Rafael "Rafi" Menco (; born 5 March 1994) is an Israeli 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

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 ...

of the

Israeli Basketball Premier League Ligat HaAl (, lit., ''Supreme League or Premier League''), or the Israeli Basketball Premier League, is a professional basketball league in Israel and the highest level of basketball in the country. The league's name is abbreviated as either BSL ...

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 was named the Israeli Basketball Premier League Most Improved Player in

2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...

, and an

All-Star in

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 ...

Early life

Menco was born in

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

. He played basketball for

Wingate Institute Wingate Institute (), officially Orde Wingate Institute for Physical Education and Sports (), is a sports training institute located south of Netanya, Israel. History Wingate Institute was established in 1957. It was named after Orde Wingate. ...

youth academy.

Professional career

Early years (2012–2016)

In 2012, Menco started his professional career with

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 ...

. On 21 October 2012, Menco made his professional debut in a match against

Hapoel Tel Aviv Hapoel Tel Aviv () is a sports club in Israel, founded in the 1920s, and part of the Hapoel association. It runs several sports clubs and teams in Tel Aviv which have competed in a variety of sports over the years, such as football, basketball, w ...

. On 17 July 2014, Menco was loaned to

Hapoel Gilboa Galil Hapoel Gilboa Galil () is a professional basketball club that is based in north-east Israel. The club plays its home game in the Israeli Basketball Premier League (the top tier of Israeli basketball) in a 2,250-seat arena in Gan Ner. History T ...

for the 2014–15 season. On 25 April 2015, Menco recorded a season-high 18 points, shooting 7-of-11 from the field, along with five rebounds, two assists, and three steals in an 89–72 win over

. In 31 games played for Gilboa Galil, he averaged 7.9 points, 4.7 rebounds, 1.8 assists, and 1.1 steals per game. On 20 June 2015, Menco signed a three-year deal with

. On 3 February 2016, Menco recorded a season-high 18 points, shooting 8-of-12 from the field, along with five rebounds and four steals in a 94–103 loss to

Avtodor Saratov BC Avtodor (), commonly known as simply Avtodor and internationally as Avtodor Saratov, is a Russian professional basketball club based in Saratov. It plays in the VTB United League, the highest level of Russian basketball. In early 2022, after ...

. Menco won the 2016 Israeli League Cup title with Jerusalem.

Hapoel Eilat (2016–2017)

On 25 November 2016, Menco was loaned to Hapoel Eilat for the 2016–17 season. On 20 March 2017, Menco recorded a double-double of 22 points and a career-high 13 rebounds, shooting 8-of-12 from the field, leading Eilat to a 94–85 win over Maccabi Rishon LeZion. He was subsequently named Israeli League Round 23 MVP. On 29 March, Menco was named the Israeli Player of the Month for games played in March. In 28 games played for Eilat, he averaged 9.3 points, 6 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.1 steals per game. Menco helped Eilat reach the 2017 Israeli League Playoffs as the second seed, but they eventually were eliminated by Maccabi Rishon LeZion in the Quarterfinals. On 6 June 2017, Menco was named co- Israeli Basketball Premier League Most Improved Player, alongside Idan Zalmanson and earned a spot in the All-Israeli League Second Team.

Hapoel Tel Aviv (2017–2018)

On 26 July 2017, Menco joined

, signing a one-year deal with an option for another one. On 2 January 2018, Menco recorded a season-high 17 points, shooting 7-of-14 from the field, along with six rebounds and two assists in a 77–73 win over

. Menco helped Hapoel reach the 2018 Israeli League Final Four for the first time in 13 years. On 5 July 2018, Menco signed a one-year contract extension with Hapoel. However, on 5 December 2018, Menco parted ways with Hapoel.

Return to Eilat (2018–2020)

On 24 December 2018, Menco returned to Hapoel Eilat for a second stint, signing for the rest of the season. In 28 games played for Eilat during the 2018–-19 season, he averaged 8.8 points, 3.1 rebounds and 1.6 assists per game, while shooting 43.2 percent from three-point range. Menco helped Eilat reach the 2019 Israeli League Final Four, where they eventually lost to

. On 3 November 2019, Menco recorded a then career-high 24 points, shooting 10-of-12 from the field in a 90–81 win over

Hapoel Holon Hapoel Holon Basketball Club (), is a professional basketball club based in Holon, Israel. The team plays in the Israeli Basketball Premier League (the top tier of Israeli basketball), and internationally in the Basketball Champions League. The ...

