Elijah Lee Holman (born March 22, 1989) is an American professional basketball player for Mahram Tehran of the

Iranian Basketball Super League The Iranian Basketball Super League (IBSL) is a professional men's basketball league in Iran. It was founded in 1998. The current champions is Shahrdari Gorgan. The league follows the promotion and relegation system in which the worst two teams ...

(IBSL). After a brief appearance in the 2012 NBA Summer League he signed with

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

i team Hapoel Eilat, where he started his professional career. He has appeared in the

NBA Summer League The NBA Summer League, also known as the Las Vegas Summer League, is an off-season basketball competition organized by the National Basketball Association (NBA). NBA teams come together to try out different summer rosters instead of their regula ...

in 2013 and 2014, but never signed for an NBA team. Holman has played in Israel,

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

, and

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

throughout his career. After playing at Richmond High School in

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

, Holman signed for the

Indiana Hoosiers The Indiana Hoosiers are the intercollegiate sports teams and players of Indiana University Bloomington, named after the demonym for people from the state of Indiana. The Hoosiers participate in NCAA Division I, Division I of the National Coll ...

, and played one year of

college basketball College basketball is basketball that is played by teams of Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. In the Higher education in the United States, United States, colleges and universities are governed by collegiate athle ...

before transferring to Detroit Mercy for his sophomore year. After his senior season at Detroit Mercy he went undrafted in the

2012 NBA draft The 2012 NBA draft was held on June 28, 2012, at Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. The draft started at 7:00 pm Eastern Daylight Time (2300 UTC), and was broadcast in the United States on ESPN. In this draft, National Basketball A ...

High school career

Holman was born in

San Francisco, California San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

, and attended Richmond High School in nearby

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, a city in the United States * Richmond, London, a town in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town ...

. In his sophomore year at Richmond, Holman averaged a

triple double In basketball, a double-double is a single-game performance in which a player accumulates ten or more in two of the following five statistical categories: points, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocked shots. The first "double" in the ter ...

, posting 10 points, 15 rebounds and 10 blocks per game. During his junior year of high school, Holman was suspended for 14 months for shoving a referee during a December 2005 game. In July 2006, the summer leading to his senior year, Holman was invited to participate in the

ABCD Camp The ABCD Basketball Camp was a youth basketball camp founded by Sonny Vaccaro that was held from 1984 to 2006. The camp gathered the highest ranked high school players of the United States, and was considered one of the top events of high school ...

, a camp for the best high school players in the United States. Holman was reinstated to play in 2007, and he played the final part of his senior season, averaging 27.4 points, 12 rebounds, 5 assists and 10 blocks per game. Holman was listed as a top 100 player in the nation by several recruiting services.

247Sports 247Sports is an American network of websites that focus mainly on college recruiting, athletic recruitment in college football and college basketball, basketball. It is owned and operated by Paramount Global, Paramount. The website hosts a large ...

listed him as the 78th best player, and the 8th best center of his class; Rivals.com listed him as the 85th best player overall; and he was ranked 90th according to the Recruiting Services Consensus Index (RSCI).

College career

Indiana

Holman committed to

Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...

in September 2006 and signed on February 7, 2007. During the 2007–08 NCAA Division I season Holman found limited playing time under coach

Kelvin Sampson Kelvin Dale Sampson (born October 5, 1955) is an American college basketball coach, currently the head coach for the University of Houston of the Big 12 Conference. Early life Sampson was born in Laurinburg, North Carolina, to parents who were m ...

, and he had his best performance with the Hoosiers on November 18, 2007, when he scored 4 points and posted 6 rebounds against Longwood. After 6 games with Indiana (1 point and 1.7 rebounds per game in 7.5 minutes of playing time) he injured his wrist, and missed the rest of the season.

