Emmanuel Sharp became the 11th Israeli ever selected in the NBA Draft on Wednesday night into Thursday, according to Sport 5. The son of Derek Sharp is now hoping to join the short list of Israelis who have actually played in the league.
Sharp is the fifth Israeli chosen in the second round and the first since Yam Madar, who was taken 47th overall by the Boston Celtics in 2020. The article says he could become the second Israeli to play for the Sacramento Kings, alongside Omri Casspi.
Casspi is the only other Israeli linked to the Kings in the piece, and the note adds that he once played with his father, Derek, at Maccabi Tel Aviv. The report frames Sharp’s selection as another milestone in the long but limited history of Israelis in the NBA draft.
The article also lists the full group of Israelis drafted before him: Tal Brody in 1965, Doron Sheffer in 1996, Lior Eliyahu and Yotam Halperin in 2006, Omri Casspi in 2009, T.J. Leaf in 2017, Deni Avdija in 2020, and Ben Saraf and Danny Wolf in 2025.