Manuel "Manny" Alejandro Suárez Montero (born November 12, 1993) is a Chilean-Spanish

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 (appro ...

player who currently plays for

Prawira Bandung Prawira Harum Bandung is an Indonesian professional basketball club based in the city of Bandung, West Java province. It was founded by Lilian Wijaya in 1991 as Hadtex Indosyntec. The club was a member of the Perbasi's top division from 1994 t ...

of the

Indonesian Basketball League The Indonesia Basketball League (IBL; ) is the preeminent men's professional basketball league in Indonesia, founded by Indonesian Basketball Association (Perbasi) in 2003. From 2010 to 2015 it was known as the National Basketball League (NBL) ...

(IBL). Manny also competes internationally for the Chilean national team. Raised in

Cliffside Park, New Jersey Cliffside Park is a borough in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 25,693, an increase of 2,099 (+8.9%) from the 2010 census count of 23,594, which in turn reflecte ...

, Suárez attended Cliffside Park High School before transferring to Marist High School.

College career

Fordham Rams (2014-15)

In the 2014-15 season, Suárez played for the

Fordham Rams The Fordham Rams are the varsity sports teams for Fordham University. Their colors are maroon and white. The Fordham Rams are members of NCAA Division I and compete in the Atlantic 10 Conference for most sports. In football, the Rams play in t ...

.Manny Súarez [sic] apunta a su regreso al basquetbol estadounidense
eluniversal.com.mx, 18 October 2020. Accessed 16 December 2021. Averaging 7.5 minutes in 19 games played, Manny averaged 1.8 points and 2.1 rebounds. The Rams finished the season 10–21, 4–14 in A-10 play to finish in last place. They advanced to the second round of the A-10 tournament, where they lost to the

Dayton Flyers The Dayton Flyers are the intercollegiate athletic teams of the University of Dayton of Dayton, Ohio. All Flyers intercollegiate sports teams participate at the National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA Division I level. The football team ...

, a game in which Manny played 4 minutes and scored 3 points.

Adelphi Panthers (2015-2017)

In the 2015–16 and 2016-17 seasons, Suárez played for the

Adelphi Panthers The Adelphi Panthers are the athletic teams that represent Adelphi University, located in Garden City, Long Island, New York, in NCAA Division II intercollegiate sports. The university fields 23 varsity sports programs, and the Panthers compete ...

. In the two seasons combined, Manny averaged 15.1 points, 8.6 rebounds and 2.2 blocks. Adelphi finished the respective seasons 20-8 and 18-12. In 2015-16, Adelphi reached the quarter finals of the NE-10 championship. In the quarterfinals, Manny had 23 points, 11 rebounds and 4 blocks. Adelphi also reached the quarterfinals in the 2016-17 season, in which game Manny had 21 points,11 rebounds and 2 blocks.

Creighton Bluejays (2017-2018)

For the 2017-18 season, Manny was recruited to join the

Creighton Bluejays The Creighton Bluejays, or Jays, are the athletic teams that represent Creighton University, a Jesuit/Catholic University in Omaha, Nebraska, United States. They compete in NCAA Division I in the Big East Conference. Sports sponsored Base ...

Greg McDermott Greg McDermott (born November 25, 1964) is an American basketball coach who has been the head coach of the Creighton Bluejays men's basketball, Creighton Bluejays men's basketball team since 2010. Previously, McDermott served as the head coach a ...

. About thirty college basketball teams had expressed interest in signing Suárez.Con el corazón puesto en la NBA y en Chile
Diego Hermosilla P. (

La Tercera (), formerly known as (), is a daily newspaper published in Santiago, Chile and owned by Copesa. It is s closest competitor. is part of Periódicos Asociados Latinoamericanos ( Latin American Newspaper Association), an organization of fourte ...

), 27 May 2017. Accessed 16 December 2021. Manny averaged 3 points and 2.6 rebounds in 7 minutes per game in 24 games played. Seeded 8th in the NCAA tournament, Creighton lost in the first round to 9th seed

Kansas State Kansas State University (KSU, Kansas State, or K-State) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Manhattan, Kansas, United States. It was opened as the state's land-grant college in 1863 and was the first public inst ...

, a game in which Manny played 1 minute and had 1 offensive rebound. Suárez later graduated from Creighton.

Professional career

CD Las Ánimas, CD Castro (2018-19)

In the 2018-19 season, Suárez played for Chilean club CD Las Ánimas in the

Basketball Champions League Americas The Basketball Champions League Americas (BCLA) ( Spanish: ''Liga de Campeones de Baloncesto de las Américas'', Portuguese: ''Liga dos Campeões de Basquetebol das Américas'') is Pan-America's premier men's basketball club competition. Found ...

, the highest tier basketball league in the continent. With Las Animas, Manny averaged 4 points, 2.3 assists and 2 rebounds in 11.6 minutes per game over 3 games played. Las Animas finished the Champions League with 2 wins and 4 losses, placing 8th. In the same season, Suárez also played for CD Castro in the LNB Chile, the highest division of basketball in Chile. With CD Castro, Manny averaged 13.2 points, 8.7 rebounds, 2 assists, 1.1 steals and 1.7 blocks in 29.6 minutes per game over 23 games played. CD Castro finished the season with 14 wins and 15 losses.

CEB Puerto Montt (2019-20)

In the 2019-20 season, Suárez continued in the LNB Chile, playing for CEB Puerto Montt. With Puerto Montt, Manny averaged 15.8 points, 10.1 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 1.4 steals and 1.9 blocks in 30.1 minutes per game over 17 games played. Puerto Montt finished the season with 16 wins and 18 losses.

