Elijah Lee Holman (born March 22, 1989) is an American professional basketball player for

Libertadores de Querétaro Libertadores de Querétaro (English: ''Querétaro Liberators'') is a professional Mexican basketball team, based in Querétaro City, Querétaro. The Libertadores are part of the Liga Nacional de Baloncesto Profesional, the top professional basket ...

of the

Liga Nacional de Baloncesto Profesional The National Professional Basketball League ( or LNBP) is the top professional basketball league in Mexico. The league was founded in 2000 with 10 teams. Despite its short history, the LNBP has established itself as the one of the most important ...

(LNBP). After playing at Richmond High School in

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

, Holman signed for the

Indiana Hoosiers The Indiana Hoosiers are the intercollegiate sports teams and players of Indiana University Bloomington, named after the colloquial term for people from the state of Indiana. The Hoosiers participate in Division I of the National Collegiate Ath ...

, and played one year of

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 ...

before transferring to Detroit Mercy for his sophomore year. After his senior season at Detroit Mercy he went undrafted in the

2012 NBA draft The 2012 NBA draft was held on June 28, 2012, at Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. The draft started at 7:00 pm Eastern Daylight Time (2300 UTC), and was broadcast in the United States on ESPN. In this draft, National Basketball Asso ...

, and after a brief appearance in the

2012 NBA Summer League The 2012 NBA Summer League was a pro basketball league run by the NBA just after the 2012 NBA Draft. It took place in Orlando, Florida from July 9 to 13 and in Las Vegas, Nevada from July 13 to 22, 2012. Damian Lillard (Portland Trail Blazers) an ...

he signed with

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

i team Hapoel Eilat, where he started his professional career. He has appeared in the NBA Summer League in 2013 and 2014, but never signed for an NBA team. He has played in Israel,

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula in ...

Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to Lebanon–Syria border, the north and east and Israel to Blue ...

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and unincorporated ...

and China throughout his career.

High school career

Holman was born in

San Francisco, California San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

and attended Richmond High School in nearby

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States * Richmond, London, a part of London * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, ...

. In his sophomore year at Richmond, Holman averaged a

triple double In basketball, a double-double is a single-game performance in which a player accumulates ten or more in two of the following five statistical categories: points, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocked shots. The first "double" in the term ...

, posting 10 points, 15 rebounds and 10 blocks per game. During his junior year of high school, Holman was suspended for 14 months for shoving a referee during a December 2005 game. In July 2006, the summer leading to his senior year, Holman was invited to participate in the ABCD Camp, a camp for the best high school players in the United States. Holman was reinstated to play in 2007, and he played the final part of his senior season, averaging 27.4 points, 12 rebounds, 5 assists and 10 blocks per game. Holman was listed as a top 100 player in the nation by several recruiting services.

247Sports 247Sports is an American network of websites that focus mainly on college recruiting, athletic recruitment in college football and college basketball, basketball. It is owned and operated by Paramount Global, Paramount. The website hosts a larg ...

listed him as the 78th best player, and the 8th best center of his class;

Rivals.com Rivals.com is a network of websites that focus mainly on college football and basketball recruiting in the United States. The network was started in 1998 and employs more than 300 personnel. History Rivals.com was founded in 1998 by Jim Heckma ...

listed him as the 85th best player overall; and he was ranked 90th according to the Recruiting Services Consensus Index (RSCI).

College career

Indiana

Holman committed to

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

in September 2006 and signed on February 7, 2007. During the 2007–08 NCAA Division I season Holman found limited playing time under coach

Kelvin Sampson Kelvin Dale Sampson (born October 5, 1955) is an American college basketball coach, currently the head coach for the University of Houston of the American Athletic Conference. Early life Sampson was born in the Lumbee Native American community of ...

, and he had his best performance with the Hoosiers on November 18, 2007 when he scored 4 points and posted 6 rebounds against Longwood. After 6 games with Indiana (1 point and 1.7 rebounds per game in 7.5 minutes of playing time) he injured his wrist, and missed the rest of the season.