. Three days later, he was named Israeli League Round 5 MVP. On 16 February 2020, Menco recorded a career-high 25 points, while shooting 9-of-12 from the field, along with seven rebounds and three assists, leading Eilat to an 89-84 win over

Ironi Nahariya Ironi Nahariya Basketball Club () known for sponsorship reasons as Ironi Rain Nahariya () is a professional basketball club based in city of Nahariya in northern Israel. The team plays in the Liga Leumit (the second tier of Israeli basketball) and ...

. He was subsequently named Israeli League Round 19 MVP. He averaged 13.4 points and 5.2 rebounds per game.

Élan Chalon (2020–2021)

On 17 July 2020, Menco signed with

Élan Chalon Élan Sportif Chalonnais, commonly known as Élan Chalon, is a French professional basketball club that is based in Chalon-sur-Saône, France. The team's main colors are red and white, and their mascot is a moose. The team's home arena is called ...

of the

LNB Pro A LNB may refer to: Sport * Liga Nacional de Baloncesto, a professional basketball league in the Dominican Republic * Liga Nacional de Básquetbol, an Argentine basketball league * Liga Nacional de Básquetbol (Paraguay), Liga Nacional de Básquetb ...

. On 13 September 2020,

won the pre-season LUXTROPHY tournament, and Menco rewarded to be the MVP of the tournament with 17 points and evaluation of 21.

Hapoel Holon (2021–2022)

On 29 July 2021, Menco signed with

of the

Maccabi Tel Aviv (2022–present)

On 28 June 2022, Menco signed with

of the Israeli Basketball Premier League and the

. He won the

2022–23 The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen ...

and 2023–24 Israeli Basketball Premier League with Maccabi.

National team career

Menco is a member of the

Israeli national basketball team The Israel men's national basketball team () represents Israel in international basketball tournaments. They are administered by the Israeli Basketball Association. Israel is currently ranked 39th in the FIBA World Ranking. Israel has qualifi ...

. On 24 November 2017, he made his first appearance for the senior team at the

2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup qualification The 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup qualification was the first World Cup for which teams had to qualify for under the new qualification system. The process determined 31 out of the 32 teams that participated at the 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup. ...

match against

Estonia Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by Ru ...

. Menco was also a member of the U-16, U-18 and U-20 Israeli national teams.

Career statistics

EuroLeague

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

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

, 22 , , 0 , , 5.5 , , .370 , , .235 , , 1.000 , , .9 , , .3 , , .2 , , , , 1.2 , , 0.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2023–24 , 20 , , 0 , , 8.3 , , .426 , , .423 , , .500 , , 1.4 , , .3 , , .2 , , .1 , , 2.7 , , 1.7 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 42 , , 0 , , 6.8 , , .405 , , .349 , , .714 , , 1.1 , , .3 , , .2 , , .0 , , 1.9 , , 1.2

EuroCup

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

2012–13 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 ...

, style="text-align:left;" rowspan="4",

, 1 , , 0 , , 1.0 , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , 0.0 , , 0.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2013–14 , 14 , , 0 , , 6.1 , , .333 , , .222 , , 1.000 , , .5 , , .1 , , .1 , , , , 1.4 , , -0.1 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2015–16 , 8 , , 0 , , 7.5 , , .600 , , .600 , , .500 , , 1.4 , , .1 , , .6 , , , , 3.5 , , 3.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2016–17 , 1 , , 0 , , 1.0 , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , 0.0 , , 0.0 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 24 , , 0 , , 6.2 , , .455 , , .357 , , .750 , , .8 , , .1 , , .3 , , , , 2.0 , , 1.1

