Gabriel Ifeanyi "Iffe" Lundberg (born 4 December 1994) is a Danish 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 Partizan Mozzart Bet of the

Basketball League of Serbia The Basketball League of Serbia (), commonly abbreviated as KLS, is a Serbian basketball league system, top-tier men's professional basketball Sports league, league in Serbia. Founded in 2006. It is currently not run by the Basketball Federation o ...

(KLS), the

ABA League The ABA League, renamed the ABA League First Division in 2017, is the top-tier regional men's professional basketball league that originally featured clubs from former Yugoslavia (Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Montenegro, North Macedoni ...

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 ...

. He also represents the Denmark national team. Standing at , he can play at both

guard Guard or guards may refer to: Professional occupations * Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault * Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street * Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning * Prison gu ...

positions. According to numerous Danish outlets, Lundberg is Denmark's best basketball player.Gigantisk dansk triumf: Slår Barcelona
Jonas Ryefelt (Ekstra Bladet), 26 June 2020. Accessed 13 July 2020.

Professional career

Early career (2013–2019)

Lundberg started his professional basketball career in the Danish

Basketligaen The Basketligaen (English: The Basketball League) is the highest professional basketball league in Denmark. The men’s first division was originally founded in 1957. Over the years, the league has undergone several name changes due to sponsorsh ...

playing for

Falcon Falcons () are birds of prey in the genus ''Falco'', which includes about 40 species. Some small species of falcons with long, narrow wings are called hobbies, and some that hover while hunting are called kestrels. Falcons are widely distrib ...

(2013–14), BMS Herlev Wolfpack (2014–15) and

Horsens Horsens () is a city on the east coast of the Jutland region of Denmark. It is the seat of the Horsens municipality. The city's population is 64,418 (1 January 2025) and the municipality's population is 97,921 (), making it the List of cities and ...

(2015–2017), before moving to Spanish

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 ...

team

Manresa Manresa () is the capital of Bages county, located in the central region of Catalonia, Spain. Crossed by the river Cardener, it is an industrial area with textile, metallurgical, and glass industries. The houses of Manresa are arranged aro ...

. He helped Manresa return to the

Liga ACB The Liga ACB, known as Liga Endesa for sponsorship reasons, is the top professional basketball division of the Spanish basketball league system. Administered by the Asociación de Clubs de Baloncesto (ACB), Liga ACB is contested by 18 teams, w ...

in his first season.

Canarias (2019–2020)

In July 2019, Lundberg signed with

CB Canarias Club Cantera Base 1939 Canarias Sociedad Anónima Deportiva, S.A.D., commonly known as CB Canarias and known as La Laguna Tenerife for sponsorship reasons, is a professional basketball team that is based in San Cristóbal de La Laguna, La Laguna, ...

for two years with the option of a third. He joined the team from the competitor

Bàsquet Manresa Club Bàsquet Manresa S.A.D., also known as Baxi Manresa for sponsorship reasons, is a professional basketball club based in Manresa, Spain. The team plays in the Liga ACB and the Champions League. It home arena is the Pavelló Nou Congost. In ...

where he had been a cornerstone of the team that won promotion to the

.Gabriel Lundberg cambia Manresa por Tenerife para seguir en la ACB
Marca.com, 9 July 2019. Accessed 13 July 2020.

Zielona Góra (2020–2021)

On 13 July 2020, Lundberg signed with Stelmet Zielona Góra of the Polish League. He averaged 20.4 points, 3.8 rebounds, 5.4 assists and 1.4 steals per game in the

VTB United League The VTB United League () is an international professional men's club basketball league that was founded in 2009. It is made up of mostly Russian clubs, along with one each from Belarus and Kazakhstan. Since 2013, it is the first tier of Russian ...

during the 2020–21 season.

CSKA Moscow (2021–2022)

On February 15, 2021, he left Zielona Gora and signed with

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 ...

for the rest of the season. On July 2, 2021, Lundberg signed a three-year (2+1) extension with the Russian club. On February 27, 2022, upon the outbreak of the

2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, , starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, conflict between the two countries which began in 2014. The fighting has caused hundreds of thou ...

, he left the team. The team accused him of violating his contract.

Phoenix Suns (2022)

On March 12, 2022, 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 ...

signed Lundberg to a

two-way contract A two-way contract is a professional sports contract that stipulates that an athlete's salary is dependent upon the league in which the athlete is assigned to play. This is opposed to a one-way contract that would pay the same salary regardless o ...

for the rest of the 2021–22 season. He subsequently became the first Danish player in history to sign an NBA contract. However, he did not make his NBA debut until April 3 against 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 ...

due to visa issues that stemmed from the

. In the final game of the regular season, Lundberg recorded season-highs of 10 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists in a loss to the

Sacramento Kings The Sacramento Kings are an American professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California. The Kings compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division of the Western Confere ...

Virtus Bologna (2022–2024)

On July 21, 2022, Lundberg signed a two-year deal with

Virtus Bologna Virtus Pallacanestro Bologna, known for sponsorship reasons as Virtus Segafredo Bologna, is an Italian professional basketball club based in Bologna, Emilia-Romagna. The club was founded in 1929, which makes it the oldest club in Italy and one ...

of the Italian

Lega Basket Serie A The Lega Basket Serie A (LBA) is a professional men's club (sport), club basketball list of basketball leagues, league that has been organised in Italy since 1920. Serie A is organised by Lega Basket, which is regulated by the Italian Basketball ...