Detroit Mercy

Holman decided to declare himself available for transfer, and considered the

University of San Francisco The University of San Francisco (USF) is a private Jesuit university in San Francisco, California. The university's main campus is located on a setting between the Golden Gate Bridge and Golden Gate Park. The main campus is nicknamed "The Hil ...

and

San Jose State San José State University (San Jose State or SJSU) is a public university in San Jose, California. Established in 1857, SJSU is the oldest public university on the West Coast and the founding campus of the California State University (CSU) sy ...

in his home state of California as possible destinations before choosing to play for Detroit Mercy where he followed

Ray McCallum Ray Michael McCallum Sr. (born March 6, 1961) is an American college basketball coach who is currently an assistant coach for Tulane Green Wave men's basketball, Tulane. He previously served as the head coach for the men's basketball team at the ...

, a former assistant coach at Indiana who had been hired as the new head coach at Detroit Mercy. As a result, Holman missed the 2008–09 season due to NCAA transfer rules. Holman debuted with the Titans on November 11, 2009 against the nationally ranked California Golden Bears, posting 15 points and 7 rebounds. On November 23, 2009 Holman was named Horizon League Player of the Week. On January 14, 2010 Holman grabbed 18 rebounds against

Milwaukee Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee ...

, which was the 8th best rebounding performance in the NCAA season. He scored a season-high 21 points against Valparaiso during the 2010 Horizon League tournament on March 2, 2010; he also posted 15 rebounds in that game. He led the Horizon League in blocks per game with 2.5, and ranked third on his team in scoring with 11.8 points per game. His field goal percentage of 61.4% ranked third all-time in the history of Detroit Mercy basketball. At the end of the season, Holman was named in the Horizon League All-Newcomer team. Before the start of his junior season, Holman was named a Preseason All-Horizon Second Team selection. He 25 out of 32 total games, with a career-high averages of 28.6 minutes and 9.5 rebounds per game. On November 26, 2010 Holman scored a career-high 27 points (along with 15 rebounds) against Albany in a double-overtime win. On January 28, 2011 he had 5 blocks against Milwaukee. At the end of the season he had totalled 13 double doubles, and was the leading rebounder of the Horizon League; he was named in the All-Horizon League Second Team and was selected in the All-Defensive team. Before the 2011–12 season, Holman was a preseason All-Horizon League First Team selection; however, he lost his starting role for his senior season, and started only 2 of his 26 games. Coach McCallum used him as a

sixth man The sixth man in basketball is a player who is not a starter but comes off the bench much more often than other reserves, often being the first player to be substituted in. The sixth man often plays minutes equal to or exceeding some of the sta ...

, and he played 23.3 minutes per game coming off the bench. He scored a season-high 21 points against

Western Michigan West Michigan and Western Michigan are terms for an arbitrary region in the U.S. state of Michigan's Lower Peninsula. Most narrowly it refers to the Grand Rapids- Muskegon-Holland area, and more broadly to most of the region along the Lower Pen ...

on December 8, 2011. In the NCAA tournament game against

Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to th ...

, Holman posted a double double with 10 points and 11 rebounds in 25 minutes of play. At the end of the season, Holman was named Horizon League Sixth Man of the Year.

College statistics

, - , align="left" , 2007–08 , align="left" ,

, 6 , , 0 , , 7.5 , , .250 , , .000 , , .500 , , 1.7 , , 0.2 , , 0.2 , , 0.5 , , 1.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2008–09 , style="text-align:left;", Detroit Mercy , colspan=11 align=center , ''Did not play – transfer'' , - , align="left" , 2009–10 , align="left" , Detroit Mercy , 31 , , 31 , , 28.0 , , .614 , , .000 , , .633 , , 8.9 , , 0.7 , , 0.5 , , 2.5 , , 11.8 , - , align="left" ,

2010–11 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. ...

, align="left" , Detroit Mercy , 32 , , 25 , , 28.6 , , .607 , , .000 , , .694 , , 9.5 , , 0.8 , , 0.9 , , 1.6 , , 11.8 , - , align="left" , 2011–12 , align="left" , Detroit Mercy , 26 , , 2 , , 23.3 , , .607 , , .000 , , .595 , , 7.0 , , 0.7 , , 0.7 , , 1.3 , , 10.8 , - , align="left" , Career , align="left" , , 95 , , 58 , , 25.6 , , .605 , , .000 , , .646 , , 8.1 , , 0.7 , , 0.7 , , 1.7 , , 10.8 , -

Professional career

After his senior season with the Titans, Holman was automatically eligible for the

, where he went undrafted. Holman was part of the roster of the Houston Rockets for the

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

. After the end of the Summer League Holman was not signed by the Rockets, and he decided to move to

, signing for Hapoel Eilat of the

Basketball Super League 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 ...

