David Aliu
 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born |
13 March 1981 Liverpool, England |
| Nationality | British |
| Listed height | 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) |
| Career information | |
| High school |
Notre Dame Academy (Middleburg, Virginia) |
| College | Minnesota State–Moorhead (2000–2004) |
| NBA draft | 2004 / Undrafted |
| Playing career | 2004–2016 |
| Position | Power forward |
| Number | 11 |
| Career history | |
| 2004 | Scottish Rocks |
| 2005 | Tindastoll |
| 2005–2006 | Hamar/Selfoss |
| 2006–2007 | Leicester Riders |
| 2006–2007 | Thor Thorlakshofn |
| 2007 | Celso Miguez |
| 2007–2008 | Everton Tigers |
| 2008–2009 | Lausanne |
| 2010–2012 | Mersey Tigers |
| 2012–2014 | Manchester Giants |
| 2014–2016 | Cheshire Phoenix |
David Aliu (born 13 March 1981) is a retired professional basketball player. He last played for Cheshire Phoenix in the British Basketball League.
Aliu was part of the Tigers' treble-winning 2010/11 team, and in November 2011, became the Tigers' record points scorer in the BBL.[1]
Early life and career
Born in Liverpool, England,[2] Aliu started playing basketball at the age of 14 in his home town of Liverpool, playing for local side Toxteth Tigers. He landed a scholarship in the USA, playing at the Notre Dame Academy in Virginia, before moving on to and graduating from Moorhead State University (now Minnesota State University Moorhead) in 2004.
Professional career
The power forward made his British Basketball League debut on 01/10/2004 playing for Scottish Rocks against Newcastle Eagles, and he went on to make 11 appearances for the Rocks, averaging 6.27 PPG.
He then moved on to play for three teams in Iceland - Tindastoll (17 PPG and 7 RPG), Hamar/Selfoss (22 PPG and 9 RPG) and Thor Thorlakshofn (24 PPG and 10 RPG) - from 2005 to 2007, with a short spell at Leicester Riders in the BBL in the middle.
After a brief spell with Celso Miguez in Spain, Aliu returned to his home city to play for the new professional franchise, Everton Tigers.
He averaged 15.76 PPG in 33 appearances for the Tigers, before leaving to play for Lausanne in Switzerland. He took a year out of the sport following the birth of his daughter, but returned to the re-branded Mersey Tigers for the 2010/11 season.
Aliu won the BBL Championship, BBL Trophy and BBL play-off titles, playing alongside Great Britain players Andrew Sullivan and Nate Reinking, in a very successful season.
In August 2011, Aliu signed a new two-year deal with the Tigers to keep him at the club until the end of the 2012/13 season.[3]
In September 2012, Aliu signed with a contract with the Manchester Giants. http://www.davidaliu.com/blog/david-aliu-signs-for-manchester-giants/
In June 2014, Aliu signed a two-year contract with the Cheshire Phoenix. On July 20, 2016, Aliu retired from basketball.[4]
Other Notes
Aliu was the first person to score a basket at the ECHO Arena in Liverpool.[5]
References
- ↑ http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/sport/other-sports/2011/12/16/basketball-mersey-tigers-captain-david-aliu-racks-up-1000-bbl-points-100252-29962591/
- ↑ http://bbl.org.uk/?aliu-david,2642
- ↑ http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/sport/other-sports/2011/08/12/david-aliu-signs-new-two-year-deal-with-mersey-tigers-100252-29223637/
- ↑ Gains, Bradley (20 July 2016). "David Aliu Retires from Professional Basketball". Hoopsfix.com. Retrieved 26 July 2016.
- ↑ Powell, Dave (4 June 2014). "Nix add league legend Aliu to roster". The Chester Chronicle. Retrieved 22 August 2015.