(LBA) and the

. On 29 September 2022, after having ousted

Olimpia Milano Pallacanestro Olimpia Milano, commonly known as Olimpia Milano or as EA7 Emporio Armani Milan after its title sponsor, is an LBA Italian professional basketball team, based in Milan, Italy. Its colors are white and red, and the team is sometimes ...

in the semifinals, Virtus won its third Supercup, defeating 72–69

Banco di Sardegna Sassari Polisportiva Dinamo, commonly known as Dinamo Sassari and currently known as Dinamo Banco di Sardegna Sassari for sponsorship reasons, is an Italian professional basketball club that is based in Sassari, Sardinia. They are the 2018–19 FIBA Euro ...

and achieving a back-to-back, following the 2021 trophy. However, despite good premises Virtus ended the EuroLeague season at the 14th place, thus it did not qualify for the playoffs. Moreover, the team was defeated in the

Italian Basketball Cup The Italian Basketball Cup (Italian: Coppa Italiana di Pallacanestro), or Coppa Italia, is an annual professional basketball competition between pro clubs from the Italian Basketball League (LBA). It is Italy's first-tier cup competition, and is ...

final by

Brescia Brescia (, ; ; or ; ) is a city and (municipality) in the region of Lombardy, in Italy. It is situated at the foot of the Alps, a few kilometers from the lakes Lake Garda, Garda and Lake Iseo, Iseo. With a population of 199,949, it is the se ...

. In June, after having ousted 3–0 both Brindisi and Tortona, Virtus was defeated 4–3 by Olimpia Milan in the national finals, following a series which was widely regarded among the best in the latest years of Italian basketball. On 24 September 2023, after having ousted Olimpia Milano in the semifinals, Virtus won its fourth Supercup, and the third in a row, defeating 97–60 Germani Brescia.

Partizan (2024–present)

On June 20, 2024, Lundberg signed a two-year deal with Partizan Mozzart Bet of the

(KLS),

and the

. During the 2024–25 season, Partizan managed to lift the record eighth

championship, and the

Serbian League The Serbian League () is the third level football league in Serbia. It consists of four groups, namely Belgrade, East, Vojvodina, and West. The winner of each group earns promotion to the Serbian First League. History 1992–1995 In the summer o ...

championship, the first one after 11 seasons.

National team

Lundberg has been a member of the

Denmark men's national basketball team The Denmark men's national basketball team () represents Denmark in international basketball competition. The national team is controlled by the Danish Basketball Association. The Denmark national team competed regularly at the EuroBasket in ...

. In November 2020, he led the team to two consecutive surprise victories against favorites Lithuania and the Czech Republic in the qualification round to the European championships. Lundberg had 28 points in the win against Lithuania which was named arguably the greatest victory in Danish basketball history. Against the Czech team, he scored 38 points, knocking down 7-of-9 from three-point range.

Personal life

Lundberg is a native of

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

. He is of Nigerian and Danish descent. In the early years, he played 3x3 streetball at the local street courts in Vesterbro, the Copenhagen neighborhood in which he grew up. He was a regular at the GAME Finals Streetball Tournament at the Town Hall Square each summer and watched from the stands, when his older brother Abdel Jaleel Lundberg competed in the Elite Division and the Slam Dunk Contest, winning it several times. Iffe later joined Falcon Basketball Club where he played during most of his childhood. In the off-season Iffe would come back to play streetball and won in 2009 2nd place at the GAME Finals Streetball Tournament with his team.

Career statistics

NBA

, - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Phoenix , 4 , , 0 , , 11.0 , , .263 , , .375 , , — , , 1.8 , , 2.8 , , .8 , , .0 , , 3.3 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 4 , , 0 , , 11.0 , , .263 , , .375 , , — , , 1.8 , , 2.8 , , .8 , , .0 , , 3.3

EuroLeague

, - , style="text-align:left;", 2020–21 , style="text-align:left;" rowspan=2,

, 15 , , 2 , , 20.1 , , .564 , , .436 , , .583 , , 2.5 , , 2.2 , , .9 , , , , 11.3 , , 11.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2021–22 , 24 , , 16 , , 21.1 , , .446 , , .338 , , .833 , , 2.4 , , 2.0 , , .9 , , .0 , , 9.1 , , 8.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2022–23 , style="text-align:left;" rowspan=2,

, 29 , , 22 , , 20.6 , , .433 , , .297 , , .860 , , 2.2 , , 2.0 , , .7 , , , , 11.4 , , 10.2 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2023–24 , 35 , , 1 , , 19.3 , , .447 , , .336 , , .729 , , 2.1 , , 2.0 , , .6 , , .0 , , 9.4 , , 8.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2024–25 , style="text-align:left;", Partizan , 26 , , 14 , , 14.9 , , .347 , , .346 , , .800 , , 2.2 , , 3.0 , , .9 , , .0 , , 7.9 , , 7.3 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan=2, Career , 129 , , 55 , , 21.2 , , .439 , , .343 , , .775 , , 2.2 , , 2.2 , , .8 , , .0 , , 9.0 , , 8.5

References

External links

EuroLeague profileBasketball Champions League profile

RealGM profile Eurobasket.com profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lundberg, Gabriel 1994 births Living people 21st-century Danish sportsmen Basketball players from Copenhagen Bàsquet Manresa players CB Canarias players Danish expatriate basketball people in Italy Danish expatriate basketball people in Poland Danish expatriate basketball people in Serbia Danish expatriate basketball people in Spain Danish expatriate basketball people in the United States Danish men's basketball players Danish people of Nigerian descent Horsens IC players KK Partizan players Liga ACB players PBC CSKA Moscow players Phoenix Suns players Point guards Shooting guards Undrafted NBA players Virtus Bologna players Zastal Zielona Góra players