Spencer Weisz (; born May 31, 1995) is an American-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

Hapoel Haifa Hapoel Haifa Football Club (, ''Moadon HaKaduregel Hapoel Haifa'') is an Israeli professional football club located in the city of Haifa. The club won one championship (1998–99) and 4 Israeli cups (1962–63, 1965–66 and 1973–74, 2 ...

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 ...

. He played college basketball for the

Princeton Tigers The Princeton Tigers are the athletic teams of Princeton University. The school sponsors 35 varsity teams in 20 sports. The school has won several NCAA national championships, including one in men's fencing, three in women's lacrosse, six in me ...

, completing his college career in the 2016–17 season. Playing for gold medal-winning Team USA, Weisz was the Most Valuable Player of the Under-18 basketball competition in the

2013 Maccabiah Games The 19th Maccabiah () were held during July 18 to 30, 2013. The Games brought together 7,500 competing athletes, making it the third-largest international sporting event in the world after the Olympic Games and the FIFA World Cup. The Maccabiah he ...

. He earned the 2014 Ivy League Men's Basketball Rookie of the Year Award and the 2017 Ivy League Men's Basketball Player of the Year Award, and was a 3-time first or second team All-Ivy selection. During the summer of 2015, he was a member of the

Israel national under-20 basketball team The Israeli national under-20 basketball team is a national basketball team of Israel, administered by the Israel Basketball Association. It represents the country in various FIBA youth tournaments. The team usually competes in the FIBA Europe Un ...

at the 2015 FIBA U-20 European Championship.

Early life

Weisz is a native of

Florham Park, New Jersey Florham Park is a borough in Morris County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 12,585, its highest decennial count ever and an increase of 889 (+7.6%) from the 11,696 recorded at ...

, and is Jewish. He attended Seton Hall Prep. As a junior, he was first-team All-County. As a senior, ''

The Star-Ledger ''The Star-Ledger'' was the largest circulation newspaper in New Jersey. It is based in Newark, New Jersey. The newspaper ceased print publication on February 2, 2025, but continues to publish a digital edition. In 2007, ''The Star-Ledger''s ...

'' recognized Weisz as a second-team All-State selection in New Jersey and the

Essex County, New Jersey Essex County is located in the northeastern part of the U.S. state of New Jersey, and is one of the centrally located counties in the New York metropolitan area. As of the 2020 census, the county was the state's second-most populous county,< ...

boys' basketball Player of the Year.

College career

Playing for

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial ...

, Weisz earned the 2014

Ivy League The Ivy League is an American collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference of eight Private university, private Research university, research universities in the Northeastern United States. It participates in the National Collegia ...

Men's Basketball Rookie of the Year. On December 7, 2013, he posted his first career

double-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 ...

with 17

points A point is a small dot or the sharp tip of something. Point or points may refer to: Mathematics * Point (geometry), an entity that has a location in space or on a plane, but has no extent; more generally, an element of some abstract topologica ...

(including 3-for-3 on

three-point field goal A three-point field goal (also 3-pointer, three, or triple) is a field goal in a basketball game made from beyond the three-point line, a designated arc surrounding the basket. A successful attempt is worth three points, in contrast to the two ...

s) and 10

rebounds 'Rebound' is a term used in sports to describe the ball (or puck or other object of play) becoming available for possession by either opponent after an attempt to put the ball or puck into the goal has been unsuccessful. Rebounds are generally ...

against

Fairleigh Dickinson Fairleigh Dickinson University () is a private university with its main campuses in New Jersey, located in Madison / Florham Park and in Teaneck / Hackensack. Founded in 1942, Fairleigh Dickinson University offers more than 100 degree progr ...

. He earned second-team All-Ivy League recognition in 2015 and 2016. As a sophomore, in 2014–15, he was 6th in the Ivy League in

3-point field goal percentage A three-point field goal (also 3-pointer, three, or triple) is a field goal in a basketball game made from beyond the three-point line, a designated arc surrounding the basket. A successful attempt is worth three points, in contrast to the two p ...

(.408), 7th in 3-point field goals (51), and 8th in scoring (11.6). As a junior, he served as a tri-

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

(along with Mike Washington Jr. and Steven Cook) of the 2015–16 team, led the Ivy League in assist-to- turnover ratio (2.8), and was 2nd in the league in assists-per-game (3.9), 4th in assists (113), 6th in 3-point field goals (63), and 8th in

defensive rebound In basketball, a rebound, sometimes colloquially referred to as a board, is a statistic awarded to a player who retrieves the basketball (ball), ball after a missed Field goal (basketball), field goal or free throw. Rebound (sports), Rebounds in ...

s (129). Going into his senior year, ''

The Sporting News ''The Sporting News'' is a website and former magazine publication owned by Sporting News Holdings, which is a U.S.-based sports media company formed in December 2020 by a private investor consortium. It was originally established in 1886 as a ...

'' projected him as Ivy League first team, and ''

Lindy's Lindy's was two different deli and restaurant chains in Manhattan, New York City. The first chain, founded by Leo "Lindy" Lindemann, operated from 1921 to 1969.("Opening date was Aug. 20, 1921.") In 1979, the Riese Organization determined that ...

