Eli Abaev (Hebrew: אלי אבייב; born December 13, 1998) is an American-Israeli basketball player who last played for Hapoel Be'er Sheva in the Israeli Basketball Premier League, at the power forward and center positions.[1] He played college basketball for Eastern Florida State College, Austin Peay State University, and Florida Gulf Coast University.
| Free Agent | |
|---|---|
| Position | Power forward / Center |
| Personal information | |
| Born | (1998-12-13) December 13, 1998 (age 23) Coral Springs, Florida |
| Nationality | American |
| Listed height | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) |
| Listed weight | 205 lb (93 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Zion Lutheran (Deerfield Beach, Florida) |
| College |
|
| Playing career | 2021–present |
| Career history | |
| 2021–2022 | Hapoel Be'er Sheva |
Abaev was born in Israel and moved to the United States as a child. His hometown is Coral Springs, Florida, and he is Jewish.[2][3][4][5][1] He is 6' 8" (203 cm) tall.[1] He weighs 205 pounds (93 kg).[1]
He played at Zion Lutheran High School in Deerfield Beach.[4][6] There, Abaev averaged 12 points and 8 rebounds per game on 56% shooting from the floor for the Lions.[4][6]
Abaev began his college career playing for Eastern Florida State College for two years.[7] In 2016-17 in his first season, as the Titans were national runners-up, as a freshman he shot 59.8% from the floor, and had 7.4 rebounds per game.[4][8][9] He was named to the 2017 National Junior College Athletic Association Division I Championship All-Tournament team.[4][8][9]
In 2017-18 Abaev helped the Titans finish third in the NJCAA National Championship Tournament.[4][8][10] He averaged 9.1 points and 9.8 rebounds (2nd in NJCAA Region 8) per game, shot 52.9% from the floor, and received First Team All-Mid-Florida Conference honors.[4][8][10]
He transferred to Austin Peay State University, and in 2018-19 due to a lower-body injury he redshirted.[4][11][12]
As a redshirt junior in 2019-20 he played for Austin Peay.[7][4] In 2019-20 Abaev averaged 7.9 points and 7.7 rebounds (4th in the Ohio Valley Conference) per game for the Austin Peay Governors, shooting 50.6% from the field.[4][11][12]
Abaev then transferred and attended Florida Gulf Coast University, graduating in 2021.[12][1] In 2020-21 he played for the Florida Gulf Coast Eagles.[5][11] He averaged 7.1 points, 7.4 rebounds (3rd in the Atlantic Sun Conference), and 0.7 blocks (4th) per game.[5][11]
Abaev started his professional career playing for Hapoel Be'er Sheva in the Israeli Basketball Premier League, with whom he signed on June 21, 2021.[1][9][13][14]
Abaev played for Team USA in the 2019 European Maccabi Games, winning a gold medal and averaging 17.0 points and 15.3 rebounds in six games.[4] In the gold medal game against Team Russia, he scored 23 points and had 28 rebounds.[12]