Iraurgi SB (2020-21)

In the 2020-21 season, Suárez played for Spanish club

Iraurgi SB Iraurgi Saski Baloia, also known as Sammic Hostelería for sponsorship reasons, is a professional basketball team based in Azpeitia, Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Country, Spain. Founded in 1975, the men's team currently plays in L ...

in the

LEB Plata The Segunda FEB, formerly known as LEB 2 and LEB Plata, is the third basketball division of the Spanish basketball league system and the second basketball division organized by the Spanish Basketball Federation. Since 2019, three teams are promote ...

, the third highest division of basketball in Spain. With Iraurgi, Manny averaged 12.2 points and 6.7 rebounds in 20.6 minutes per game over 14 games played. Iraurgi finished first in the league, winning 23 of 28 games and earning a promotion to

LEB Oro The Primera FEB, formerly known as LEB or LEB Oro, is the second basketball division of the Spanish basketball league system after the Liga ACB. It is run by the Spanish Basketball Federation, FEB. The FEB leagues are divided into three categorie ...

of the second division.

Hübner Nyíregyháza BS (2021-22)

In the 2021-22 season, Suárez played for Hungarian club Hübner Nyíregyháza BS in the

Nemzeti Bajnokság I/A The Nemzeti Bajnokság I/A (, commonly abbreviated NB I/A) is Hungarian basketball league system, the highest level Sports league, league of club men's basketball in Hungary. Format The league comprises 14 teams. A NB I/A season is split into a l ...

, the highest division of basketball in Hungary.Még erősebben térhetnek vissza a Cápák
szon.hu, 3 December 2021. Accessed 21 December 2021. With Nyíregyháza, Manny averaged 13.5 points and 6.2 rebounds in 26.9 minutes per game in 25 games played. With a record of 13 wins and 19 losses, Nyíregyháza finished the season in 11th place.

BC Balkan Botevgrad (2022-23)

In the 2022-23 season, Suárez played for 7-time Bulgarian champions

BC Balkan Botevgrad BC Balkan Botevgrad () is a Bulgarian professional basketball club based in Botevgrad.Team profile at ''Bgbasket.co ...

in the Bulgarian NBL, the highest division of basketball in Bulgaria. With Balkan, Manny averaged 16.8 points, 8.7 rebounds, 1.4 assists, 1.4 steals and 1.5 blocks in 25.2 minutes per game over 39 games played. In the

FIBA Europe Cup The FIBA Europe Cup (FEC) is an annual professional club basketball competition organised by FIBA for eligible European clubs. It is FIBA Europe's second level competition. Clubs mainly qualify based on their performance in national leagues an ...

, he averaged 12 points, 7 rebounds, 1 steal and 1 block in 22.7 minutes per game over 6 games played. Balkan finished the Bulgarian NBL regular season in 2nd place with a record of 23 wins and 7 losses, but were crowned the champions after beating

BC Chernomorets BC Chernomorets, also known as Chernomorets Burgas, is a Bulgarian professional basketball club based in Burgas. The team plays in the NBL, the highest level of national basketball. The club has won three Bulgarian Cups, in 1965, 1975 and 2024. ...

in the finals. Manny was crowned the MVP of the finals. In the FIBA Europe Cup, Balkan failed to qualify from Group K in the second round of the tournament.

BC Kalev (2023-24)

For the 2023-24 season, Suárez has signed with 13-time Estonian champions, 1-time Estonian-Latvian champions and 2022-23 FIBA Europe Cup semi-finalists

BC Kalev BC Kalev, also known as BC Kalev/Cramo for sponsorship reasons, is a professional basketball club based in Tallinn, Estonia. The team plays in the Korvpalli Meistriliiga (KML), the Estonian-Latvian Basketball League and the FIBA Europe Cup. Thei ...

of the

Latvian–Estonian Basketball League The Latvian-Estonian Basketball League (, ); known as Optibet Latvian-Estonian Basketball League for sponsorship reasons, is the top-tier men's basketball league in Latvia and Estonia. The competition was introduced in 2018 and is organised by th ...

(LEBL) the highest division of basketball in both Estonia and Latvia. Kalev will also play in the

Korvpalli Meistriliiga The Korvpalli Meistriliiga (KML) is the top-tier men's basketball league in Estonia. The league is organized by the Estonian Basketball Association and played under rules of basketball#International Rules of Basketball, FIBA rules. The competitio ...

, the Estonian domestic basketball league running parallel with the LEBL, the

Estonian Cup The Estonian Cup () is the national knockout competition in Estonian football. In 2012, the competition was unofficially rebranded as Evald Tipner's Cup. The winner will compete in UEFA Europa Conference League first qualifying round. Finals ...

, and the 2023-24 FIBA Europe Cup.

National team career

Upon graduation from Creighton, Suárez joined the Chilean national team. He later played at the

2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup qualification The 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup qualification process determined 30 of the 32 teams that qualified for the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup. As co-hosts, the Philippines and Japan each got an automatic qualification for the tournament when they ...

Player profile

He is ambidextrous and can play as

small forward The small forward (SF), also known as the three, is one of the five Basketball position, positions in a regulation basketball game. Small forwards are typically shorter, quicker, and leaner than Power forward (basketball), power forwards and Cent ...

power forward The power forward (PF), also known as the four, is one of the five traditional Basketball positions, positions in a regulation basketball game. Traditionally, power forwards have played a role similar to center (basketball), centers and are typi ...

center Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentrici ...

Personal

He is a Chilean citizen through his mother Mapi who moved to the United States. His father is a

Spaniard Spaniards, or Spanish people, are a Romance languages, Romance-speaking Ethnicity, ethnic group native to the Iberian Peninsula, primarily associated with the modern Nation state, nation-state of Spain. Genetics, Genetically and Ethnolinguisti ...

. Suárez has a sister named María Teresa. He recalls that playing in the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...