Walter Wallace Hodge Muñoz (born September 21, 1986) is a Puerto Rican- U.S. Virgin Islander professional

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 who plays for

Al Ahly AL, Al, Ål or al may stand for: Arts and entertainment Fictional characters * Al (''Aladdin'') or Aladdin, the main character in Disney's ''Aladdin'' media * Al (''EastEnders''), a minor character in the British soap opera * Al (''Fullmetal ...

of the

Egyptian Basketball Super League The Egyptian Basketball Super League, also known as the Egyptian Basketball Premier League A, is the top professional basketball division of the Egyptian basketball league system. Administrated by the Egyptian Basketball Federation (EBBFED), it is ...

. Internationally, Hodge plays with the senior U.S. Virgin Islands national basketball team, due to eligibility arising from his Virgin Islander grandfather. After being a reserve point guard in his first two seasons with the Florida Gators, he became the starting point guard for the two-time defending national champions in the 2007–08 season. On June 5, 2013, in appreciation for his contribution to

Zielona Góra Zielona Góra is the largest city in Lubusz Voivodeship, located in western Poland, with 140,403 inhabitants (2021). Zielona Góra has a favourable geographical position, being close to the Polish-German border and on several international road ...

, his jersey number was retired.

Early years

Hodge was born in

San Juan, Puerto Rico San Juan (, , ; Spanish for "Saint John") is the capital city and most populous municipality in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States. As of the 2020 census, it is the 57th-largest city under the juri ...

. He attended Florida Air Academy in

Melbourne, Florida Melbourne is a city in Brevard County, Florida, United States. It is located southeast of Orlando. As of th2020 Decennial Census there was a population of 84,678. The municipality is the second-largest in the county by both size and population. ...

, a private military academy, and played high school basketball for the Florida Air Falcons. The Falcons won the state championships, with undefeated teams, during his sophomore and senior seasons.

College career

Hodge accepted an athletic scholarship to attend the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida, traces its origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its ...

, where he played for head coach Billy Donovan's

Florida Gators men's basketball The Florida Gators men's basketball team represents the University of Florida in the sport of basketball. The Gators compete in NCAA Division I's Southeastern Conference (SEC). Home games are played in the Exactech Arena at the Stephen C. O'Con ...

, team from 2005 to 2009. Playing a reserve role in the 2005–06 season, Hodge averaged 3.9 points and 1.2 assists per game, as a freshman. He started 8 games in

Southeastern Conference The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is an American college athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central and Southeastern United States. Its fourteen members include the flagship public universities o ...

(SEC) play, and averaged 19 minutes per contest, during the Gators' first national title run. Hodge had a decreased number of starts and minutes during the 2006–07 season, starting just three games, but increasing his scoring average to 5.7 points per game, as the Gators repeated as national champions. He had a career high of 17 points against

Florida State Florida State University (FSU) is a public university, public research university in Tallahassee, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida. Founded in 1851, it is located on the oldest continuous site of higher e ...

, and finished the season hitting exactly 50% of three-point shot attempts. With the departure of

Taurean Green Taurean James Green (born November 28, 1986) is a Georgian-American professional basketball player who last played for Stal Ostrów Wielkopolski of the Polish Basketball League (PLK). He is the son of former NBA journeyman Sidney Green. Green p ...

to the NBA, and

Lee Humphrey Lee Anthony Humphrey (born April 23, 1984) is an American-born professional basketball player, who last played for BC Juventus of the Lithuanian League. Humphrey played college basketball for the University of Florida, and was a key member of th ...

to graduation/playing overseas, Hodge became the starting point guard for the Gators, during the 2007–08 season.

Professional career

In August 2010 Hodge signed with the Polish League team

. In April 2012, Hodge was named the Most Valuable Player of the

Polish Basketball League Polska Liga Koszykówki (PLK) (English: Polish Basketball League) is a professional men's club basketball league in Poland. It constitutes the first and highest-tier level of the Polish league pyramid. The winning team of the final round are crow ...

. As the Zastal Zielona Góra's top player, he won with his team the 2011–12 Polish League Bronze Medal (3rd place). In the 2012–13 season, Zielona Góra's team debuted in the European-wide 2nd-tier level EuroCup, and advanced to the Last 16. Hodge was the team's leader, with averages of 21.2 points and 5.4 assists per game, while shooting 51.7% overall from the field (52.4% on 2 point field goals) and 50% on 3 point field goals (making 25 out of 50 attempts). In week 6, he took the EuroCup Basketball Player of the Round honors. On February 25, 2013, Hodge was awarded the Polish-Czech All Star Game MVP (he scored 22 points in the game). He was named to the All-EuroCup Second Team in 2013. In June 2013 he won the Polish League championship. It was the first Polish national championship in

's history. On June 5, 2013, Basket Zielona Góra retired Hodge's jersey number 15. He became the first player in the club's history to be honored with a jersey retirement. In June 2013, Hodge signed a two-year deal with Spanish club Laboral Kutxa Vitoria. In February 2014, he was loaned to Puerto Rican club

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) ...

, for the rest of the season. In August 2014, he parted ways with Laboral Kutxa, and signed with Russian club

Zenit Saint Petersburg Football Club Zenit (russian: link=no, Футбольный клуб «Зенит» ), also known as Zenit Saint Petersburg or simply Zenit, is a Russian professional football club based in Saint Petersburg. Founded in 1925 (or in 1914, acco ...

. On May 6, Hodge returned to Capitanes de Arecibo. On July 31, 2017, Hodge signed with

Homenetmen Beirut Homenetmen Beirut may refer to: *Homenetmen Beirut (basketball), a Lebanese basketball club *Homenetmen Beirut (football) Homenetmen Sports Association Beirut ( ar, الجمعية الرياضية هومنتمن بيروت; ), or simply Homene ...

of 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 ...