. During the 2012–13 season, his first as a professional, Holman averaged 13 points and 10 rebounds per game (2nd in the league in rebounding, tied with

Jumaine Jones Jumaine Lanard Jones (born February 10, 1979) is an American former professional basketball player. An NBA player from 1999 to 2007 drafted from the University of Georgia, he played the small forward and power forward positions. Amateur career ...

and behind Frank Hassell) over 26 appearances. He also played 10 playoff games that season, averaging 12.4 points and 7.7 rebounds per game. In the summer of 2013 Holman again took part in the NBA Summer League: during the 2013 edition he played with the Boston Celtics, playing 4 games during the Orlando Summer League with averages of 3.5 points and 4.3 rebounds. He then signed with

Uşak Sportif Uşak Sportif, also known as Uşak Üniversitesi Belediyespor, was a professional basketball team that is based in the city of Uşak, in Turkey. The team was founded in 2006. Their home arena was the Uşak Üniversitesi Sport Hall, which has a se ...

of the

Turkish Basketball 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 ...

and played the full season with the team, averaging 13.4 points, 9.5 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 28 games; he also appeared in 2 playoff games, where he scored 15 points per game in the series against Fenerbahçe. In 2014 he participated in two tournaments during the

2014 NBA Summer League The 2014 NBA Summer League consists of two pro basketball leagues organized by the NBA and the Orlando Magic just after the 2014 NBA Draft. Ten teams took part in the week-long summer league at the Amway Center in Orlando, Florida, from July 5 t ...

: he played the Orlando league with the

Miami Heat The Miami Heat are an American professional basketball team based in Miami. The Heat compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division. The club plays its home games at FT ...

(4 games with 5 points and 4.3 rebounds per game) and he played in

with the

Toronto Raptors The Toronto Raptors are a Canadian professional basketball team based in Toronto. The Raptors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. They play their home games a ...

(4 appearances with averages of 3 points and 3 rebounds). He then joined a

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...

team for the first time in his career, signing a contract with the

Zhejiang Lions The Zhejiang Guangsha Lions () are a Chinese professional basketball team based in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, which plays in the North Division of the Chinese Basketball Association. Guangsha is the name of the club's corporate sponsor, but to prevent ...

, and he debuted in the

Chinese Basketball Association The Chinese Basketball Association (), often abbreviated as the CBA, is the first-tier professional men's basketball league in China. The league is commonly known by fans as the CBA, and this acronym is even used in Chinese on a regular basis ...

(CBA): in his first season he averaged 22.9 points, 14.4 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game while shooting 67.9% from the field. His team qualified for the playoffs, and Holman posted averages of 22.7 points and 15.3 rebounds during the 2015 CBA Playoffs, including a 29-point performance on February 9, 2015; his team was eliminated by the

Liaoning Flying Leopards The Liaoning Flying Leopards (), also known as the Liaoning Shenyang Sansheng Flying Leopard Club or Liaoning Bengang ( simplified Chinese: 辽宁本钢), are a Chinese professional basketball team based in Hunnan District, Shenyang, Liaoning ...

. He then moved to

and played in the

Lebanese Basketball League The Lebanese Basketball League is the top-tier professional men's basketball league in Lebanon. It is organized annually as a national championship with playoffs and a national cup by the Lebanese Basketball Federation (FLB). Currently, the leagu ...

, earning an All-League Second Team selection with

Sporting Al Riyadi Beirut Al Riyadi Club Beirut ( ar, نادي الرياضي بيروت, lit=Sporting Club Beirut) is a multi-sports club based in Manara, a district in Beirut, Lebanon. Founded in 1934, the basketball team competes in the Lebanese Basketball League. ...

. He went back to the Zhejiang Lions for the 2015–16 CBA season, and he posted new career-highs with 23.5 points and 15.4 rebounds per game over 37 regular season games: in the 2016 CBA Playoffs Holman recorded 27 points and 9.3 rebounds per game, and his team was eliminated by the

Sichuan Blue Whales The Sichuan Jinqiang Blue Whales (sometimes spelled Whale) (四川金强蓝鲸), also known as Sichuan Jinqiang or Sichuan Jinrong Industry, are a professional basketball team based in Wenjiang District, Chengdu, Sichuan, China, which plays in ...

