Martin Müürsepp (; born 26 September 1974) is an Estonian professional

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 ...

coach and former player, who is the head coach of Haljala NGU of the Saku 1 liiga. Widely regarded as one of Estonia's greatest basketball players of all time, he is the first Estonian to have played 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 ...

(NBA). Müürsepp won the

FIBA Saporta Cup The FIBA Saporta Cup, founded as ''FIBA European Cup Winners Cup'', was the name of the second-tier level European-wide professional club basketball competition, where the domestic National Cup winners, from all over Europe, played against eac ...

2000 2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year. Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...

, and the FIBA Europe League in

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

, earning the Europe League Finals MVP award in the process. He represented the senior Estonian national team internationally.

Early life

Müürsepp was born in

Tallinn Tallinn is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Estonia, most populous city of Estonia. Situated on a Tallinn Bay, bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, it has a population of (as of 2025) and ...

, to Hilja Volter, who worked in a barbecue restaurant, and Suido Müürsepp, a truck driver. He attended the Tallinn Secondary School No. 39, the Tallinn Secondary School No. 43, and the Tallinn Secondary School No. 49, leaving without graduating in 1991. Müürsepp started playing basketball when he was nine years old. His first coach was Andres Sõber. He made his Estonian League debut in 1990, at age 15, playing for TPedI. In 1991, Müürsepp won 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 ...

with Andris.

Professional career

Early years (1992–1996)

In 1992, Müürsepp joined Alvik BBK of the Swedish League. In 1993, Müürsepp signed a 12-year, $5 million contract with Israeli powerhouse

Maccabi Tel Aviv Maccabi Tel Aviv () is one of the largest sports clubs in Israel, and a part of the Maccabi association. Many sports clubs and teams in Tel Aviv are in association with Maccabi and compete in a variety of sports, such as football, basketball, j ...

. He subsequently played for Maccabi Tel Aviv's

farm team In sports, a farm team (also referred to as farm system, developmental system, feeder team, or nursery club) is generally a Team sport, team or club whose role is to provide experience and training for young players, with an agreement that any s ...

Maccabi Darom Tel Aviv and

Hapoel Haifa Hapoel Haifa Football Club (, ''Moadon HaKaduregel Hapoel Haifa'') is an Israeli professional football club located in the city of Haifa. The club won one championship (1998–99) and 4 Israeli cups (1962–63, 1965–66 and 1973–74, 2 ...

. In 1995, Müürsepp was loaned to Estonian champions BC Kalev for the 1995–1996 season. Müürsepp helped BC Kalev to defend the league title and win the Estonian Cup. He averaged 16.9 points, 6.2 rebounds and 1.0 assists per game in the league.

Miami Heat (1996–1997)

On 26 June 1996, Müürsepp was selected with the 25th overall pick in the

1996 NBA draft The 1996 NBA draft was the 50th NBA draft, draft in the National Basketball Association (NBA). It was held on June 26, 1996–97 NBA season, 1996, at Continental Airlines Arena in East Rutherford, New Jersey. In this draft, NBA teams took turns s ...

by the

Utah Jazz The Utah Jazz are an American professional basketball team based in Salt Lake City. The Jazz compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference. Since the 1991–92 season, the ...

. The Jazz then traded him to the

Miami Heat The Miami Heat are an American professional basketball team based in Miami. The Heat compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division (NBA), Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern C ...

for a 2000 first-round draft pick. On 12 September 1996, Müürsepp signed a three-year, $1.8 million contract with the Heat. Müürsepp made his NBA debut on 21 December 1996, playing the final 82 seconds of the game and recording 2 points, one rebound and one assist in a 86–66 victory over the

Houston Rockets The Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston. The Rockets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Division of the Western Conference (NBA) ...

. He appeared in 10 games, and averaged 1.7 points, 0.5 rebounds and 0.3 assists per game for the Heat.

