Abdel Nader ( ar, عبد الرحمن نادر; born September 25, 1993) is an Egyptian-American professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

player who last played for the

Phoenix Suns The Phoenix Suns are an American professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. They compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA), as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Suns are the only team in t ...

of the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United S ...

(NBA). He played

college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...

for the

Northern Illinois Huskies The Northern Illinois Huskies are the athletic teams that represent Northern Illinois University (NIU). The Huskies are a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I and the Mid-American Conference (MAC). The athleti ...

and the

Iowa State Cyclones The Iowa State Cyclones are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Iowa State University, located in Ames. The university is a member of the Big 12 Conference and competes in NCAA Division I, fielding 16 varsity teams (6 men's an ...

before being drafted by the

Boston Celtics The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. Founded in 1946 as one of t ...

with the 58th overall pick in the 2016 NBA draft. Nader has also played for the

Oklahoma City Thunder The Oklahoma City Thunder are an American professional basketball team based in Oklahoma City. The Thunder compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Northwest Division. The team plays i ...

High school career

Born in

Alexandria Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandria ...

, Egypt, Nader started his career at

Maine East High School Maine East High School, or Maine East, and officially Maine Township High School East, is a public four-year high school located at the corner of Dempster Street and Potter Road in Park Ridge, Illinois, a northwest suburb of Chicago, in the Unite ...

, before transferring to Niles North. He averaged 23.8 points, 8.6 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game as a senior at Niles North and led the

Vikings Vikings ; non, víkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and se ...

to a 24–6 record and their first sectional championship and

Central Suburban League The Central Suburban League is an IHSA-recognized high school extracurricular conference comprising 12 public schools located in the North Shore suburbs of Chicago. Comprising 12 relatively large high schools, it is among the larger high school ...

titles in the school's 47-year history. He garnered First Team All-State honors from the ''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television ar ...

'', earned ''

Chicago Sun-Times The ''Chicago Sun-Times'' is a daily newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Since 2022, it is the flagship paper of Chicago Public Media, and has the second largest circulation among Chicago newspapers, after the ''Chicago T ...

'' Class 4A Second Team All-State recognition, and named to the

ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...

Chicago All-Area team.

College career

Freshman season

Nader enrolled at Northern Illinois University and appeared in all 31 games starting in 29 of them. He averaged a team-best 10.4 points, third among MAC freshmen; and 4.2 rebounds, second-best among MAC freshmen. Nader recorded 21 steals and a team-high 22 blocked shots, the best among conference freshmen. He made his first collegiate start in the season opener at

Purdue Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and money ...

, scoring nine points and grabbing four rebounds. He scored in double figures in 17 games, including three games of 20-plus points as well as having a season-best 26 points against Ball State. Nader's freshman season earned him MAC All-Freshman Team honors.

Sophomore season

Nader began the season as a preseason All- MAC West selection. He started 18 of the 19 games he played in, leading the team in scoring at 13.1 points while averaging 5.6 rebounds, 1.3 assists and shooting 77.2 percent from the free-throw line (44-57 FT). He scored in double figures 13 times, including three games with 20-plus points. Abdel posted 23 points on 4-of-5 shooting from 3-point range against

Central Michigan Central Michigan, also called Mid Michigan, is a region in the Lower Peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan. As its name implies, it is the middle area of the Lower Peninsula. Lower Michigan is said to resemble a mitten, and Mid Michigan cor ...

(8-12 FG). He was named MAC West Player of the Week on Feb 4 after averaging 22.5 points and 11.0 rebounds during the week. In spite of Nader's contributions, the Huskies finished last in the MAC West division and had a 5-15 team record overall, and it was reported that he would be transferring to another school.

Junior season

Nader eventually transferred to

Iowa State Iowa State University of Science and Technology (Iowa State University, Iowa State, or ISU) is a public land-grant research university in Ames, Iowa. Founded in 1858 as the Iowa Agricultural College and Model Farm, Iowa State became one of the n ...

. He had to sit out the 2013–2014 season, becoming eligible again for the 2014–15 season. Nader saw action in 32 games, averaging 5.8 points and 2.9 rebounds in 16.4 minutes per game. He was tied for second on the team with 16 blocked shots. He grabbed six boards, two blocks, two steals, and hit 6-of-10 field goals, including 4-of-6 behind the arc to score 19 points in Iowa State's victory at

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the ...

. He matched his season-high with 19 points at

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the Bur ...

. Nader scored 11 points and had six rebounds at home against

Kansas State Kansas State University (KSU, Kansas State, or K-State) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Manhattan, Kansas, United States. It was opened as the state's land-grant college in 1863 and was the first public instit ...