. After playing with Capitanes de Arecibo for some time in 2018, Hodge returned to Homenetmen Beirut on September 25, 2018. Hodge signed with Sagesse Club in Lebanon in 2019 and averaged 22 points per game. Later he joined Al Wahdi in Saudi Arabia. On September 21, 2020, Hodge signed with US Monastir of the

Championnat National A The Championnat National A (CNA) is the highest tier professional basketball league in Tunisia. Established in 1956, the league currently features 10 teams. Étoile Sportive de Radès is the record holder for most titles, with a total of thirteen. ...

. In September 2020, Hodge signed with US Monastir in Tunisia. In October, Hodge signed with

Zamalek Zamalek ( ar, الزمالك , ''al zamalek'') is an affluent district of western Cairo encompassing the northern portion of Gezira Island in the Nile River. The island is connected with the river banks through three bridges each on the east ...

in Egypt. He played with the team in the 2021 season of the

Basketball Africa League The Basketball Africa League (BAL) is Africa's premier men's basketball league. The league consists of twelve teams, each qualified through their domestic competition, similar to the format of the UEFA Champions League. The league is a joint eff ...

, winning the first-ever championship. Hodge had 12 points and 4 assists in the final and was named the first-ever BAL Most Valuable Player. On July 27, 2022,

announced it had signed Hodge for the 2022–23 season.

National team career

Hodge is a member of the senior U.S. Virgin Islands national basketball team. With the U.S. Virgin Islands, he played at the 2009 FIBA Americas Championship, the 2010 Centrobasket, the 2011

FIBA CBC Championship The CBC Championship or CaribeBasket is a FIBA-sponsored international basketball tournament where national teams from the Caribbean participate. These countries are members of the Caribbean Basketball Confederation (CBC). The top three or four ...

, where he won a gold medal, the

2012 Centrobasket The 2012 Men's Central American and Caribbean Basketball Championship, also known as 2012 Centrobasket, was the regional championship of FIBA Americas for Central America and Caribbean subzone, played June 18–24, 2012. The top four teams qua ...

, the 2014 Centrobasket, the 2016 Centrobasket, and the 2017 FIBA AmeriCup. On February 21, 2021, Hodge scored a national team career-high 44 points in a 95–90 loss to

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

Awards and accomplishments

College

*2× SEC men's tournament champion: ( 2006, 2007) *2× NCAA men's Division I tournament champion: ( 2006, 2007)

Zielona Góra

* EuroCup Last 16 Week 6 MVP: (2013) * All-EuroCup Second Team: (2013) * Polish League Champion: (2013) * Polish League 3rd Place: (2012) *2× Polish League Regular Season MVP: (2012, 2013) * Polish League Top Scorer: (2012) *2× All-Polish League First Team: (2012, 2013) * Polish League 3rd Place Game MVP: (2012) * Polish League All-Star Game MVP: (2013) * Polish League All-Star Game Starting Lineup Top Vote-Getter: (2013) *3× Polish League All-Star Game Participant: (2011, 2012, 2013) *

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 ...

's All-Polish League Third Team: (2011) *First player in

's basketball history with a

retired jersey Retiring the number of an athlete is an honor a team bestows upon a player, usually after the player has left the team, retires from the sport, or dies, by taking his or her former number out of circulation. Once a number is retired, no future pla ...

( #15).

Baloncesto Superior Nacional

* Puerto Rican League MVP: (2014) * Puerto Rican League Finals MVP: (2018,2020, 2021)

Homenetmen Beirut

Arab Club Championship The Arab Club Champions Cup ( ar, كأس العرب للأندية الأبطال, french: Ligue des Champions Arabe) is an annual regional club football competition organised by the Union of Arab Football Associations (UAFA) and contested by eli ...

Champion: (2017) * Lebanese League Champion: (2018) * Lebanese Cup Winner: (2018) * Lebanese League League MVP: (2018) *Lebanese League Guard of the Year: (2019) *Lebanese League Import of the Year: (2019) *Lebanese League 1st Team: (2019) *Lebanese League All-Imports Team: (2019)

Zamalek

winner: (

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 coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October 2021 coup in Sudan; Crowd shortly after t ...

) * BAL Most Valuable Player: (

) *

winner: (

)

BAL career statistics

, - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;",

† , style="text-align:left;",

, 6 , , 6 , , 27.6 , , .486 , , .370 , , .882 , , 5.0 , , 5.8 , , .5 , , .0 , , 15.5 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 6 , , 6 , , 27.6 , , .486 , , .370 , , .882 , , 5.0 , , 5.8 , , .5 , , .0 , , 15.5

References

External links

Euroleague.net ProfileEurobasket.com ProfileSpanish League Profile

Florida Gators bioTwitter

FacebookSnapchatTikTokInstagramTelegram
*Faceboo
Page

Social Media Accounts

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hodge, Walter 1986 births Living people ASVEL Basket players Basket Zielona Góra players Basketball players at the 2019 Pan American Games BC Zenit Saint Petersburg players Cangrejeros de Santurce basketball players Capitanes de Arecibo players Florida Gators men's basketball players US Monastir basketball players Zamalek SC basketball players Liga ACB players Pallacanestro Cantù players Pan American Games competitors for the United States Virgin Islands People from Guaynabo, Puerto Rico Point guards Puerto Rican men's basketball players Saski Baskonia players United States Virgin Islands men's basketball players Sagesse SC basketball players Puerto Rican people of United States Virgin Islands descent Puerto Rican people of British Virgin Islands descent