Detroit Mercy

Holman decided to declare himself available for transfer, and considered the

University of San Francisco The University of San Francisco (USF) is a Private university, private Society of Jesus, Jesuit university in San Francisco, California, United States. Founded in 1855, it has nearly 9,000 students pursuing undergraduate and graduate degrees ...

and

San Jose State San José State University (San Jose State or SJSU) is a Public university, public research university in San Jose, California. Established in 1857, SJSU is the List of oldest schools in California, oldest public university on the West Coast of ...

in his home state of California as possible destinations before choosing to play for Detroit Mercy where he followed Ray McCallum, a former assistant coach at Indiana who had been hired as the new head coach at Detroit Mercy. As a result, Holman missed the 2008–09 season due to NCAA transfer rules. Holman debuted with the Titans on November 11, 2009, against the nationally ranked California Golden Bears, posting 15 points and 7 rebounds. On November 23, 2009, Holman was named Horizon League Player of the Week. On January 14, 2010, Holman grabbed 18 rebounds against

Milwaukee Milwaukee is the List of cities in Wisconsin, most populous city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Located on the western shore of Lake Michigan, it is the List of United States cities by population, 31st-most populous city in the United States ...

, which was the 8th best rebounding performance in the NCAA season. He scored a season-high 21 points against Valparaiso during the 2010 Horizon League tournament on March 2, 2010; he also posted 15 rebounds in that game. He led the Horizon League in blocks per game with 2.5, and ranked third on his team in scoring with 11.8 points per game. His field goal percentage of 61.4% ranked third all-time in the history of Detroit Mercy basketball. At the end of the season, Holman was named in the Horizon League All-Newcomer team. Before the start of his junior season, Holman was named a Preseason All-Horizon Second Team selection. He 25 out of 32 total games, with a career-high averages of 28.6 minutes and 9.5 rebounds per game. On November 26, 2010, Holman scored a career-high 27 points (along with 15 rebounds) against Albany in a double-overtime win. On January 28, 2011, he had 5 blocks against Milwaukee. At the end of the season he had totalled 13 double doubles, and was the leading rebounder of the Horizon League; he was named in the All-Horizon League Second Team and was selected in the All-Defensive team. Before the 2011–12 season, Holman was a preseason All-Horizon League First Team selection; however, he lost his starting role for his senior season, and started only 2 of his 26 games. Coach McCallum used him as a

sixth man The sixth man in basketball is a player who is not a starting lineup, starter but comes off the bench much more often than other reserves, often being the first player to be substituted in, and the first to be used against the other team's subst ...

, and he played 23.3 minutes per game coming off the bench. He scored a season-high 21 points against

Western Michigan West Michigan and Western Michigan are terms for a region in the U.S. state of Michigan's Lower Peninsula. Generally, it refers to the Grand Rapids- Muskegon-Holland area, and more broadly to most of the region along the Lower Peninsula's Lake ...

on December 8, 2011. In the NCAA tournament game against

Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...

, Holman posted a double double with 10 points and 11 rebounds in 25 minutes of play. At the end of the season, Holman was named Horizon League Sixth Man of the Year.

College statistics

, - , align="left" , 2007–08 , align="left" ,

, 6 , , 0 , , 7.5 , , .250 , , .000 , , .500 , , 1.7 , , 0.2 , , 0.2 , , 0.5 , , 1.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2008–09 , style="text-align:left;", Detroit Mercy , colspan=11 align=center , ''Did not play – transfer'' , - , align="left" , 2009–10 , align="left" , Detroit Mercy , 31 , , 31 , , 28.0 , , .614 , , .000 , , .633 , , 8.9 , , 0.7 , , 0.5 , , 2.5 , , 11.8 , - , align="left" ,

2010–11 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number, numeral, and glyph. It is the first and smallest positive integer of the infinite sequence of natural numbers. This fundamental property has led to its unique uses in other fields, ranging from science to sp ...

