By Eurohoops team / info@eurohoops.net
Maccabi Tel Aviv announced the addition of swingman James Nunnally. The former EuroLeague champion with Fenerbahce (2017) signed a one-plus-one contract to return to the competition for the first time since 2020.
Per Maccabi:
Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv is proud to announce the signing of James Nunnally (30, 2.01m) on a one-year contract with an option for another season. Nunnally is an experienced small forward with great 3-pt shooting abilty and has played in the Euroleague, NBA and also in the Israeli Premier League.
Nunnally started the 2019/20 season, which was disrupted due to the COVID19 pandemic, in China and in January of that year he returned to his former team Fenerbahce. Last April he was signed by the New Orleans Pelicans from the NBA and took part in 9 games.
“We welcome James Nunnally to the family of Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv”, Coach Giannis Sfairopoulos told maccabi.co.il. “James is a player that we wanted to sign from the very first moment because he has the quality and the experience to help us reach our goals. He is a very important addition to our team. For sure the fact that he played in Israel in the past is an advantage as well”.
James Nunnally‘s first comment after the signing was: “I’m extremely excited to be headed back to Israel, especially to an organization with a tradition like Maccabi Tel Aviv. To the fans: I can’t wait to meet you all. Yalla Maccabi!”.
The first acquaintance of Israeli basketball fans with James William Nunnally, a nativewho was born in San Jose, California, was in 2014/15. That season began for him with Spanish Estudiantes and from there he moved in the middle of the year to Maccabi Ashdod. In 24 games in the Israeli Premier League he scored 17.1 points and averaged about 8 rebounds per evening under the guidance of Tzvika Sherf.
From that point Nunnally’s career took off. He played with Italian team Abelino and the following season (2016/17) made the big leap and signed with Fenerbahce. In Istanbul he completed two years under Zeljko Obradovic – He ended the first as European champion and finished the second with a loss to Real Madrid in the Final Four final, after Fener overcame Zalgiris Kaunas in the semi-finals.
During the 2018/19 season he went to Milan and excelled in its ranks with an average of 15 points per evening and 45% from 3-pts range in the Italian league. In the Euroleague he scored 14.1 points and over 42% beyond the arc. In his two seasons with Fener in the top European competition he shot 45.1% and 55.4% behind the three points line.
In his season in China, until the outbreak of the plague and stopping the league, he averaged 22.3 points with 50% from three, 5.5 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.2 steals per game.