Nathaniel Thomas Huffman (April 2, 1975 – October 15, 2015) was an American 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, who played most of his career with

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 was the 2001

Israeli Basketball Premier League MVP The Israeli Basketball Premier League MVP, or Israeli Basketball Super League MVP, is an annual basketball award that is presented to the most valuable player in a given season of the Israeli Basketball Premier League, which is the top-tier level ...

, as well as the 2001 FIBA SuproLeague Player of the Year.

High school and college career

Huffman played for Lakeview High School and then for Lansing Community College (where in '94–'95 he averaged 29.8 points, 14.5 rebounds, and 6 blocks per game while shooting 66.8% from the field, and was named to the JUCO All America team). He then played for

Central Michigan University Central Michigan University (CMU) is a Public university, public research university in Mount Pleasant, Michigan, United States. It was established in 1892 as a private normal school and became a state institution in 1895. CMU is one of the eigh ...

from 1995 until 1997 (where in '96–'97 he averaged 17.2 points, 11 rebounds (leading the Mid-America Conference in rebounding), and 1.8 blocks per game, and was named to the MAC Conference 1st team).

Professional career

After college, Huffman signed as a free agent 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 ...

, but did not make the team. In the 1997–98 season, he played for the

Idaho Stampede Idaho ( ) is a landlocked state in the Pacific Northwest and Mountain West subregions of the Western United States. It borders Montana and Wyoming to the east, Nevada and Utah to the south, and Washington and Oregon to the west; the state s ...

of the CBA. He was second in the league in blocked shots per game (1.8), 6th in field goal percentage (.553), 8th in rebounds per game (7.6), and 10th in free throw percentage (.801). He was selected to the CBA All-Rookie Team in 1998. He then moved to Europe, and played for

Baloncesto Fuenlabrada Baloncesto Fuenlabrada, Sociedad Anónima Deportiva, S.A.D., known as Flexicar Fuenlabrada because of sponsorship reasons, or just as Fuenlabrada, is a professional basketball team based in Fuenlabrada, Spain. The team plays in the Primera FEB and ...

of the

Spanish ACB League 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 the 1999–00 season, he was signed by

. During his time in Israel, he won three

Israeli Premier League The Israeli Premier League (, Ligat HaAl, ) is a professional association football league in Israel and the highest level of the Israeli football league system. The league is contested by 14 clubs, and operates on a system of promotion and rele ...

championships and Israeli State Cups, and one European

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

title (2001; when he averaged 17.5 points and 9 rebounds, while playing 30 minutes per game, as the team was 21–3). He was named the FIBA SuproLeague Player of the Year, as well as the "Best American Player in Europe", by ''Basket News'', in 2001. After his successes in Israel, he was signed in July 2002, by 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 ...

of the

NBA 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 ...

to a 3-year, $5.2 million contract (the third year being a team option), and appeared in 7 games, averaging 3.3 points, 3.3 rebounds and 10.9 minutes. Shortly after, Huffman was released by Toronto which terminated his contract in January 2003, because team management charged that he hid a knee injury from them when he signed the contract. Huffman responded by suing them in 2003. In February 2004 an arbitrator ruled that the Raptors were responsible for Huffman's contract.

Later life and death

After his basketball career, he decided to fund a basketball camp for children in 2005, with retired Romanian-Israeli basketball player Constantin Popa. Huffman was awarded in 2010, by the Michigan Jewish Sports Foundation, with th
Book of Life Award.
On September 29, 2015, Huffman announced that he had Stage 4

bladder cancer Bladder cancer is the abnormal growth of cells in the bladder. These cells can grow to form a tumor, which eventually spreads, damaging the bladder and other organs. Most people with bladder cancer are diagnosed after noticing blood in thei ...

, and his "condition is terminal". He died on October 15, 2015.

High school and college career

Professional career

Later life and death

References

External links