Misan Haldin (born 7 July 1982 as Eyinmisan Edward Ogharanemeye Nikagbatse) is a German former

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. He played for clubs in Germany, Greece and Italy.

Professional career

Haldin started his professional career at TuS Lichterfelde Berlin, then a

farm team In sports, a farm team, farm system, feeder team, feeder club, or nursery club is generally a team or club whose role is to provide experience and training for young players, with an agreement that any successful players can move on to a higher ...

of ALBA Berlin. At the 2000 international Albert Schweitzer Youth Tournament, he was the best scorer overall.Portrait on the official website of the German basketball federation
Haldin signed a contract with ALBA, but did not play for them as he wanted to play for a top club on a European level. After nearly one year without playing in any official game, he signed with Olympiacos Piraeus. After playing for the Italian club Snaidero Udine for half a year, Haldin returned to Germany to play for Mitteldeutscher, with which he won the

EuroCup Challenge The FIBA EuroCup Challenge was the 4th-tier level (it was the 3rd-tier level during the inaugural 2002–03 season), transnational professional continental club basketball competition in Europe. It was run and organized by FIBA Europe. The leag ...

. He was automatically eligible for the

2004 NBA Draft The 2004 NBA draft was held on June 24, 2004, at The Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City, and was broadcast live on ESPN at 7:00 pm ( EDT). In this draft, National Basketball Association teams took turns selecting amateur colle ...

, but was not drafted. Haldin then moved to Italy again, playing for Sedima Roseto and Vertical Vision Cantù in the first division. At the beginning of 2006, he signed for second division club Premiata Montegranaro, with which he got promoted to the first division. Haldin returned to Germany, but was waived by the

Köln 99ers Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 million inhabitants in the city proper and 3.6 million ...

in March 2008, after testing positive on

THC Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is the principal psychoactive constituent of cannabis and one of at least 113 total cannabinoids identified on the plant. Although the chemical formula for THC (C21H30O2) describes multiple isomers, the term ''THC' ...

, although he was not officially suspended as he did not play during that time due to an injury. Another spell in Italy followed, this time playing for Pallacanestro Varese and winning the

Legadue Serie A2, known for sponsorship reasons as Serie A2 Old Wild West, is a men's basketball league in Italy. It constitutes the second-tier of the Italian league pyramid, below the first division LBA and above the third division Serie B, with pr ...

championship. He returned to professional sports in 2011, when he was acquired by the LTi Gießen 46ers. However, he was again waived during the season.

National team career

Haldin won the bronze medal as a member of the senior German squad at the

2002 FIBA World Championship The 2002 FIBA World Championship was the 14th edition of the competition now known as the FIBA Basketball World Cup, the international world championship for men's basketball teams. The tournament held by the International Basketball Federation i ...

, dunking over Yao Ming during the competition. He also took part in the

EuroBasket 2005 The 2005 FIBA European Championship, commonly called FIBA EuroBasket 2005, was the 34th FIBA EuroBasket regional basketball championship held by FIBA Europe. It also served as Europe qualifier for the 2006 FIBA World Championship, giving a berth ...

, winning the silver medal. The German national team's head coach,

Dirk Bauermann Dirk Bauermann (born 10 December 1957) is a German professional basketball coach. Playing career Bauermann played club basketball in the German senior club of BBC Krefeld, from 1975 to 1981. Club coaching career Bauermann was an assistant coach ...

, cut his name off the roster for the 2008 Olympics qualification, after his drug abuse incident .

Personal life

He was born in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...

(Germany) to Nigerian dad and Finnish mom, Dietmar Wenck
Nikagbatse spielt mit den Extremen
(

Berliner Morgenpost ''Berliner Morgenpost'' is a German newspaper, based and mainly read in Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous c ...

, September 2, 2002) and his sister Roli-Ann is a member of the German women's national team. In 2012, they adopted their mother's name, Haldin.Nikagbatse heißt jetzt Haldin
January 17, 2012

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Haldin, Misan 1982 births Living people Basketball players from Berlin 2002 FIBA World Championship players Alba Berlin players German men's basketball players German people of Finnish descent German sportspeople of Nigerian descent Gießen 46ers players Greek Basket League players Köln 99ers players Mitteldeutscher BC players Olympiacos B.C. players Pallalcesto Amatori Udine players Pallacanestro Cantù players Pallacanestro Varese players Point guards Roseto Sharks players Sutor Basket Montegranaro players German expatriate basketball people in Italy German expatriate basketball people in Greece