signed with Bahçeşehir Koleji of the

(BSL). On June 18, 2021, he signed a two-year contract with Fenerbahçe Beko of the

(BSL) and the EuroLeague.

National team

20171127 FIBA WCQ 2019 AUT-GER İsmet Akpınar 850 7293

Akpınar has represented the German Junior National Teams on many occasions. In August 2010, he played in the North Sea Development Basketball Cup, guiding the German under-15 squad to a second-place finish. He was part of the German U16 National Team, competing in the 2011 under-16 European Championships, and was selected to play for Germany's U18 team at the 2012 Albert-Schweitzer-Tournament as well as at the 2012 and 2013 under-18 European Championships. In 2014 and 2015, he played for his country in the under-20 European Championships. In the summer of 2017, he was capped for the first time for Germany's men's national team.

Personal life

He is younger brother of the Turkish player Mutlu Akpınar.

References

External links

EuroCup ProfileGerman BBL ProfileEurobasket.com Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Akpinar, Ismet 1995 births Living people 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup players Alba Berlin players Bahçeşehir Koleji S.K. players Beşiktaş men's basketball players Fenerbahçe men's basketball players German men's basketball players German people of Turkish descent Point guards Ratiopharm Ulm players Shooting guards Sportspeople from Hamburg