Behdad Sami (born June 20, 1986) is an Iranian American professional
basketball player. Behdad was the world's first Iranian basketball
player to play professionally at any level in the United States when
he played in the minor-league American Basketball Association in 2007.
In October 2010, he became the first Iranian to play pro basketball in
Portugal.Behdad graduated from Southridge High School in 2005. Prior
to graduating from Southridge, Sami attended Lake Oswego High School
for two years, but due to complications between him and the varsity
head coach, he later decided to transfer. Sami's transfer was a result
of one specific incident, where the varsity head coach referred to him
as "Osama Bin Laden" during practice. Upon graduating, Behdad received
a full ride athletic scholarship to Linn-Benton Community College in
Albany, Oregon where he played one season in the Northwest Athletic
Association of Community Colleges (NWAACC) prior to turning pro.Behdad
started his professional career playing point guard for the Georgia
Gwizzlies in the American Basketball Association (ABA) & also
professionally overseas. Standing at six feet with only a 7-foot 4
vertical arm reach, his dunking vertical leap is measured at 46" and
has a 40-yard dash time of 4.469 seconds. In SAQ (speed, agility,
quickness) tests done in December 2008, he managed to touch a 10-foot
9 inch mark on a concrete surfaced facility. Sami has played in many
different countries and different leagues around the world including
major-league professional teams in Iran and Qatar. Behdad started the
2010 season with the San Diego Surf (ABA) but within the first month
of the season was signed to play with the Guifoes Sport Club in
Portugal's ProLiga. Following his season in Portugal, Sami received
results indicating he had played his season in Portugal on a broken
shin. Due to this injury, he has been forced to sit out the entire
2011-2013 season, and undergo rigorous physical therapy.In spring of
2009, Behdad was hand picked from thousands of top athletes around the
world to be a part of Gatorade "Quest for G; The Series". This was a
reality show about training athletes, and turning them into Olympic
ready athletes for their specific individual sport. Although Sami was
selected for his accomplishments and athletic ability in basketball,
due to the concept of individual sports, Sami, with the approval of
Gatorade decided to attempt their trials for tennis because of his
strong background in that sport. Behdad Sami Biography, NetWorth, Height, Age, Weight, Family, Married, Son, Daughter