Daniel Theis (; born 4 April 1992) is a German 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 ...

player for

AS Monaco Association Sportive de Monaco Football Club, commonly referred to as AS Monaco (), is a professional football club based in Fontvieille, Monaco. Although not in France, they are a member of the French Football Federation (FFF) and currently ...

of the

LNB Élite The LNB Élite, currently known for sponsorship reasons as Betclic Élite, is a professional basketball league in France and is the highest level of the French basketball system. The competition has existed since 1921. Since 1987, the Ligue Nat ...

and the

EuroLeague The EuroLeague is a European men's professional basketball club competition. The league is widely recognised as the top-tier and the most prestigious men's basketball league in Europe. The league consists of 20 teams, of which 16 are given lon ...

. After seven seasons in the

Basketball Bundesliga The Basketball Bundesliga (BBL) (English language: ''Federal Basketball League''), for sponsorship reasons named easyCredit BBL, is the German basketball league system, highest level Sports league, league of professional club basketball in German ...

where he was a four-time All Star and three-time

champion A champion (from the late Latin ''campio'') is the victor in a challenge, Competition, contest or competition. There can be a territorial pyramid of championships, e.g. local, regional/provincial/state, national, continental and world champi ...

, Theis signed 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), ...

of the NBA where he played for four seasons before a trade brought him 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 ...

in March 2021. The Bulls traded Theis to 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) ...

in August 2021, who in turn traded Theis back to the Celtics in February 2022, before being traded to the

Indiana Pacers The Indiana Pacers are an American professional basketball team based in Indianapolis. The Pacers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), Ea ...

in July 2022. He reached the

NBA Finals The NBA Finals is the annual championship series of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern and Western Conference (NBA), Western Conference champions play a best-of-seven series to determine the league ...

during his second stint with the Celtics.

Early life

Born in

Salzgitter Salzgitter (; Eastphalian dialect, Eastphalian: ''Soltgitter'') is an independent city#Germany, independent city in southeast Lower Saxony, Germany, located between Hildesheim and Braunschweig. Together with Wolfsburg and Braunschweig, Salzgitte ...

, Theis went through the

Braunschweig Braunschweig () or Brunswick ( ; from Low German , local dialect: ) is a List of cities and towns in Germany, city in Lower Saxony, Germany, north of the Harz Mountains at the farthest navigable point of the river Oker, which connects it to the ...

youth system.

Professional career

Phantoms Braunschweig (2010–2012)

Theis made his debut in the German top-tier level league, the

, during the 2010–11 season. Theis primarily gained playing time with

's development squad, where he played alongside his older brother, Frank, from 2010 to 2012. He earned the '' Eurobasket.com'' website's All- 2.Pro B Most Improved Player of the Year honors in 2011. In Braunschweig, Theis was also a teammate of fellow future NBA player Dennis Schröder.

Ratiopharm Ulm (2012–2014)

In the 2013–14 season, while with

Ratiopharm Ulm Ratiopharm Ulm, officially stylized as ratiopharm ulm, is a professional basketball club based in Ulm, Germany. The club has two teams, one professional team, which plays in the Basketball Bundesliga (BBL), the major German professional league an ...

, Theis won the BBL Best Young Player award.

Brose Bamberg (2014–2017)

Following his breakout season with Ulm, Theis signed with fellow German Bundesliga club

Brose Bamberg Bamberg Baskets is a German professional basketball team from Bamberg, Franconia/North Bavaria. The club has won the German Championship title nine times and the German Cup six times. The club currently plays in the German top tier Basketball ...

. In the 2014 off-season, he played in the 2014 NBA Summer League for the

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

' summer league team. In the 2014–15 season, Theis won his first German League championship with Brose Baskets. Brose beat

FC Bayern Munich Fußball-Club Bayern München e. V. (FCB, ), commonly known as Bayern Munich (), FC Bayern () or simply Bayern, is a German professional sports club based in Munich, Bavaria. They are most known for their men's professional association foo ...

3–2 in the German League Finals. In April 2015, he signed a fresh two-year deal with the Bamberg team, and he won two more German championships with Bamberg, in 2016 and 2017.

Boston Celtics (2017–2021)

On 20 July 2017, Theis signed with the

. He made his NBA debut on 18 October against the

Milwaukee Bucks The Milwaukee Bucks are an American professional basketball team based in Milwaukee. The Bucks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), East ...

. On 12 March 2018, Theis suffered a torn meniscus in his left knee, and missed the remainder of the 2017–18 season after Theis repaired his left knee lateral meniscus in a surgery. On 29 October 2018, Theis was found to have a slight tear of the plantar fascia in his right foot and was scheduled to be out indefinitely, but he returned shortly after the injury on 11 November against the

Portland Trail Blazers The Portland Trail Blazers (colloquially known as the Blazers) are an American professional basketball team based in Portland, Oregon. The Trail Blazers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division (N ...

