Edon Maxhuni Explained

Edon Maxhuni
Position:Point guard
Number:21
Height M:1.88
League:LNB Pro A
Team:SIG Strasbourg
Nationality:Finnish / Kosovan
Birth Date:21 May 1998
Birth Place:Hyvinkää, Finland
High School:Helsinki Basketball Academy
(Helsinki, Finland)
College:Long Beach State (2017–2019)
Career Start:2014
Years1:2014–2017
Team1:HBA-Märsky
Years2:2019–2020
Team2:CB Gran Canaria Claret SAD
Years3:2020–2021
Team3:Pärnu Sadam
Years4:2021–2022
Team4:Heroes Den Bosch
Years5:2022–2023
Team5:Crailsheim Merlins
Years6:2023–2024
Team6:ESSM Le Portel
Years7:2024–present
Team7:SIG Strasbourg
Highlights:

Edon Maxhuni (born May 21, 1998) is a Finnish professional basketball player who plays as a point guard for SIG Strasbourg of the LNB Pro A.[1] He is also part of the Finland national team

Youth career

Maxhuni started playing basketball in a youth team of his hometown club Hyvinkään Ponteva before joining Helsingin NMKY in 2012. Later he was trained at the Helsinki Basketball Academy of the Finnish Basketball Association, and played in the second-tier Koripallon I-divisioona with the academy team HBA-Märsky. At the end of the 2016–17 season, Maxhuni was named the MVP of the Finnish second-tier league.

College career

He left Finland in 2017,[2] to study and play basketball at Long Beach State University in California, United States. Until 2019, the point guard played a total of 67 games for the college team, averaging 6.7 points per game.[3]

Professional career

CB Canaria Claret SAD

In the 2019/20 season, he was under contract with the Spanish third-division LEB Plata team CB Gran Canaria Claret SAD, playing in 24 league games and averaging 13.3 points per game.[4]

Pärnu Sadam

Maxhuni signed with Estonian club Pärnu Sadam for the 2020–21 season where he became the Estonian vice-champion.[5] In 2021, he was also named in the All-KML Team in Estonian Korvpalli Meistriliiga.

Heroes Den Bosch

In the 2021–21 season, Maxhuni played for the Heroes Den Bosch in the BNXT League and the FIBA Europe Cup, and in 2022, as the team's top scorer, won the Dutch championship title.[6]

Crailsheim Merlins

In September 2022, Maxhuni accepted an offer from Crailsheim Merlins of the Basketball Bundesliga and the FIBA Europe Cup.[7] During the season, he averaged 11.8 points and 3.9 assists per game.

Le Portel

On 8 October 2023, Maxhuni signed with ESSM Le Portel of the French LNB Pro A on a short contract as an injury replacement, with an option to extend.[8] Since his arrival, Le Portel managed to change their trajectory and won seven out of ten games played, after having started the season with five losses and only one win. On 22 December 2023, his contract was extended for the rest of the ongoing 2023–24 season.[9] At the end of the season, Maxhuni helped Le Portel to qualify for the LNB Elite Playoffs, for the first time since 2017.[10] He finished his first season in French league averaging 10.9 points and 3.7 assists per game.

SIG Strasbourg

On 18 July 2024, Maxhuni signed with fellow French team SIG Strasbourg on a two-year deal.[11] [12] [13]

National team

Maxhuni received an offer to play for the Kosovo national basketball team but declined,[14] since he was a Finnish youth national player at the time. He participated in events such as the 2014 FIBA U16 EuroBasket and the FIBA U18 EuroBasket in 2015 and 2016.[15]

Since 2020, Maxhuni has been part of the Finland national basketball team. During the EuroBasket 2022, he averaged 8.9 points per game in seven tournament matches.[16] Maxhuni was named in the Finland squad in the 2023 FIBA World Cup, averaging 7.2 points and 3.8 assists per game in five matches.[17] [18] Maxhuni played also in the 2024 FIBA Olympic qualifying tournament,[19] averaging 12.7 points and 4.7 assists in three games against Bahamas, Poland and Spain. As of 7 July 2024, Maxhuni has played 53 official games with the senior national team.[20]

Personal life

Maxhuni's parents are ethnic Albanians from Mitrovica, Kosovo, who moved to Finland in 1992.[21] His father, Besim Maxhuni, played basketball for Trepça and Prishtina,[22] and later became a coach.[23] He is currently the coach of Raiders Basket in the Koripallon I-divisioona in Finnish second-tier.[23]

