One of the most celebrated Jewish college basketball players in recent memory is taking his game to Eretz Yisroel.
Zevi Samet, the record-breaking Yeshiva University basketball star whose explosive scoring performances made him the face of the Maccabees, is heading to Israel to join Hapoel Jerusalem, marking a major new chapter in the 22-year-old’s remarkable basketball career.
Samet, a Monsey native and frum athlete who finished his YU career as the program’s all-time leading scorer, has already begun taking part in preseason training with Hapoel Jerusalem as he works to make the transition from American college basketball to the professional ranks.
The move places Samet with one of Israel’s most prominent basketball organizations and gives the standout shooting guard an opportunity to prove that the spectacular numbers he produced at Yeshiva University can translate to the next level.
For Samet, Israel is hardly unfamiliar territory. Before beginning his college career, he spent his gap year learning at Yeshivat Reishit in Eretz Yisroel. Now, several years later, he is returning under dramatically different circumstances — this time as a basketball player coming off one of the most accomplished careers in YU history.
Born in 2003 to David and Jenny Samet, Zevi grew up in Monsey as one of five siblings in a frum family. He attended Torah Academy of Bergen County before spending his year in Israel. He is also a nephew of Rav Zvi Sobolofsky, a rosh yeshiva at Yeshiva University.
Samet enrolled at Yeshiva University in 2022 and quickly developed into one of the most dangerous offensive players in Division III basketball.
By January 2026, he had accomplished something no other YU men’s basketball player had done: Samet became the Maccabees’ all-time leading scorer, cementing his place in the university’s record books.
His senior season only added to his growing list of accomplishments. Samet repeatedly earned Skyline Conference Player of the Week honors and helped propel Yeshiva through a memorable postseason run that reached the Sweet 16 of the 2026 NCAA Division III Men’s Basketball Tournament.
And when his YU career finally came to an end, Samet went out firing.
Facing Emory in the Sweet 16, Samet poured in a staggering 43 points in his final appearance in a Maccabees uniform, putting an exclamation point on a college career defined by prolific scoring and clutch performances.
His achievements earned recognition far beyond Yeshiva University and the Skyline Conference. In March, the National Association of Basketball Coaches selected Samet to its Division III All-America First Team, placing him among the elite players in the country.
A month later, Samet was named a finalist for the prestigious Bevo Francis Award, which recognizes the top small-college basketball player in the United States.
Now comes the next challenge.
Samet had previously visited and worked out with Hapoel Jerusalem, and he has begun participating in the club’s preseason training sessions as he seeks to establish himself in Israeli professional basketball.
The move carries particular significance for a player whose basketball career has unfolded while remaining openly connected to his frum identity. From Monsey to TABC, from a year of learning in Eretz Yisroel to Yeshiva University, Samet has emerged as a rare figure in American Jewish athletics — a player who became a nationally recognized college basketball star while representing the Orthodox Jewish community.
His next stop brings that journey full circle.
After rewriting the Yeshiva University record books and ending his college career with 43 points on one of the biggest stages of his life, Zevi Samet is headed back to Eretz Yisroel — this time with an opportunity to begin making his mark in the professional game.
{Matzav.com}