(2–1 for the series). In March 2016 Holman signed for

Hapoel Jerusalem Hapoel Jerusalem is a sport organization in Jerusalem as a local branch of the Hapoel movement. The branch was established in the 1920s and represents the city in more sports than any other sport organization in Jerusalem. Today, the club's leadi ...

, and he played in 9

regular season In an organized sports league, a typical season is the portion of one year in which regulated games of the sport are in session: for example, in Major League Baseball the season lasts approximately from the last week of March to the last week of ...

games and 7 playoff games, averaging 11.6 points and 5.1 rebounds in postseason play. He took part in the

2016 Israeli Basketball Super League Final Four The 2016 Israeli Final Four was the concluding tournament of the 2015–16 Israeli Basketball Super League. It was the seventh Israeli Final Four, and the event is held for the first time since the 2012 edition. Unlike previous Final Four tourn ...

, and played in the final game, scoring 8 points and grabbing a team-high 7 rebounds. Holman returned to the Zhejiang Bulls for his third season with the club: he received less playing time, and in 27.2 minutes per game he averaged 17.5 points and 9.7 rebounds (his only season with less than 10 rebounds per game in the CBA). He participated in the 2017 CBA Playoffs, his third consecutive playoff appearance, and in 4 games he posted averages of 13.8 points and 5 rebounds per game. In July 2017 he left the Bulls for the

Tianjin Gold Lions The Tianjin Ronggang Pioneers () or Tianjin Ronggang or Tianjin Pioneers are a Chinese professional basketball team based in Tianjin, which plays in the Northern Division of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA). The Ronggang Import & Export Tr ...

, and played in 17 games during the 2017–18 CBA season: he started all the games and averaged a career-high 26.7 points per game, along with 14.7 rebounds in 34.5 minutes per game. He then left the team in September 2018. In 2019 Holman participated in the

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 ...

FIBA Americas League The FIBA Americas League ( Portuguese: ''FIBA Liga das Américas'', Spanish: ''FIBA Liga de las Américas''), officially abbreviated as the LDA, was the premier intercontinental basketball club competition played annually by clubs of the entire ...

with Puerto Rican team

Capitanes de Arecibo The Capitanes de Arecibo are a Puerto Rican professional basketball team based in Arecibo that competes in the Baloncesto Superior Nacional (BSN) league. In 2010, the team also had the distinction to play in the Premier Basketball League (PBL) ...

. He then joined Anhui Dragons of the National Basketball League, the second tier of Chinese basketball, in March 2019. In October 2019, Holman signed a contract with the

Jilin Northeast Tigers The Jilin Northeast Tigers () or Jilin Tonggang, Jilin Tonggang Northeast Tigers () or Jiutai Rural Commercial Bank are a professional basketball team based in Changchun, Jilin, China, which plays in the North Division of the Chinese Basketball ...

of the CBA, returning to the Chinese top league. He averaged 15.3 points and 10 rebounds per game in the 2019–20 season before the league was suspended due to the

COVID-19 pandemic in mainland China The COVID-19 pandemic in mainland China is part of the worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). China was the first country to experience an outbreak o ...

References

External links

Career stats at ProBallers.comProfile at RealGM.comTurkish league statsIsraeli league stats
{{DEFAULTSORT:Holman, Eli 1989 births Living people African-American basketball players American expatriate basketball people in China American expatriate basketball people in Israel American expatriate basketball people in Lebanon American expatriate basketball people in Turkey American men's basketball players Anhui Dragons players Basketball players from California Capitanes de Arecibo players Centers (basketball) Detroit Mercy Titans men's basketball players Hapoel Eilat basketball players Hapoel Jerusalem B.C. players Indiana Hoosiers men's basketball players Jilin Northeast Tigers players Power forwards (basketball) Sportspeople from Richmond, California Tianjin Pioneers players Uşak Sportif players Zhejiang Lions players Richmond High School (Richmond, California) alumni Al Riyadi Club Beirut basketball players 21st-century African-American sportspeople 20th-century African-American people