. He scored seven consecutive points in a key second-half run against the

Wildcats The wildcat is a species complex comprising two small wild cat species: the European wildcat (''Felis silvestris'') and the African wildcat (''F. lybica''). The European wildcat inhabits forests in Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus, while the ...

and blocked a fastbreak layup with 2:48 left that would have given the

the lead. Nader averaged 11.2 points and 5.3 rebounds when playing at least 20 minutes, ISU was 8–1 in those games.

Professional career

Maine Red Claws (2016–2017)

On June 24, 2016, Nader was drafted by the

with the 58th overall pick in the 2016 NBA draft. He then joined the Celtics for the

2016 NBA Summer League The 2016 NBA Summer League consisted of three pro basketball leagues organized by the National Basketball Association (NBA): the Orlando Pro Summer League, Utah Jazz Summer League, and Las Vegas Summer League. Ten teams participated in the week ...

. On October 31, 2016, he was acquired by the

Maine Red Claws The Maine Celtics (formerly the Maine Red Claws) are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Portland, Maine, and are affiliated with the Boston Celtics. The Maine Celtics play their home games at the Portland Expo B ...

of the

NBA Development League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is the National Basketball Association's (NBA) official List of developmental and minor sports leagues, minor league basketball organization. The league was known as the National Basketball Development ...

. On April 14, 2017, he was named the 2016–17 NBA Development League Rookie of the Year, becoming the first internationally born player to be named NBA D-League Rookie of the Year and the third Red Claws player to earn the honor. Nader averaged 21.3 points, 6.2 rebounds and 3.9 assists in 40 games, propelling the Red Claws to a 29–21 record and the Eastern Conference's second seed in the 2017 NBA D-League Playoffs. In addition to shooting 44.6 percent from the floor, Nader recorded a team-high 99 three-pointers. He also tallied 16 points, four rebounds and four assists during the 2017 D-League All-Star Game in

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster. ; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...

Boston Celtics (2017–2018)

On July 14, 2017, Nader agreed to a 4-year, $6M deal with the Celtics. He made his NBA debut on October 18 against the

Milwaukee Bucks The Milwaukee Bucks are an American professional basketball team based in Milwaukee. The Bucks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded in 1968 ...

. During his rookie season, he received multiple assignments to the Maine Red Claws. In four games with the Red Claws, he averaged 21.3 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 1.5 assists per game. Nader posted 3.1 points and 1.4 rebounds per game with the Celtics, and appeared in 11 playoff games during Celtics Eastern Conference Finals run.

Oklahoma City Thunder (2018–2020)

On July 23, 2018, Nader was traded to the

in exchange for

Rodney Purvis Rodney O'Keith Purvis (born February 14, 1994) is an American professional basketball player who plays for KB PEJA of the Kosovo Basketball Superleague. A shooting guard from Plymouth, North Carolina, he played college basketball for the NC Sta ...

. Oklahoma City also received cash considerations in the deal. On November 28, 2019, Nader scored his career-high 23 points with two rebounds in a 136–119 loss against the

Portland Trail Blazers The Portland Trail Blazers (colloquially known as the Blazers) are an American professional basketball team based in Portland, Oregon. The Trail Blazers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Con ...

Phoenix Suns (2020–2022)

On November 16, 2020, the Thunder traded Nader and

Chris Paul Christopher Emmanuel Paul (born May 6, 1985), nicknamed "CP3" and “The Point God”, is an American professional basketball player who plays for the Phoenix Suns of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Paul is widely regarded as one o ...

to the

for Kelly Oubre Jr., Ricky Rubio,

Ty Jerome Ty Jeremy Jerome (born July 8, 1997) is an American professional basketball player for the Golden State Warriors of the National Basketball Association (NBA), on a two-way contract with the Santa Cruz Warriors of the NBA G League. He played coll ...

Jalen Lecque Jalen Evander Lecque (born June 13, 2000) is an American professional basketball player for the Rio Grande Valley Vipers of the NBA G League. A consensus four-star recruit and former NC State commit, Lecque chose to forgo college basketball and ...

, and a protected 2022 first round pick. After getting a

concussion A concussion, also known as a mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI), is a head injury that temporarily affects brain functioning. Symptoms may include loss of consciousness (LOC); memory loss; headaches; difficulty with thinking, concentration, ...

in a December 2020 preseason against the

Utah Jazz The Utah Jazz are an American professional basketball team based in Salt Lake City. The Jazz compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference (NBA), Western Conference, Northwest Division (NBA), ...

, he made his season debut on January 11, 2021, against the

Washington Wizards The Washington Wizards are an American professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C. The Wizards compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern Conference Southeast D ...

