By Johnny Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
There was plenty of noise from Kuwait SC with the arrivals of Augustine Rubit, JaKarr Sampson, and Briante Weber, en route to the 2024-25 season.
Coming out of six consecutive league championships in Kuwait and emerging as the Gulf League champions in the 2022-23 and 2023-24 FIBA West Asia Super League editions, WASL, the three newcomers boosted the bid for more titles next season.
Rubit, 35, played in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague between 2017 and 2023, logging 143 appearances with FC Bayern Munich, Zalgiris, Olympiacos, and Brose Bamberg. The South Alabama alum went from Tigers Tubingen and ratiopharm Ulm to Europe’s premier club continental competition. At the bottom end of the 2023-24 season, he joined the Rostock Seawolves. Expanding his professional career to Asia, the next challenge awaits in Kuwait City.
Sampson, 31, is a veteran of 241 NBA games with the Indiana Pacers, Chicago Bulls, Sacramento Kings, Denver Nuggets, and Philadelphia 76ers. Overseas options led the former St. John’s standout to China’s CBA, except for the 2021-22 campaign and a spell with Virtus Segafredo Bologna. He was featured in 19 7DAYS EuroCup games with Vu Nere and was crowned champion in the second-tier league of Euroleague Basketball.
Weber, 31, appeared in 42 NBA games over the first three seasons of his professional career. From brief stints with the Memphis Grizzlies, Miami Heat, Golden State Warriors, Charlotte Hornets, and Houston Rockets, the VCU product played in eight EuroLeague contests with Olympiacos in 2019.
Photo Credit: EuroleagueBasketball.net