Basketball Champions League

, - , style="text-align:left;", 2021–22 , style="text-align:left;",

, 19 , , 14 , , 21.7 , , .388 , , .377 , , .758 , , 3.8 , , 1.1 , , .6 , , .2 , , 8.2 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 19 , , 14 , , 21.7 , , .388 , , .377 , , .758 , , 3.8 , , 1.1 , , .6 , , .2 , , 8.2

Domestic leagues

{, class="wikitable sortable" style="font-size:100%; text-align:right;" ! Year ! Team ! League ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! , - , style="text-align:left;",

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

, , style="text-align:center;", Ligat HaAl , , 8 , , 2.4 , , .500 , , , , .500 , , .4 , , .2 , , , , , , 0.4 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2013–14 , , style="text-align:left;",

, , style="text-align:center;", Ligat HaAl , , 28 , , 7.9 , , .368 , , .320 , , .875 , , .8 , , .4 , , .2 , , , , 2.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2014–15 , , style="text-align:left;",

, , style="text-align:center;", Ligat HaAl , , 31 , , 25.9 , , .399 , , .268 , , .889 , , 4.7 , , 1.8 , , 1.1 , , .2 , , 7.9 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2015–16 , , style="text-align:left;",

, , style="text-align:center;", Ligat HaAl , , 36 , , 12.1 , , .462 , , .448 , , .652 , , 2.3 , , .9 , , .5 , , .1 , , 3.8 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2016–17 , , style="text-align:left;",

, , style="text-align:center;", Ligat HaAl , , 6 , , 7.5 , , .000 , , , , 1.000 , , 1.2 , , .2 , , .3 , , , , 0.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2016–17 , , style="text-align:left;", Hapoel Eilat , , style="text-align:center;", Ligat HaAl , , 28 , , 27.1 , , .490 , , .382 , , .700 , , 6.0 , , 1.9 , , 1.1 , , .4 , , 9.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2017–18 , , style="text-align:left;",

, , style="text-align:center;", Ligat HaAl , , 38 , , 25.6 , , .414 , , .347 , , .708 , , 4.7 , , 1.7 , , .8 , , .2 , , 8.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2018–19 , , style="text-align:left;",

, , style="text-align:center;", Ligat HaAl , , 7 , , 22.4 , , .432 , , .375 , , .667 , , 2.9 , , 1.9 , , 1.3 , , .1 , , 6.9 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2018–19 , , style="text-align:left;", Hapoel Eilat , , style="text-align:center;", Ligat HaAl , , 28 , , 19.6 , , .505 , , .432 , , .690 , , 3.1 , , 1.6 , , .7 , , .1 , , 8.9 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2019–20 , , style="text-align:left;", Hapoel Eilat , , style="text-align:center;", Ligat HaAl , , 28 , , 30.0 , , .490 , , .347 , , .769 , , 5.2 , , 1.9 , , .9 , , .1 , , 13.4 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2020–21 The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen ...

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

, , style="text-align:center;", Pro A , , 33 , , 22.0 , , .442 , , .369 , , .706 , , 3.5 , , 1.7 , , .7 , , .1 , , 7.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2021–22 , , style="text-align:left;",

, , style="text-align:center;", Ligat HaAl , , 35 , , 23.2 , , .444 , , .390 , , .686 , , 4.3 , , 1.9 , , .6 , , .2 , , 9.3 , - , style="text-align:left;",

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

, , style="text-align:center;", Ligat HaAl , , 35 , , 20.0 , , .388 , , .331 , , .844 , , 3.3 , , 1.3 , , .7 , , .0 , , 6.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2023–24 , , style="text-align:left;",

, , style="text-align:center;", Ligat HaAl , , 34 , , 20.8 , , .438 , , .319 , , .657 , , 4.5 , , 1.0 , , .8 , , .2 , , 8.0

References

External links

RealGM profile

Eurobasket profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Menco, Rafi 1994 births Living people 21st-century Israeli sportsmen Competitors at the 2019 Summer Universiade Hapoel Eilat basketball players Hapoel Gilboa Galil players Hapoel Holon B.C. players Hapoel Jerusalem B.C. players Hapoel Tel Aviv B.C. players Israeli men's basketball players Maccabi Tel Aviv B.C. players Small forwards