Tamir, Amit

Amit Yosef Tamir

A member of the Israeli National team, Tamir was a forward/center at the University of California from 2001-2004. As one of the best big men in the Pac 10 conference, Amit was named to the All-Pac 10 team in 2002-03 (he was also All-Academic Pan 10 in 2002-03 and 2003-04).

Following the 2003-04 season, Tamir received offers from Maccabi Tel Aviv, Hapoel Jerusalem and several other teams in Europe. Amit signed for top Greek team PAOK Salonika on July 18, 2004.

Birth and Death Dates:
b. Dec. 2, 1979

Career Highlights:
Born in Jerusalem, Tamir was one of Israel's top young players in the late 1990s. A member of the National Under-22 team at the 1998 European Championships, he is currently a member of the National team. As an amateur player in the Israel League -- he was Newcomer of the Year for Hapoel Jerusalem -- Tamir arrived at the University in California in 2001 expecting to play for the Bears. Unfortunately, because he had played with professionals in Israel (despite remaining an amateur), Tamir was forced to sit out the first eight games of the season.

When he finally joined the team, Tamir had an immediate impact. In the Golden Bear Classic title game against Penn State, he scored 12 points and added a team-high nine rebounds to contribute to Cal's 76-73 victory. Later in the year, Amit scored 39 points against Oregon and was named Pac 10 Player of the Week and ESPN.com National Player of the Week. During the 2001-02 season, Tamir appeared in 24 games and averaged 9.9 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 1.9 assists per game. Cal finished 22-8 overall in the regular season and reached the second round of the NCAA tournament. Tamir was named to the All-Pac 10 Freshman team.

During the 2002-03 regular season, Tamir finished second on the team with 16.1 points (sixth in the Pac 10) and led the Bears with 6.4 rebounds (sixth in the Pac 10), and 3.2 assists per game (tenth in the conference). California finished with a record of 21-8 (13-5, third in conference) and ranked No. 23 in the country. In the NCAA tournament, No. 8 seed Cal played No. 9 seed North Carolina State in the first round. In the game, a 76-74 Cal victory (in overtime), Tamir had 11 points, two rebounds, and one assist. In the second round, Cal played No. 1 seed Oklahoma and lost the match, 74-65. Amit scored only one point in the contest, although he added a game-high nine rebounds and one assist.

An excellent passer and outside shooter, he was chosen as one of 30 pre-season candidates for the 2003-04 Wooden Award as college basketball's best player. The Bears, coached by Ben Braun finished the season with a record of 13-15 (9-9, fourth in conference). Tamir averaged 12.6 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 1.7 assists per game during the year.

Origin:
Jerusalem, Israel

Career Dates:
Tamir played at the University of California-Berkeley, 2001-2004.

Physical description:
6'11", 260 pounds

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