'' projected him as Ivy League second team. As a senior, Weisz led Princeton in rebounds, assists (4.2 per game; 125; 2nd in the league), and steals (1.5 per game; 46; 2nd in the Ivy League), while coming in 2nd in the league in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.6), 5th in 3-point field goals (61) and defensive rebounds (137), and 10th in total rebounds (161).">"Weisz, Stephens, Henderson Earn Major Awards as Four Tigers Earn All-Ivy Honors"
GoPrincetonTigers.com. In December 2016, he tied the Princeton single-game record for assists in a game, with 13 against Liberty. He posted his career high of 26 points in a February 3, 2017, 69–64 victory over Dartmouth. He served again as a co-captain, and earned Ivy League Men's Basketball Player of the Year recognition. He became the 8th player in Ivy League history to win both the league's Rookie of the Year Award and Player of the Year Award. He was one of two unanimous first-team All-Ivy selections, despite only ranking fourth on Princeton in scoring average. Weisz was included on the

National Association of Basketball Coaches The National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC), headquartered in Kansas City, Missouri, is an American organization of men's college basketball coaches. It was founded in 1927 by Phog Allen, the men's basketball head coach for the Univ ...

Division I All‐District 13 second-team, earned honorable mention on the

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American not-for-profit organization, not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association, and produces news reports that are dist ...

All-America team, and was named to the ''

Jewish Sports Review ''Jewish Sports Review'' (JSR) was a bi-monthly magazine that operated from 1997 to 2022. Its editors were Ephraim Moxson and Shel Wallman. The magazine identified Jewish athletes, including professionals, college players, athletes in internati ...

'' 2016–17 Men's College Basketball All-American First Team. The 2016–17 Princeton Tigers earned Princeton its first

NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament The NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament, branded as March Madness, or The Big Dance, is a single-elimination tournament played in the United States to determine the men's college basketball national champion of the NCAA Division I, Di ...

invitation since the 2010–11 team did so. He became the only player in Princeton career history to amass 1,000 points, 500 rebounds, 300 assists, and 200 3-pointers. He ended his college career 2nd in Princeton history in assists (383), 5th in 3-pointers (209), and 12th in scoring (1,241 points). His 511 career defensive rebounds were 5th in Ivy League history.

Professional career

Hapoel Gilboa Galil (2017–2018)

On August 3, 2017, Weisz started his professional career with

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 ...

of the

, signing a one-year deal with an option for another one. Weisz helped Gilboa Galil reach the 2018 Israeli League Playoffs, where they eventually lost to

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 ...

in the Quarterfinals.

Maccabi Ashdod (2018–2019)

On July 19, 2018, Weisz signed with

Maccabi Ashdod Maccabi Ashdod B.C. () is a professional basketball team based in the port city of Ashdod, Israel. The team currently plays in the Israeli National League. History The team was founded in 1961 by "Maccabi Ashdod Sports Association", with the ...

for the 2018–19 season. On April 10, 2019, Weisz recorded a career-high 27 points, shooting 6-of-9 from three-point range, along with eight rebounds, six assists and three steals, leading Ashdod to a 94–86 win over his former team

. In 26 games played for Ashdod, he averaged 9.0 points, 3.9 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game.

Hapoel Be'er Sheva (2019–21)

On June 21, 2019, Weisz signed a two-year deal with

Hapoel Be'er Sheva Hapoel Be'er Sheva Football Club (, ''Moadon HaKaduregel Hapoel Be'er Sheva'') is an Israeli professional association football, football club from the city of Beersheba, Be'er Sheva, that competes in the Israeli Premier League. The club was estab ...

. Two months later, he was named Be'er Sheva's new team captain, replacing Chanan Colman. On October 21, 2019, Weisz recorded a season-high 21 points, shooting 5-of-8 from three-point range, along with eight assists, scoring the last 13 out of 15 points to give Be'er Sheva an 88–87 win over Hapoel Eilat. In 2020–21 he averaged 12.3 points, 5.3 rebounds, 3.7 assists, and 1.7 steals (7th in the league) per game. He was 3rd in the league in steals, with 48, and 8th in three-point field goal percentage at .356. He was voted Eurobasket All-Israeli League Honorable Mention.

Hapoel Haifa (2021–present)

On July 6, 2021, Weisz signed with

in the Israeli Basketball Premier League.

International play

Weisz was a member of the Under-18 US National team that won the

gold medal, along with future NFL player

Anthony Firkser Anthony Paul Firkser (born February 19, 1995) is an American professional football tight end. He played college football for the Harvard Crimson and signed with the New York Jets as an undrafted free agent in 2017. He has played in the NFL for th ...

, and earned the Most Valuable Player recognition for the tournament. In the final, gold medal game against Team Israel, Weisz scored 19 points, brought down 12 rebounds, and had 11 assists. During the summer of 2015, Weisz was a starter for the

at the 2015 FIBA U-20 European Championship, where Israel finished 10th out of 20 teams.

References

External links

Weisz
at

ESPN ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...

Weisz
@

CBS Sports CBS Sports is the American sports programming division of Paramount Global that is responsible for sports broadcasts carried by its broadcast network CBS and streaming service Paramount+, as well as the operator of its cable channel CBS Sports N ...

Weisz
@ IvyLeagueSports.com
Weisz
@ GoPrincetonTigers.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Weisz, Spencer 1995 births Living people 21st-century American Jews American expatriate basketball people in Israel American men's basketball players Basketball players from Morris County, New Jersey Competitors at the 2013 Maccabiah Games Hapoel Be'er Sheva B.C. players Hapoel Gilboa Galil players Hapoel Haifa B.C. players Israeli Basketball Premier League players Jewish American basketball players Maccabi Ashdod B.C. players Maccabiah Games medalists in basketball Maccabiah Games gold medalists for the United States People from Florham Park, New Jersey Princeton Tigers men's basketball players Shooting guards Small forwards Jews from New Jersey 21st-century American sportsmen