Dallas Mavericks (1997–1998)

On 14 February 1997, the Heat traded Müürsepp,

Predrag Danilović Predrag "Saša" Danilović ( sr-Cyrl, Предраг "Саша" Даниловић, ; born February 26, 1970), usually referred to in English as Sasha Danilović, is a Serbian professional basketball executive and former player, considered one o ...

and Kurt Thomas to the

Dallas Mavericks The Dallas Mavericks (often referred to as the Mavs) are an American professional basketball team based in Dallas. The Mavericks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Divisi ...

in exchange for

Jamal Mashburn Jamal Mashburn Sr. (born November 29, 1972) is an American entrepreneur and former professional basketball player. Nicknamed "the Monster Mash", Mashburn was a prolific scorer as a small forward in his 12 seasons in the National Basketball Assoc ...

. He made his debut for the Mavericks a day later, scoring 2 points in a 99–84 loss against the Utah Jazz. In the 1996–97 season, Müürsepp averaged 4.3 points, 1.9 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game for the Mavericks. He missed the first 14 games of the 1997–98 season due to a foot injury. On 5 March 1998, Müürsepp scored a career-high 24 points in a 119–109 win over the

Los Angeles Clippers The Los Angeles Clippers are an American professional basketball team based in the Greater Los Angeles area. The Clippers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. The ...

. He appeared in 41 games, with 7 starts, for the team during the 1997–98 season, averaging 5.7 points, 2.8 rebounds, 0.7 assists and 0.7 steals per game.

NBA lockout (1998–1999)

On 24 June 1998, the Mavericks traded Müürsepp,

Pat Garrity Patrick Joseph Garrity (born August 23, 1976) is an American former professional basketball player who played from 1998 to 2008 in the National Basketball Association (NBA). A power forward who was known as a three-point marksman, Garrity played ...

, Bubba Wells and a 1999 first-round draft pick to the

Phoenix Suns The Phoenix Suns are an American professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. The Suns compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division of the Western Conference (NBA), We ...

for

Steve Nash Stephen John Nash (born 7 February 1974) is a Canadian professional basketball coach and former player who most recently served as head coach of the Brooklyn Nets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played 18 seasons in the NBA, ...

. Due to the 1998–99 NBA lockout, the

season A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's axial tilt, tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperat ...

did not start until 5 February 1999. During the lockout, Müürsepp made two appearances in the Estonian League, playing for Nybit. The Estonian Basketball Association was subsequently fined for allowing him to play without the permission of

FIBA The International Basketball Federation (FIBA ; French language, French: ) is an association of national organizations which governs the sport of basketball worldwide. FIBA defines the rules of basketball, specifies the Basketball equipment ...

. On 23 January 1999, the Suns traded Müürsepp, Mark Bryant, Bubba Wells and a 1999 first-round draft pick to the

Chicago Bulls The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago. The Bulls compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division of the Eastern Conference. The team was founded on January 16 ...

for

Luc Longley Lucien James Longley (born 19 January 1969) is an Australian professional basketball coach and former player. He was the first Australian to play in the National Basketball Association (NBA), where he played for four teams over 10 seasons. He m ...

Greece (1999–2001)

On 1 February 1999, Müürsepp signed with

Aris Thessaloniki Athlitikos Syllogos Aris Thessalonikis, means Athletic Club Aris Thessaloniki (), is a major Greece, Greek multi-sport club founded on 25 March 1914 in Thessaloniki. Nicknamed ''God of War'', Aris was one of the strongest Greek clubs during t ...

of the Greek League. In May 1999, he was suspended by the

Hellenic Basketball Association The Hellenic Basketball Association (HEBA), is a governing body for the sport of basketball in Greece. In Greek, it is officially known as the Ελληνικός Σύνδεσμος Ανωνύμων Καλαθοσφαιρικών Εταιρει� ...

for three months for use of

ephedrine Ephedrine is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant and sympathomimetic agent that is often used to prevent hypotension, low blood pressure during anesthesia. It has also been used for asthma, narcolepsy, and obesity but is not the preferred ...

