Hasheem Thabeet is a Tanzanian professional basketball player. A member of the Portland Trail Blazers, he is the tallest active player in the NBA. He was drafted as the 2nd pick overall by the Memphis Grizzlies in the 2009 NBA Draft after playing with the Connecticut Huskies. At 7 ft 3 in and 263 lb , Thabeet was the tallest player ever to play for the Huskies. He did not begin to play basketball until the age of 15, when he began to watch pickup games in Tanzania. As a freshman, he averaged 6.2 points and 3.8 blocks per game. On December 3, 2006, Thabeet tied a UConn... record with 10 blocks. Thabeet was named to the 2007 All-Big East Rookie Team, along with teammate Jerome Dyson. As a sophomore he saw increased minutes and he averaged 10.5 points, 7.9 rebounds, 4.5 blocks on the season. On January 5, 2008, he tied his career high in blocks with 10 in the Huskies' 73-67 loss at University of Notre Dame. Thabeet was named Big East Defensive Player of the Year and to the Second Team All Big East. As a junior at UConn, Thabeet emerged on the national scene, averaging 13.6 points and 10.
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