Solomon Makafan Alabi (born March 21, 1988) is a Nigerian former 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. He attended Florida State University where he helped them to a third-place finish in the ACC standings and a trip to the

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

Tournament where they fell to Gonzaga in the first round. The 7-foot-1 Alabi was a two-time ACC All-Defensive team selection in both his freshman and sophomore years. He played soccer before taking up basketball at age 15.

Early life

Alabi grew up in Zaria, Kaduna state of Nigeria before moving to

Clermont, Florida Clermont is a city in Lake County in central Florida, United States, about west of Orlando and southeast of Leesburg. The population was 43,021 in 2020. The city is residential in character and its economy is centered in retail trade, lodging, ...

at the age of 17. He attended

high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

at Montverde Academy in Montverde,

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 ...

where he was coached by Kevin Sutton. Alabi was an all-state performer and helped lead Montverde Academy to a perfect 30–0 record during his senior season. He attended the same high school as NBA player

Luc Mbah a Moute Luc Richard Mbah a Moute ( ; born 9 September 1986) is a Cameroonian former professional basketball player who last played for the Houston Rockets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Mbah a Moute also plays for the Cameroon national t ...

. Alabi started for the Nigerian Junior National Team at the 2007 Nike All-American camp. He also helped Nigeria qualify for the

2007 FIBA Under-19 World Championship The 2007 FIBA Under-19 World Championship (Serbian: Светско првенство до 19 година ФИБА до 19 година) was the 8th edition of the FIBA U19 World Championship. It was held in Novi Sad, Serbia from 12 to 22 July 2 ...

. He was selected for the 2007

Nike Hoop Summit The Nike Hoop Summit is an international men's basketball all-star game sponsored by Nike, held once a year since 1995, except from 2001–2003, which features the USA Basketball Men's Junior Select Team against a World Select Team of international ...

, representing the World Select Team, where he led all players in blocked shots.

College career

After breaking his leg 10 games into his freshman year, Alabi had to take a

medical redshirt Redshirt, in United States college athletics, is a delay or suspension of an athlete's participation in order to lengthen their period of eligibility. Typically, a student's athletic eligibility in a given sport is four seasons, aligning with the ...

. As a redshirt freshman, he earned All- ACC Freshman Team honors by averaging 8.4 points per game and leading the ACC in blocks with 2.1 per game. For his great shot-blocking ability, he was named to the ACC All-Defensive team in 2008–2009. As a redshirt sophomore, Alabi ranked 26th in the nation in blocked shots with an average of 2.39 while increasing his scoring average to 11.7 points per game. On April 23, 2010, he declared himself eligible for the

2010 NBA draft The 2010 NBA draft was held on June 24, 2010, at the Theatre at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The draft, which started at 7:00 pm Eastern Daylight Time (2300 UTC), was broadcast in the United States on ESPN. In this draft, National ...

Professional career

On June 24, 2010, Alabi was drafted by the Dallas Mavericks with the 50th pick, and traded to 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 ...

for cash considerations. On July 8, 2010, he signed a contract with the Toronto Raptors. The Raptors assigned him to the Erie BayHawks on November 15, 2010. He was recalled on December 9, 2010, sent back to Erie on January 6, 2011, and recalled once again by the Raptors on January 14, 2011. The Raptors assigned him to the BayHawks for a third time on March 9, 2011. Afterwards, Alabi was recalled back up to Toronto for a third time on April 5, 2011. On January 4, 2012, Alabi was assigned to the

Bakersfield Jam Bakersfield is a city in Kern County, California, United States. It is the county seat and largest city of Kern County. The city covers about near the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley and the Central Valley region. Bakersfield's pop ...

of the D-League. He was recalled on January 22, 2012. On April 26, 2012, against the

New Jersey Nets New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator ...

, Alabi recorded career highs of 11 points, 19 rebounds and 3 blocks in 40 minutes in the final game of the regular season. On October 1, 2012, Solomon signed with the

New Orleans Hornets New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator ...

. However, he was released on October 27. On December 28, 2012, Alabi joined the

Idaho Stampede Idaho ( ) is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Montana and Wyomi ...

. He was released on March 1, 2013. On March 21, 2013, he signed with the Greek first division basketball club Ikaros Kallitheas B.C. On September 28, 2013, Alabi signed with the Philadelphia 76ers. However, he was waived on October 5. He later signed with the Yulon Dinos of Taiwan for the 2013–14 season. In January 2015, Alabi signed with the

Barako Bull Energy The Barako Bull Energy were a Philippine Basketball Association team that began in 2002 as the FedEx Express. From its first season until 2005, the team was dubbed as the FedEx Express before changing to Air21 Express. From the 2009 PBA Fiest ...

for the 2015 PBA Commissioner's Cup.Another 7-footer to invade PBA
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NBA career statistics

Regular season

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Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

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References

External links

NBA D-League Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Alabi, Solomon 1988 births Living people Barako Bull Energy players Bakersfield Jam players Basketball players from Orlando, Florida Centers (basketball) Dallas Mavericks draft picks Erie BayHawks (2008–2017) players Florida State Seminoles men's basketball players Fukushima Firebonds players Idaho Stampede players Ikaros B.C. players Montverde Academy alumni National Basketball Association players from Nigeria Nigerian expatriate basketball people in the United States Philippine Basketball Association imports Toronto Raptors players Toyotsu Fighting Eagles Nagoya players Nigerian expatriate basketball people in Japan Nigerian expatriate basketball people in the Philippines Expatriate basketball people in Taiwan Yulon Luxgen Dinos players People from Zaria Super Basketball League imports