. On 15 July 1999, Müürsepp signed with

AEK Athens A.E.K. (; Athlitikí Énosis Konstantinoupόleos, ''Athletic Union of Constantinople'') is a major Greek multi-sport club based in Nea Filadelfeia, Attica. The club is more commonly known in European competitions as A.E.K. Athens. Establishe ...

on a one-year, $700,000 contract with an option to extend for another season. He helped AEK win the

and back-to-back

Greek Cup The Greek Football Cup (), commonly known as the Greek Cup or Betsson Greek Cup for sponsorship reasons is a Greek football competition, run by the Hellenic Football Federation. The Greek Cup is the second-most important domestic men's footba ...

s in 2000 and 2001. The team also reached the 2001 Euroleague semifinals where they were eliminated by Baskonia. In 17 Euroleague games, Müürsepp recorded 8.6 points, 4.9 rebounds and 0.7 assists per game.

Russia (2001–2006)

In September 2001, Müürsepp signed a one-year contract with Russian club UNICS Kazan. On 14 August 2002, Müürsepp signed with

Dynamo Moscow MGO VFSO "Dynamo" (), commonly known as Dynamo Moscow (), is a Russian sports club based in Moscow. Founded by Felix Dzerzhinsky on 18 April 1923, Dynamo Moscow was the first institution created from the All-Union Dynamo Sports Club. Dynamo Mosco ...

on a one-year contract. However, he left the club in November 2002 after they failed to pay his wages for the second month in a row. In December 2002, Müürsepp signed with Ural Great Perm for the remainder of the season. On 18 June 2003, Müürsepp re-signed with UNICS Kazan. In the

2003–04 FIBA Europe League The 2003–04 FIBA Europe League was the first season of the FIBA Europe League, the newly established third tier in European basketball and FIBA's top competition. A total number of 30 teams participated in the competition, five of which were d ...

season, he led the team to their first European trophy in the club's history and was named the Europe League Finals MVP, scoring a game-high 22 points in 87–63 victory over

Maroussi Marousi or Maroussi (), also known as Amarousio (), is a city and a suburb in the northeastern part of the Athens urban area, Greece. Marousi dates back to the era of the ancient Athenian Republic; its ancient name was '' Athmonon'' () and it r ...

. On 17 June 2004, Müürsepp signed a one-year contract with Russian powerhouse

CSKA Moscow CSKA Moscow () is a Russian sports club based in Moscow. It was created in 1911 in the Russian Empire on base of OLLS (Skiing Society, founded 1901). Later, during the Soviet Union, Soviet era, it was the central part of the Armed Forces (sports ...

. He helped the team win the Russian League and the Russian Cup titles in 2005. CSKA Moscow also reached 2005 Euroleague Final Four, but lost in the semifinal against Baskonia and then to Panathinaikos in the third-place game. Over 24 Euroleague games, Müürsepp averaged 8.0 points, 3.3 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game. On 11 July 2005, Müürsepp returned to UNICS Kazan for a second time, signing a one-year contract.

Final years (2006–2010)

On 27 June 2006, Müürsepp returned to Estonia by signing a one-year contract with Tartu Ülikool/Rock. He helped TÜ/Rock win the Estonian League title in

2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...

, averaging 11.2 points, 5.1 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game. On 23 August 2007, Müürsepp signed a one-year contract with the

Melbourne Tigers Melbourne United is an Australian professional basketball team based in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria. United compete in the National Basketball League (Australia), National Basketball League (NBL) and play their home games at Joh ...

of the National Basketball League (NBL). He was released by the Tigers in December 2007 after picking up an ankle injury. On 28 February 2008, Müürsepp signed with

BC Kalev/Cramo 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. Their ...

while still recovering from his ankle injury. He left BC Kalev/Cramo after the 2008–09 season without playing in a single official game for the club. On 26 February 2010, Müürsepp joined BC Rakvere Tarvas, where he was reunited with Andres Sõber, his first coach. He retired after the 2009–10 season.

National team career

Müürsepp was a member of the Soviet Union junior national team that finished fifth at the 1991 European Championship for Cadets, averaging 10.6 points per game. He also represented the Estonian junior national team. Müürsepp made his debut for the senior

Estonia national basketball team The Estonia men's national basketball team () represents Estonia in international basketball matches. They are controlled by the Estonian Basketball Association. The team competed in their first international tournament at the 1936 Olympic Ga ...

in 1993. He was an integral part of the Estonian team that qualified for the 2001 European Championship, where they lost all three of their preliminary round games and finished 14th. Müürsepp, who led the team in scoring, averaged 18.3 points, 5.7 rebounds and 0.7 assists per game. He finished his national team career in 2007.