, align="left" , Detroit Mercy , 32 , , 25 , , 28.6 , , .607 , , .000 , , .694 , , 9.5 , , 0.8 , , 0.9 , , 1.6 , , 11.8 , - , align="left" , 2011–12 , align="left" , Detroit Mercy , 26 , , 2 , , 23.3 , , .607 , , .000 , , .595 , , 7.0 , , 0.7 , , 0.7 , , 1.3 , , 10.8 , - , align="left" , Career , align="left" , , 95 , , 58 , , 25.6 , , .605 , , .000 , , .646 , , 8.1 , , 0.7 , , 0.7 , , 1.7 , , 10.8 , -

Professional career

After his senior season with the Titans, Holman was automatically eligible for the

, where he went undrafted. Holman was part of the roster of 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) ...

for the 2012 NBA Summer League in

Las Vegas Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

. After the end of the Summer League Holman was not signed by the Rockets, and he decided to move to

, signing for Hapoel Eilat of the

Basketball Super League 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 ...

. During the 2012–13 season, his first as a professional, Holman averaged 13 points and 10 rebounds per game (2nd in the league in rebounding, tied with Jumaine Jones and behind

Frank Hassell Franklin Hassell (born October 9, 1988) is an American professional basketball player for Mineros de Zacatecas (basketball), Mineros de Zacatecas of the Liga Nacional de Baloncesto Profesional, Mexican League. Standing at , he plays as a power for ...

) over 26 appearances. He also played 10 playoff games that season, averaging 12.4 points and 7.7 rebounds per game. In the summer of 2013 Holman again took part in the

: during the 2013 edition he played with the

Boston Celtics The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), ...

, playing 4 games during the Orlando Summer League with averages of 3.5 points and 4.3 rebounds. He then signed with

Uşak Sportif Uşak Sportif, also known as Uşak Üniversitesi Belediyespor, was a professional basketball team that is based in the city of Uşak, in Turkey. The team was founded in 2006. Their home arena was the Uşak Üniversitesi Sport Hall, which has a se ...

of the

Turkish Basketball League Turkish may refer to: * Something related to Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities in the former Ottoman Empire * The ...

and played the full season with the team, averaging 13.4 points, 9.5 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 28 games; he also appeared in 2 playoff games, where he scored 15 points per game in the series against Fenerbahçe. In 2014 he participated in two tournaments during the 2014 NBA Summer League: he played the Orlando league with 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 ...

(4 games with 5 points and 4.3 rebounds per game) and he played in

with 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 Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), E ...

(4 appearances with averages of 3 points and 3 rebounds). He then joined a Chinese team for the first time in his career, signing a contract with the

Zhejiang Lions The Zhejiang Guangsha Lions () are a Chinese professional basketball team based in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, which plays in the North Division of the Chinese Basketball Association. Guangsha is the name of the club's corporate sponsor, but to prevent con ...

, and he debuted in the

Chinese Basketball Association The Chinese Basketball Association (), often abbreviated as the CBA, is the first-tier men's professional basketball league in China. The league is commonly known by fans as the CBA, and this acronym is even used in Chinese on a regular basis ...

(CBA): in his first season he averaged 22.9 points, 14.4 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game while shooting 67.9% from the field. His team qualified for the playoffs, and Holman posted averages of 22.7 points and 15.3 rebounds during the 2015 CBA Playoffs, including a 29-point performance on February 9, 2015; his team was eliminated by the

Liaoning Flying Leopards The Liaoning Flying Leopards (), also known as the Liaoning Shenyang Sansheng Flying Leopard Club or Liaoning Bengang (), are a Chinese professional basketball team based in Hunnan District, Shenyang, Liaoning, which plays in the Northern Divisi ...

. He then moved to

and played in the

Lebanese Basketball League The Lebanese Basketball League is recognized as the top-tier professional men's basketball list of basketball leagues, league in Lebanon. It is organized annually as a national championship with playoffs and a national cup by the Lebanese Basketb ...

, earning an All-League Second Team selection with

Sporting Al Riyadi Beirut Al Riyadi Club Beirut (), commonly known simply as Al Riyadi, is a multi-sports club team based in Manara, a district in Beirut, Lebanon. Founded in 1934, the multi-sports club, which is mainly known for their basketball program, also plays p ...

