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76ers sign Turkish F/C Aldemir
Jeff Hawkins is an award-winning sportswriter with more than four decades in the industry (print and digital media). A freelance writer/stay-at-home dad since 2008, Hawkins started his career with newspaper stints in Michigan, North Carolina, Florida, Upstate New York and Illinois, where he earned the 2004 APSE first-place award for column writing (under 40,000 circulation). As a beat writer, he covered NASCAR Winston Cup events at NHIS (1999-2003), the NHL's Chicago Blackhawks (2003-06) and the NFL's Carolina Panthers (2011-12). Hawkins penned four youth sports books, including a Michael Jordan biography. Hawkins' main hobbies include mountain bike riding, 5k trail runs at the Whitewater Center in Charlotte, N.C., and live music.
All posts by Jeff HawkinsUpdated15 Oct 2021
The Philadelphia 76ers signed Turkish power forward/center Furkan Aldemir on Monday.
The native of Turkey has been playing professionally in his home country since 2007-08. He was on the active list for Monday night’s game against the Boston Celtics.
Aldemir, 23, joined Galatasaray Liv Hospital in 2011 and helped them earn the Turkish Basketball League title in 2012-13 before finishing as runner-up in 2013-14.
The 6-foot-10, 240-pound Aldemir was leading the Turkish league in rebounding with 11 per game this season, after leading the league in total rebounds in 2013-14 and earning All-Star honors in 2010 and 2012.
During EuroLeague play, Aldemir was part of the Galatasaray team that advanced to the final 16 in 2011-12 and the top eight in 2013-14.
Aldemir is also a member of the Turkish senior national team and competed in the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup. At the 2011 FIBA Europe Under-20 Championship, Aldemir averaged 15 points, a tournament-high 16 rebounds and nearly two blocks per game en route to earning All-Tournament honors.
Aldemir was originally the 53rd overall pick in the 2012 NBA Draft and the Sixers acquired his rights from Houston on July 13, 2013. Prior to his signing, Aldemir was one of five players (Dario Saric, Vasilije Micic, Jordan McRae and Arsalan Kazemi) playing internationally whose rights are held by the Sixers.
In a related move, the Sixers waived forward Ronald Roberts. He was active for two games this season, but played no minutes.
