Roy Nicolas Samaha (born 12 September 1984 in

Zahlé Zahlé ( ar, زَحْلة) is the capital and the largest city of Beqaa Governorate, Lebanon. With around 150,000 inhabitants, it is the third-largest city in Lebanon after Beirut and Tripoli and the fourth largest taking the whole urban area (t ...

) is a retired (from the 1st division) Lebanese professional basketball player. He was a key player in the

Lebanon national basketball team Lebanon national basketball team can refer to: * Lebanon men's national basketball team ** Lebanon men's national under-19 basketball team ** Lebanon men's national under-17 basketball team * Lebanon women's national basketball team ** Lebanon wome ...

and participated lately in the

2006 FIBA World Championship The 2006 FIBA World Championship was the 15th FIBA World Championship, the international basketball world championship for men's national teams. The tournament was hosted by Japan and held from 19 August to 3 September 2006. It was co-organised by ...

FIBA Asia Championship 2007 The 2007 FIBA Asia Championship for Men was the qualifying tournament for FIBA Asia at the men's basketball tournament at the 2008 Summer Olympics at Beijing. The tournament was held in Tokushima, Japan from July 28 to August 5, 2007. Participati ...

and

FIBA World Olympic Qualifying Tournament for Men 2008 The FIBA World Olympic Qualifying Tournament for Men 2008 was the final qualifying tournament for the 2008 Olympic men's basketball tournament. Organized by FIBA, it took place from 14 to 20 July 2008 at the OAKA Indoor Sports Arena, in Athens, ...

Early years

Samaha started his

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 ...

career in 2000 when he was recruited by Sagesse, one of the leading basketball teams 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 the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus li ...

. He joined Sagesse and made his way to the first team in the end of 1999.

Professional sports career

Sagesse (Hekmeh) Years (1999-2004)

Samaha played with

Hekmeh BC Sagesse Sports Club (), known as Hekmeh ( ar, الحكمة) in Arabic, is a Lebanese sports club based in Beirut. The basketball team was established in 1992, as part of the Club Sagesse established in 1943 with mainly the football (soccer) te ...

(Sagesse) team for 4 consecutive seasons where he helped his team win four Lebanese Basketball League championships, three Lebanese Cups and for the first time in

's history, two

FIBA Asia Champions Cup The FIBA Asia Champions Cup, previously known as the Asian Basketball Confederation (ABC) Champions Cup until 2002, is the Asian club championship for professional basketball. It is organised by FIBA Asia, and takes place once a year (since 199 ...

titles in 2000 and 2004.

Blue Stars Years (2005-2007)

Samaha transferred to the Blue Stars team for three consecutive seasons. He played as a starter.

Mouttahed (2007-2009)

Following his time with the Blue Stars, Samaha joined the newly promoted to Division A

Al Mouttahed Tripoli Al Muttahed ( ar, المتحد طرابلس) also known by its name United Club Tripoli is a Lebanese sports club most known for its basketball program playing in top division for men and women. It is located Tripoli, Lebanon. It is affiliated ...

team. Samaha averaged 10 points and 10

rebounds 'Rebound' is a term used in sports to describe the ball (or puck or other object of play) becoming available for possession by either opponent after an attempt to put the ball or puck into the goal has been unsuccessful. Rebounds are generally ...

a game and led his team to the semi-finals and caused an upset by beating his former team and one of the favorites to win the championship.. Al Mouttahed Tripoli lost in the finals to

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. T ...

, which had been unbeaten that season, 3 games to 1.

Sagesse (2009-2010)

After his injury, Samaha rejoined his former team the green castle Hekmeh BC (Sagesse). He finished with 11.5 points per game and about 10 rebounds per game.

Anibal Zahle (2010-2012)

After a summer with the national team, Samaha joined his city club

Anibal Zahle Anibal Zahle ( ar, أنيبال زحلة) is a Lebanese sports club most known for its basketball program that played in first division basketball for many years since 1950. It is located Zahlé, Lebanon, which is a Lebanese sports club most know ...

. Anibal Zahle won the Dubai Championship 2011, and the club managed to grab second in the Lebanese Championship after defeating Riyadi.

Mouttahed (2012-2013)

Honors and awards

*Lebanese Cup Winner -01, 02, 03 *Lebanese League Champion -01, 02, 03, 04,15,17 *Asian Club Championships -01, 04(winner), 07 (Quarterfinals) *Lebanese U18 National Team -01 *West Asian championship (junior) 1st place -01 *Lebanese National Team -02-08 *World Championships -02, 06 *WABA Cup -04 *Lebanese U20 National Team -04 *Asian U20 Championships in Tehran (Iran) - 04 *WABA Championships in Tehran -04 *Lebanese Cup Semifinals -06 *World Championships in Japan -06: 5 games: 4.6ppg, 3.8rpg *Asian Games in Doha -06 *Lebanese League Finalist -07, 08 *William Jones Cup Tournament -07 *Asia-Basket.com All-Lebanese League Most Improved Player of the Year -08 *Asia-Basket.com All-Lebanese League Honorable Mention -08

Personal

Samaha graduated from the

Lebanese American University The Lebanese American University (LAU) ( ar, الجامعة اللبنانية الأميركية) is a secular and private American university located in Lebanon. It is chartered by the board of regents of the University of the State of New Y ...

(Byblos) with high distinction. Prior to joining Moutahed Tripoli in 2007, Samaha played in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

with

Paris Basket Racing Paris Basket Racing, or PBR, was a French professional basketball club from Paris. It was founded in 1922, as the basketball section of the multi-sports club Racing Club de Paris. The team took the name "Paris Basket Racing" in 2000. In 2007, the ...

.Profile
AsiaBasket

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Samaha, Roy 1984 births Living people Centers (basketball) Lebanese American University alumni Lebanese men's basketball players People from Zahle Basketball players at the 2006 Asian Games Power forwards (basketball) 2002 FIBA World Championship players 2006 FIBA World Championship players Asian Games competitors for Lebanon Sagesse SC basketball players Al Riyadi Club Beirut basketball players