. He went back to the Zhejiang Lions for the 2015–16 CBA season, and he posted new career-highs with 23.5 points and 15.4 rebounds per game over 37 regular season games: in the 2016 CBA Playoffs Holman recorded 27 points and 9.3 rebounds per game, and his team was eliminated by the

Sichuan Blue Whales The Sichuan Jinqiang Blue Whales (sometimes spelled Whale) (四川金强蓝鲸), also known as Sichuan Jinqiang or Sichuan Jinrong Industry, are a professional basketball team based in Wenjiang District, Chengdu, Sichuan, China, which plays in t ...

(2–1 for the series). In March 2016 Holman signed for

Hapoel Jerusalem Hapoel Jerusalem is a sport organization in Jerusalem as a local branch of the Hapoel movement. The branch was established in the 1920s and represents the city in more sports than any other sport organization in Jerusalem. Today, the club's lead ...

, and he played in 9

regular season In an organized sports league, a typical season is the portion of one year in which regulated games of the sport are in session: for example, in Major League Baseball the season lasts approximately from the last week of March to the last week of S ...

games and 7 playoff games, averaging 11.6 points and 5.1 rebounds in postseason play. He took part in the

2016 Israeli Basketball Super League Final Four The 2016 Israeli Final Four was the concluding tournament of the 2015–16 Israeli Basketball Super League. It was the seventh Israeli Final Four, and the event is held for the first time since the 2011–12 Israeli Final Four, 2012 edition. Unl ...

, and played in the final game, scoring 8 points and grabbing a team-high 7 rebounds. Holman returned to the Zhejiang Bulls for his third season with the club: he received less playing time, and in 27.2 minutes per game he averaged 17.5 points and 9.7 rebounds (his only season with less than 10 rebounds per game in the CBA). He participated in the 2017 CBA Playoffs, his third consecutive playoff appearance, and in 4 games he posted averages of 13.8 points and 5 rebounds per game. In July 2017 he left the Bulls for the Tianjin Gold Lions, and played in 17 games during the 2017–18 CBA season: he started all the games and averaged a career-high 26.7 points per game, along with 14.7 rebounds in 34.5 minutes per game. He then left the team in September 2018. In 2019 Holman participated in the

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 ...

FIBA Americas League The FIBA Americas League ( Portuguese: ''FIBA Liga das Américas'', Spanish: ''FIBA Liga de las Américas''), officially abbreviated as the LDA, was the premier intercontinental basketball club competition played annually by clubs of the entire ...

with Puerto Rican team

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) ...

. He then joined Anhui Dragons of the National Basketball League, the second tier of Chinese basketball, in March 2019. In October 2019, Holman signed a contract with the

Jilin Northeast Tigers The Jilin Northeast Tigers () or Jilin Tonggang, Jilin Tonggang Northeast Tigers () or Jiutai Rural Commercial Bank are a professional basketball team based in Changchun, Jilin, China, which plays in the North Division of the Chinese Basketball A ...

of the CBA, returning to the Chinese top league. He averaged 15.3 points and 10 rebounds per game in the 2019–20 season before the league was suspended due to the

COVID-19 pandemic in mainland China The COVID-19 pandemic in mainland China is part of the worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). China was where the first COVID outbreak occurred, the ...

References

External links

Career stats at ProBallers.comProfile at RealGM.com
*
Turkish league statsIsraeli league stats
{{DEFAULTSORT:Holman, Eli 1989 births Living people 21st-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century American sportsmen Al Riyadi Club Beirut basketball players American expatriate basketball people in China American expatriate basketball people in Iran American expatriate basketball people in Israel American expatriate basketball people in Lebanon American expatriate basketball people in Mexico American expatriate basketball people in Turkey American men's basketball players Anhui Wenyi Basketball Club players Basketball players from Contra Costa County, California Capitanes de Arecibo players Cariduros de Fajardo players Centers (basketball) Detroit Mercy Titans men's basketball players Hapoel Eilat basketball players Hapoel Jerusalem B.C. players Homenetmen Beirut basketball players Indiana Hoosiers men's basketball players Jilin Northeast Tigers players Libertadores de Querétaro players Mahram Tehran BC players Power forwards Richmond High School (Richmond, California) alumni Sportspeople from Richmond, California Tianjin Pioneers players Uşak Sportif players Zhejiang Lions players