Craig Callahan (born May 26, 1981) is an American-born naturalized Italian professional basketball player who last played for

Pallacanestro Cantù Pallacanestro Cantù, known for sponsorship reasons as Acqua S.Bernardo Cantù, is an Italian professional basketball club that is based in Cantù, Lombardy. On the European-wide club competition scene, Cantù is second to Real Madrid – again ...

of the

Lega Basket Serie A The Lega Basket Serie A (LBA) is a professional men's club basketball league that has been organised in Italy since 1920. Serie A is organised by Lega Basket, which is regulated by the Italian Basketball Federation (FIP). It is the highest-tier le ...

Biography

Early life and education

Craig Nicholas Callahan was born in

Maquoketa, Iowa Maquoketa () is a city in Jackson County, Iowa, United States. Located on the Maquoketa River, it is the county seat of Jackson County. U.S. Route 61 adjoins the city, which therefore hosts traffic between Dubuque and the Quad Cities. Iowa Highwa ...

on May 26, 1981. He graduated from Cascade High School in

Cascade, Iowa Cascade is a city in Dubuque and Jones counties, Iowa, United States. The Dubuque County portion is part of Dubuque Metropolitan Statistical Area, while the Jones County section is part of Cedar Rapids Metropolitan Statistical Area. The populatio ...

. Craig attended college at the

University of North Carolina Wilmington The University of North Carolina Wilmington (UNCW or UNC Wilmington) is a public research university in Wilmington, North Carolina. It is part of the University of North Carolina System and enrolls 17,499 undergraduate and graduate students eac ...

where he played on the men's basketball team. In 2011, he has got the Italian passport as naturalized.

Career

He played at the

from 1999–2003. Callahan gained notoriety during his time at

UNCW The University of North Carolina Wilmington (UNCW or UNC Wilmington) is a Public university, public research university in Wilmington, North Carolina. It is part of the University of North Carolina System and enrolls 17,499 undergraduate and gr ...

as he helped lead the team into 3 NCAA Tournaments (1999, 2002, 2003). During his senior year with the Seahawks, he averaged over 16 points and 6 rebounds a game. After graduating from college with a Finance Degree, he played professional basketball in the Czech Republic from 2003–2006, and was named Most Valuable Player of the NBL in 2006. He played in the NBL All-Stars game in 2004,2005, and 2006 in which he won the slam dunk contest. Throughout his time in Czech Republic, Callahan was recognized for numerous league achievements. Some of his achievements include

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-Czech Republic League Import Player of the Year (2004,2006),

All-Czech Republic League Player of the Year (2006),

All-Czech Republic League Forward of the Year (2006), and

Czech Republic League All-Defensive Team (2006). He then played in Spain from 2006–2008 after being signed by Ricoh Manresa.While playing for Ricoh Manresa., he contributed to the team's success when they won the LEB Championship in 2007. Due to their success in 2007, Ricoh Manresa. gained entry back into the

Liga ACB The Liga ACB, known as Liga Endesa for sponsorship reasons, is the top professional basketball division of the Spanish basketball league system. Administrated by the Asociación de Clubs de Baloncesto (ACB), Liga ACB is contested by 18 teams, wi ...

in 2008. In November 2008, Callahan was signed by the Eisbaren Bremerhaven (the Bremerhaven Polar Bears) of Germany's top league. A vital addition to the team, Callahan was one of the league's top scorers averaging over 17 points, and 6.9 rebounds a game. During the summer of 2011 he signed a contract with

New Basket Brindisi New Basket Brindisi, for sponsorship reasons named Happy Casa Brindisi or shortly Brindisi, is a professional Italian basketball based in Brindisi, Apulia. It plays in the first division LBA in the 2022–23 season. Founded in 2004, the well-s ...

, basketball team which play the second Italian national league. Next season he played with Sigma Barcellona. In August 2013, he signed with Tezenis Verona. In July 2014, he signed a one-year deal with

Pallacanestro Varese Pallacanestro Varese, also called by its current sponsor's name, the Openjobmetis Varese, is an Italian professional basketball club based in Varese, Lombardy. Founded in 1945, the team plays in the Italian basketball league system, Italian first ...

. In 2015–16 he played for

Virtus Roma Pallacanestro Virtus Roma, commonly known as Virtus Roma, was an Italian professional basketball club based in Rome, Lazio. It competed in the first division of Italian basketball, the LBA, for the last time in the 2020–21 season. It was form ...

, and in August 2016, he signed with

.LA PALLACANESTRO CANTU' INGAGGIA CRAIG CALLAHAN
(Italian) During the off-season he resides in

Jacksonville Jacksonville is a city located on the Atlantic coast of northeast Florida, the most populous city proper in the state and is the List of United States cities by area, largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020. It is the co ...

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

References

External links

ACB League Profile

Eurobasket.com Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Callahan, Craig 1981 births Living people American emigrants to Italy American expatriate basketball people in Belgium American expatriate basketball people in Germany American expatriate basketball people in Italy American expatriate basketball people in the Czech Republic American expatriate basketball people in Spain Basketball players from Iowa Bàsquet Manresa players Eisbären Bremerhaven players Italian men's basketball players Lega Basket Serie A players Liga ACB players New Basket Brindisi players Pallacanestro Cantù players Pallacanestro Varese players People from Cascade, Iowa People from Maquoketa, Iowa Power forwards (basketball) Scaligera Basket Verona players UNC Wilmington Seahawks men's basketball players American men's basketball players