. On 17 July 2019, the Celtics announced that they had re-signed Theis, along with former

teammate Brad Wanamaker. The contract was reported to be worth $10 million in total for the 2019–20 and 2020–21 seasons. Theis started 64 games at center for the Celtics during the 2019–20 season. On 21 February 2020, Theis had a career-high 25 points and 16 rebounds in a win against the

Minnesota Timberwolves The Minnesota Timberwolves (often referred to as the Wolves or T-wolves) are an American professional basketball team based in Minneapolis. The Timberwolves compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Divisio ...

. Celtics coach

Brad Stevens Bradley Kent Stevens (born October 22, 1976) is an American basketball executive and former coach who is currently the president of basketball operations and de facto general manager for the Boston Celtics. Born and raised in Zionsville, Indian ...

said that Theis complemented the rest of the starters, playing in a way that "fits the other guys perfect."

Chicago Bulls (2021)

On 25 March 2021, Theis was traded to the

in a three-team trade involving the

. By 12 April, he had worked his way into the starting lineup against the

Memphis Grizzlies The Memphis Grizzlies (referred to locally as the Grizz) are an American professional basketball team based in Memphis, Tennessee. The Grizzlies compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division of the ...

. On 26 April Theis scored 23 points and had 12 rebounds and 5 assists in a 110–102 victory against 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 ...

Houston Rockets (2021–2022)

On 7 August 2021, Theis was traded to the

via a sign-and-trade deal.

Return to the Celtics (2022)

On 10 February 2022, the

re-acquired Theis from the Rockets in exchange for Bruno Fernando, Enes Freedom, and Dennis Schröder. Theis and the Celtics reached the

, but lost to the

Golden State Warriors The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in San Francisco. The Warriors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. Founded in 1946 i ...

in 6 games.

Indiana Pacers (2022–2023)

On 9 July 2022, Theis was traded, alongside

Nik Stauskas Nikolas Tomas Stauskas (born October 7, 1993) is a Canadian former professional basketball player who played six seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). A shooting guard, Stauskas played two seasons of college basketball for the Mi ...

, Aaron Nesmith, Malik Fitts, Juwan Morgan and a 2023 first-round pick, to the

in exchange for

Malcolm Brogdon Malcolm Moses Adams Brogdon (born December 11, 1992) is an American professional basketball player for the Washington Wizards of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the University of Virginia Cavaliers und ...

. On 2 February 2023, after missing over 50 games due to knee surgery, Theis made his Pacers debut against the

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

. On 13 February against 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 ...

, Theis recorded a season–high 11 points, five rebounds, and three assists as the Pacers' starting center. Theis spent his first season in Indiana as a mentor and backup to Myles Turner, Jalen Smith, and Isaiah Jackson before falling out of the Pacers rotation. On 15 November 2023, Theis reached a buyout agreement with Indiana after seeing minimal action to start the 2023–24 Pacers season.

Los Angeles Clippers (2023–2024)

On 17 November 2023, Theis signed with 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 ...

New Orleans Pelicans (2024–2025)

On 9 July 2024, Theis signed with the

New Orleans Pelicans The New Orleans Pelicans are an American professional basketball team based in New Orleans. The Pelicans compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Division of the Western Confere ...

. On 5 February 2025, Theis was traded alongside a 2031 second-round pick to the

Oklahoma City Thunder The Oklahoma City Thunder are an American professional basketball team based in Oklahoma City. The Thunder compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division (NBA), Northwest Division of the Western Confer ...

in exchange for cash considerations. The next day, he was waived by the Thunder.

AS Monaco (2025–present)

On 17 February 2025,

announced that Theis has inked a contract for the rest of the 2024-25 season and for the following campaign.

National team career

Theis was a member of the junior national teams of Germany. With the Germany U20 national team, he played at the 2011 FIBA U20 European Championship, and the 2012 FIBA U20 European Championship. 20160903 Basketball AUT vs GER 8886

On 27 July 2014, Theis made his first appearance with the senior Germany national team in a game against

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

. With Germany's senior team, he played in the EuroBasket 2015 qualification tournament. Two years later, Theis was selected to represent Germany at the

EuroBasket 2017 EuroBasket 2017 was the 40th edition of the EuroBasket championship that was organized by FIBA Europe and held between 31 August and 17 September 2017. Beginning from 2017, the continental championships take place every four years with a similar ...