Career statistics

College

|-| style="text-align:left;"| 2017–18| style="text-align:left;"| Long Beach State| 33 || 15 || 17.3 || .385 || .386 || .939 || 1.7 || 1.0 || .4 || – || 6.2|-| style="text-align:left;"| 2018–19| style="text-align:left;"| Long Beach State| 34 || 10 || 17.0 || .386 || .408 || .875 || .9 || 1.1 || .2 || – || 7.2|- class="sortbottom"| style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"| Career| 67 || 25 || 17.1 || .386 || .399 || .904 || 1.3 || 1.0 || .3 || – || 6.7

National team

TeamTournament
7th
21st

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Edon Maxhuni profile, FIBA U20 European Championship 2017 . FIBA.COM . 2017-07-23 . 2023-08-29.
  2. Web site: Pelaaja . Basket.fi . fi . 2023-08-29.
  3. Web site: Edon Maxhuni - Men's Basketball . Long Beach State University Athletics . 2018-07-01 . 2023-08-29.
  4. Web site: Competiciones FEB . competiciones.feb.es . es . 2023-08-29.
  5. Web site: Pelaaja . Basket.fi . fi . 2023-08-29.
  6. Web site: Heroes Den Bosch basketball, News, Roster, Rumors, Stats, Awards, Transactions, Details-eurobasket . Eurobasket LLC . 2023-08-29.
  7. Web site: Point Guard Edon Maxhuni komplettiert HAKRO Merlins-Kader – Vertrag mit Prince Ali aufgelöst . HAKRO Merlins Crailsheim . de . 2023-08-29.
  8. https://www.basket.fi/basket/uutiset/edon-maxhunin-ura-jatkuu-ranskan-liigassa/ Edon Maxhunin ura jatkuu Ranskan liigassa
  9. https://yle.fi/a/74-20013000/64-3-199483 Edon Maxhuni jatkaa loppukauden Ranskan liigassa
  10. https://www.aamuposti.fi/urheilu/6731771 Hyvinkään kasvatti Edon Maxhuni johdatti tehopisteillään joukkueensa Ranskan korisliigan pudotuspeleihin
  11. https://sigstrasbourg.fr/2024/07/linternational-edon-maxhuni-rejoint-le-projet L’INTERNATIONAL EDON MAXHUNI REJOINT LE PROJET
  12. https://www.basket.fi/basket/uutiset/edon-maxhuni-kaksivuotisella-sopimuksella-sig-strasbourgiin/ Edon Maxhuni kaksivuotisella sopimuksella SIG Strasbourgiin
  13. https://yle.fi/a/74-20100352 Susijengistä tuttu Edon Maxhuni Strasbourgiin
  14. Web site: Kosovo roots, but a Finnish jersey on his back, Maxhuni faces emotional summer . FIBA.basketball . 2016-12-18 . 2023-08-29.
  15. Web site: Edon Maxhuni profile, FIBA U20 European Championship 2017 . FIBA.COM . 2017-07-23 . 2023-08-29.
  16. Web site: Edon MAXHUNI at the FIBA EuroBasket 2022 . FIBA.basketball . 1998-03-21 . 2023-08-29.
  17. https://www.fiba.basketball/basketballworldcup/2023/player/Edon-Maxhuni E. Maxhuni
  18. Web site: Finland at the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 European Qualifiers . 2023-08-29 . FIBA.basketball . en.
  19. https://www.basket.fi/basket/uutiset/susijengin-pelaajatusina-olympiakarsintoihin-on-vahvistettu/ Susijengin pelaajatusina olympiakarsintoihin on vahvistettu
  20. https://www.aamuposti.fi/urheilu/6880591 Edon Maxhuni 50. maaottelussaan: ”Tarkoitus on pelata vielä ainakin sata maaottelua”
  21. Web site: Kosovo roots, but a Finnish jersey on his back, Maxhuni faces emotional summer . FIBA.basketball . 2016-12-18 . 2023-08-29.
  22. News: Besim Maxhuni flet për Asistin. 2023-09-09. asistionline.com. sq.
  23. Web site: boldUnderline. llc . Besim Maxhuni në krye të Raiders Basket . TopSporti.com . sq . 2023-08-29.