Jakob Pöltl

Jakob Pöltl

File:20150808 Jakob Pöltl 2421.jpg Jakob Pöltl with the Austrian national basketball team in 2015
Personal information
Born	(1995-10-15) October 15, 1995 Vienna, Austria
Nationality	Austrian
Listed height	7 ft 1 in (2.16 m)
Listed weight	239 lb (108 kg)
Career information
College	Utah (2014–2016)
Playing career	2013–present
Position	Power forward / Center
Career history
2013–2014	Arkadia Traiskirchen Lions
Career highlights and awards
Consensus second-team All-American (2016) Pete Newell Big Man Award (2016) Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award (2016) Pac-12 Player of the Year (2016) First-team All-Pac-12 (2016)

Jakob Pöltl (German pronunciation: ['ja:kop 'pœltl]) (born October 15, 1995) is an Austrian basketball player who most recently played at the University of Utah.

Early life

Pöltl was born in Vienna. Both his parents were members of the Austrian national volleyball teams. His parents opted for basketball because there was a youth basketball program near their Vienna home during his childhood. He played one year for the Arkadia Traiskirchen Lions in the Austrian Bundesliga from 2013 to 2014.

College recruitment

Pöltl was largely unknown in the United States until the 2013 FIBA Europe Under-18 Championship. University of Utah assistant Andy Hill went to the tournament, held in Macedonia, largely to scout potential prospects from other teams; he only saw Austria's opening game against the Netherlands because he vowed to watch all 38 teams in person. After seeing Pöltl's 15-rebound performance, Hill began sounding Pöltl out for potential interest in playing U.S. college basketball. Pöltl went on to average a double-double in points and rebounds during the tournament and was named to the second all-tournament team, despite Austria going 1–6 and finishing 20th out of 22 teams in the second-level Division B.

He then began drawing interest from several NCAA Division I programs, forcing him to decide between a professional career and a U.S. college education. In a 2014 interview, Pöltl revealed part of his decision-making process:

If I went pro in Europe, I probably wouldn't have a chance to go to a university and get my degree. . . . I could have basketball and an education at the same time [in the U.S.]. Also I think I wasn't ready for 100 percent professional basketball at that time.

In 2014, Pöltl committed to Utah to play college basketball. According to Yahoo! Sports writer Jeff Eisenberg, "the biggest reason Poeltl chose Utah was the relationship he had built with the Utes staff." Utah head coach Larry Krystkowiak was one of three Division I head coaches and 2 assistant coaches to travel to Vienna to recruit him in person, and made the trip of over 5,000 miles (8,000 km) twice. Pöltl was impressed that Krystkowiak made the effort to visit with him in person, and Eisenberg added that Pöltl "also liked the idea of being coached by a 6-foot-9 former NBA forward with a history of developing young big men."

Career at Utah

Pöltl became a starter his first year and in his first game he scored 18 points and had 10 rebounds. During his second season in 2015-16, he was named to the 35-man midseason watchlist for the Naismith Trophy on February 11.

On March 7, 2016, Pöltl was named the Pac-12 Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Year due to his performances throughout the season for the University of Utah.

Professional career

Pöltl announced in an April 13, 2016 news conference that he would declare himself eligible for the 2016 NBA draft and would hire an agent, making him ineligible for further college play. He is projected as a possible lottery pick. During the 2016 NBA Draft combine, Pöltl became the tallest college player to participate at the combine, measuring 7'0.25" without shoes and 7'1" even with shoes.

External links

• Utah Utes bio