Semih Erden is a professional basketball player in the National Basketball Association, currently playing for the Cleveland Cavaliers.
He was born on July 28, 1986 in Istanbul, Turkey.
International Career
He began his professional basketball career in Europe when he started playing for Darussafaka, a team that is part of the Turkish League, in 2003. He played only one game, as he spent the majority of the season playing for the Darussafaka junior team.
The next season he was transferred to Partizan Belgrade and averaged 4.6 points per game. The next season, he improved slightly, and was able to average 6.5 points in 18.4 minutes per game. He also participated in the FIBA World Cup, where he averaged 3.4 points per game and 3.1 rebounds per game. He managed to score in the double figures seven times.
In the 2006-07 season, he averaged 6.4 points per game and scored a season high of 10 points against Galatasaray. In the 2007-08 he improved again, averaging 7.1 points per game and scoring in the double digits three times, in spite of missing several games due to a knee injury. He also posted a season high of 15 points against Panathinaikos.
In the 2008-09 season, Erden averaged 8.3 points and 4.3 rebounds per game. He shot a 58.4% field goal average playing for Fenerbahce. In the 2009-10 season, he played in a total of 42 games and averaged 8.2 points per game. He also averaged 5.2 assists per game, and shot a stellar 62.4% field goal average. That season he also appeared in 10 Euroleague games where he averaged 6.2 points per game.
The NBA
In 2010, Erden played in three summer league games, starting in all of them. He averaged 5.7 points and 4 rebounds per game. In his best game, he scored eight points and made six rebounds, along with two blocks.
Because teammates Jermaine O’Neal, Shaquille O’Neal and Kendrick Perkins were out due to injuries, on December 10, 2010, Erden finally got his first starting position in an NBA game against the Philadelphia ‘76ers.
He helped the team win 102-101 by scoring 8 points in 18 minutes. Two days later, in their next game, the Celtics coach decided to start him again. He contributed the 93-62 victory against the Charlotte Bobcats by scoring 10 points and making 7 rebounds. He also blocked four shots.
On February 24, 2011, Erden was traded to the Cavaliers.