Coaching career

Müürsepp began his coaching career in 2010 as an assistant coach for BC Kalev/Cramo, a position he held until November 2017. He won six Estonian League titles and two Estonian Cups with BC Kalev/Cramo. In 2013, Müürsepp served as an assistant coach for the

Belarus national basketball team The Belarus men's national basketball team represented Belarus in international basketball matches, and are controlled by the Belarusian Basketball Federation. They came into existence in 1992 after the dissolution of the Soviet Union. The te ...

during the EuroBasket 2015 first qualification round. On 6 January 2018, Müürsepp was named as an assistant coach for Tallinna Kalev/TLÜ under new head coach Gert Kullamäe. He was promoted to the head coach position in January 2019 following Kullamäe's mid-season departure. Müürsepp guided Tallinna Kalev/TLÜ to their first-ever KML Finals in

2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...

, for which he was named KML Newcomer of the Year. On 1 July 2021, Müürsepp was hired as head coach of Rakvere Tarvas. The team finished the 2021–22 Estonian-Latvian Basketball League season in 13th place. On 21 November 2022, Müürsepp was hired as assistant coach of Pärnu Sadam, where he was reunited with head coach Gert Kullamäe. On 20 August 2024, Müürsepp was hired as head coach of Haljala NGU in Saku 2 liiga.

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

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Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

, 10 , , 0 , , 2.9 , , .357 , , .250 , , .429 , , .5 , , .3 , , .0 , , .1 , , 1.7 , - , align=left,

Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

, 32 , , 0 , , 10.0 , , .419 , , .150 , , .679 , , 1.9 , , .5 , , .4 , , .3 , , 4.3 , - , align=left, , align=left,

, 41 , , 7 , , 14.7 , , .435 , , .421 , , .761 , , 2.8 , , .7 , , .7 , , .3 , , 5.7 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan=2, Career , 83 , , 7 , , 11.5 , , .425 , , .323 , , .693 , , 2.2 , , .6 , , .5 , , .3 , , 4.7

Euroleague

, - , align="left" , 2000–01 , align="left" ,

, 17 , , 14 , , 21.5 , , .423 , , .235 , , .490 , , 4.9 , , .7 , , .9 , , .2 , , 8.6 , , 7.0 , - , align="left" , 2004–05 , align="left" ,

, 24 , , 6 , , 17.5 , , .528 , , .462 , , .645 , , 3.3 , , .9 , , .7 , , .2 , , 8.0 , , 7.6 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan=2, Career , 41 , , 20 , , 19.1 , , .475 , , .333 , , .575 , , 4.0 , , .8 , , .8 , , .2 , , 8.3 , , 7.4

References

External links

Martin Müürsepp
at basket.ee
Martin Müürsepp
at euroleague.net

at fiba.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Muursepp, Martin 1974 births Living people AEK B.C. players Alviks BK players Aris B.C. players Basketball players from Tallinn BC Dynamo Moscow players BC Kalev/Cramo players BC Rakvere Tarvas players BC UNICS players Centers (basketball) Dallas Mavericks players Estonian basketball coaches Estonian expatriate basketball people in Australia Estonian expatriate basketball people in Belarus Estonian expatriate basketball people in Greece Estonian expatriate basketball people in Israel Estonian expatriate basketball people in Russia Estonian expatriate basketball people in Sweden Estonian expatriate basketball people in the United States Estonian men's basketball players Greek Basket League players Hapoel Haifa B.C. players Israeli Basketball Premier League players KK Kalev players Korvpalli Meistriliiga players Maccabi Tel Aviv B.C. players Melbourne Tigers players Miami Heat players PBC CSKA Moscow players PBC Ural Great players Power forwards University of Tartu basketball team players Utah Jazz draft picks NBA players from Estonia