. On January 28, Nader scored a season-high 16 points in a blowout 114–93 win over the

Golden State Warriors The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in San Francisco. The Warriors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA), as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. Founded in 194 ...

. On March 4, he had a near-double-double performance with 14 points and a career-high 9 rebounds off the bench in another blowout victory over Golden State, this time ending with a 120–98 win. Nader made the

NBA Finals The NBA Finals is the annual championship series of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Eastern and Western Conference champions play a best-of-seven game series to determine the league champion. The team that wins the series is awa ...

, but the Suns lost in 6 games to the

. On August 6, 2021, Nader re-signed with the Suns. Nader was then later waived on February 10, 2022.

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

, - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

, 48 , , 1 , , 10.9 , , .336 , , .354 , , .590 , , 1.5 , , .5 , , .3 , , .2 , , 3.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Oklahoma City Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, it ranks 20th among United States cities in population, a ...

, 61 , , 1 , , 11.4 , , .423 , , .320 , , .750 , , 1.9 , , .3 , , .3 , , .2 , , 4.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 55 , , 6 , , 15.8 , , .468 , , .375 , , .773 , , 1.8 , , .7 , , .4 , , .4 , , 6.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Phoenix Phoenix most often refers to: * Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore * Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States Phoenix may also refer to: Mythology Greek mythological figures * Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...

, 24 , , 0 , , 14.8 , , .491 , , .419 , , .757 , , 2.6 , , .8 , , .4 , , .4 , , 6.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 14 , , 0 , , 10.4 , , .343 , , .286 , , .600 , , 1.9 , , .5 , , .6 , , .3 , , 2.4 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 202 , , 8 , , 12.8 , , .428 , , .357 , , .718 , , 1.9 , , .5 , , .4 , , .3 , , 4.6

Playoffs

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, 11 , , 0 , , 3.0 , , .333 , , .000 , , .500 , , .3 , , .3 , , .1 , , .1 , , 1.1 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...

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, 3 , , 0 , , 1.7 , , .500 , , — , , — , , .0 , , .0 , , .0 , , .3 , , .7 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...

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, 3 , , 0 , , 8.3 , , .143 , , .200 , , .500 , , 1.0 , , .0 , , .3 , , .7 , , 1.3 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2021 File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état, coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October–November 2021 ...

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, 5 , , 0 , , 5.8 , , .333 , , .000 , , — , , 1.0 , , .0 , , .0 , , .0 , , .8 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 22 , , 0 , , 4.2 , , .300 , , .091 , , .500 , , .5 , , .1 , , .1 , , .2 , , 1.0

College

, - , style="text-align:left;", 2011–12 , style="text-align:left;",

Northern Illinois Northern Illinois is a region generally covering the northern third of the U.S. state of Illinois. The region is by far the most populous of Illinois with nearly 9.7 million residents as of 2010. Economics Northern Illinois is dominated by th ...

, 31 , , 29 , , 24.2 , , .337 , , .299 , , .682 , , 4.2 , , 1.1 , , .7 , , .7 , , 10.4 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2012–13 , style="text-align:left;",

, 19 , , 18 , , 25.4 , , .337 , , .277 , , .772 , , 5.6 , , .9 , , 1.3 , , .5 , , 13.1 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2014–15 , style="text-align:left;",

, 32 , , 0 , , 16.4 , , .406 , , .217 , , .767 , , 2.9 , , .7 , , .4 , , .5 , , 5.8 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2015–16 , style="text-align:left;",

, 35 , , 35 , , 31.1 , , .478 , , .371 , , .736 , , 5.0 , , 1.5 , , 1.1 , , .7 , , 12.9 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 136 , , 56 , , 20.6 , , .469 , , .382 , , .789 , , 2.7 , , 1.3 , , .7 , , .2 , , 8.8

Personal life

Nader moved with his family to the United States at the age of 4 and considers

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

his hometown. He speaks partial

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic languages, Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C ...

. He majored in liberal studies at

Iowa State University Iowa State University of Science and Technology (Iowa State University, Iowa State, or ISU) is a public land-grant research university in Ames, Iowa. Founded in 1858 as the Iowa Agricultural College and Model Farm, Iowa State became one of the n ...

References

External links

Iowa State Cyclones bio

ESPN.com profile

CBSSports profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nader, Abdel 1993 births Living people American men's basketball players Basketball players from Illinois Boston Celtics draft picks Boston Celtics players Egyptian emigrants to the United States Egyptian men's basketball players Iowa State Cyclones men's basketball players Maine Red Claws players Northern Illinois Huskies men's basketball players Oklahoma City Blue players Oklahoma City Thunder players People from Skokie, Illinois Phoenix Suns players Power forwards (basketball) Small forwards Sportspeople from Alexandria Sportspeople from Cook County, Illinois