, where he averaged 10.9 points and 6.3 rebounds per game during the competition. At the 2019 FIBA World Cup, Theis finished the event with averages of 7.6 points and 6 rebounds per game. Heading toward EuroBasket 2022, Theis helped Germany win bronze during the tournament, finishing with 8.8 points, 6.1 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game. The following year, Theis played a pivotal role in helping Germany capture their first world title at the 2023 FIBA World Cup. He attained averages of 10.9 points, 5.4 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game.

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

, - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

, 63 , , 3 , , 14.9 , , .541 , , .310 , , .753 , , 4.3 , , .9 , , .5 , , .8 , , 5.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 66 , , 2 , , 13.8 , , .549 , , .388 , , .737 , , 3.4 , , 1.0 , , .3 , , .6 , , 5.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 65 , , 64 , , 24.1 , , .566 , , .333 , , .763 , , 6.6 , , 1.7 , , .6 , , 1.3 , , 9.2 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 42 , , 37 , , 24.4 , , .552 , , .347 , , .687 , , 5.2 , , 1.6 , , .6 , , 1.0 , , 9.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, 23 , , 14 , , 24.9 , , .522 , , .281 , , .651 , , 5.9 , , 1.8 , , .7 , , .6 , , 10.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

, 26 , , 21 , , 22.5 , , .469 , , .291 , , .675 , , 5.0 , , .8 , , .4 , , .7 , , 8.4 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 21 , , 6 , , 18.7 , , .598 , , .357 , , .688 , , 4.7 , , 1.0 , , .4 , , .7 , , 7.9 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

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 ...

, 7 , , 1 , , 15.5 , , .477 , , .182 , , .417 , , 3.1 , , 1.3 , , .3 , , .9 , , 7.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 1 , , 0 , , 8.4 , , .250 , , .000 , , , , .0 , , .0 , , .0 , , .0 , , 2.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", L.A. Clippers , 59 , , 3 , , 17.1 , , .536 , , .371 , , .760 , , 4.1 , , 1.0 , , .4 , , .9 , , 6.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

, 38 , , 9 , , 16.3 , , .473 , , .243 , , .838 , , 4.3 , , 1.6 , , .5 , , .5 , , 4.3 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 411 , , 160 , , 18.8 , , .537 , , .326 , , .726 , , 4.7 , , 1.3 , , .5 , , .8 , , 7.1

Playoffs

, - , style="text-align:left;",

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 ...

, style="text-align:left;",

, 7 , , 0 , , 6.0 , , .357, , .000 , , 1.000 , , 1.4 , , .0, , .1 , , .1 , , 1.7 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

, style="text-align:left;",

, 17 , , 17 , , 28.4 , , .521 , , .154 , , .788 , , 7.1 , , 1.5 , , .4 , , 1.2 , , 8.9 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

, style="text-align:left;",

, 16 , , 5 , , 12.5 , , .588 , , .214 , , .750 , , 3.3 , , .7 , , .3 , , .5 , , 4.3 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2024 The year saw the list of ongoing armed conflicts, continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), Myanmar civil war, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudane ...

, style="text-align:left;", L.A. Clippers , 1 , , 0 , , 4.4 , , 1.000 , , 1.000 , , , , 1.0 , , .0 , , .0 , , .0 , , 3.0 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 41 , , 22 , , 17.8 , , .530 , , .186 , , .791 , , 4.5 , , .9 , , .3 , , .7 , , 5.8

EuroLeague

, - , style="text-align:left;", 2015–16 , style="text-align:left;",

, 24 , , 1 , , 19.6 , , .536 , , .389 , , .764 , , 4.4 , , .5 , , .5 , , .6 , , 9.2 , , 9.4 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2016–17 , style="text-align:left;", Brose Bamberg , 30 , , 1 , , 19.7 , , .598 , , .410 , , .709 , , 4.6 , , .7 , , .7 , , .9 , , 9.6 , , 10.7 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 54 , , 2 , , 19.7 , , .571 , , .400 , , .736 , , 4.5 , , .6 , , .6 , , .8 , , 9.4 , , 10.1

References

External links

*
Daniel Theis
at Euroleague.net *
Daniel Theis
at Eurobasket.com * {{DEFAULTSORT:Theis, Daniel 1992 births Living people 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup players 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup players 21st-century German sportsmen Bamberg Baskets players Basketball Löwen Braunschweig players Basketball players at the 2024 Summer Olympics Boston Celtics players Centers (basketball) Chicago Bulls players FIBA Basketball World Cup–winning players German expatriate basketball people in the United States German men's basketball players Houston Rockets players Indiana Pacers players Los Angeles Clippers players NBA players from Germany New Orleans Pelicans players Olympic basketball players for Germany Sportspeople from Salzgitter Power forwards Ratiopharm Ulm players Basketball players from Lower Saxony Undrafted NBA players