By Bill Simons

Seasons once defined American sports. Basketball and ice hockey were long primarily winter sports associated with that lull between the end of the fall football season and the advent of baseball’s spring training. James Naismith, basketball’s creator, specifically envisioned his game for indoor gyms as a cold weather counter to endless calisthenics. And hockey was originally the province of frozen outdoor rinks and ponds, along with a few enclosed facilities. Now basketball and hockey, particularly on the professional level, have interminable seasons, overlapping with other sports. Thus, our 2025-26 Jewish basketball and hockey roundups faced a long wait in the queue.
From the game’s 1890s genesis onward, Jews have taken to basketball. In my youth, basketball had a strong Jewish hue. Syracuse Nationals forward, 6’8” Jewish Dolph Schayes was my favorite player, and circa early 1960s he was the NBA all-time career leader in points scored, rebounds and consecutive games played. But living in Greater Boston, the Celtics were my team, winning NBA championships year after year under their legendary coach Red Auerbach and broadcast by the inimitable, rapid-delivery, defiantly partisan Johnny Most. Possessed of chutzpah, Auerbach and Most were both Jewish and proud of it. 
Going forward, a prominent Jewish presence continued in professional basketball amongst commissioners (David Stern, Adam Silver), owners, executives, agents, media and fans. Coaches Red Holzman (Knicks) and Larry Brown (Pistons) won NBA championships. Hall of Famers Nancy Lieberman and Sue Bird contributed greatly to the ascent of women’s basketball. An All-American at the University of Illinois, Tal Brody made aliyah and elevated Israel basketball. Since the Schayes era, however, above the hoop play by Black and international athletes surged, portending a precipitous decline of Jewish players on the NBA hardcourt. 
A Jewish NBA superstar emerged during the 2025-26 season, Deni Avdija. Born on a kibbutz, the 6’8”, 228 pound, 25-year-old, Israeli, in his sixth NBA season, earned All-Star honors and led his Portland Trail Blazers into the NBA playoffs. Pacing Portland in points (24.2) and assists (6.7) per game during the regular season, the “small” forward, noted for his turbo speed and aggressive play, also averaged 6.9 rebounds. And he did this while facing anti-Israel and antisemitic vitriol in person and online. In his most important game of the season, Avdija ensured a post-season berth for Portland, netting 41 points, 12 assists and seven rebounds against the Phoenix Suns. Avdija’s Trail Blazers fell to the San Antonio Spurs in the first round of the playoffs, but wait ‘til next year!
The 2025-26 NBA season introduced other Jewish players who merit future attention, notably two New York Nets rookies 6’11” Danny Wolf and 6’6” Ben Saraf. A shooting guard, Saraf, an Israeli, averaged 7.5 points and 3.3 assists per game. Power forward Wolf averaged 8.9 points and 4.9 rebounds a game. 
With Jewish fans, famous landsman amongst them, celebrating the Knicks NBA championship, New York City found temporary respite from its polarization with the chant “My mayor’s Muslim, My bagel’s Jewish.”
In college Jewish basketball, the Yeshiva University Maccabees made it to the Division III Sweet Sixteen. But the biggest Jewish collegiate basketball news involved coaches’ travail at the highest level. After notching a combined regular season/playoff record of 706 wins against 268 losses for a stellar .725 winning percentage, the voluble and controversial Bruce Pearl, a strong supporter of Israel, moved from coaching to TNT/CBS broadcasting, bequeathing the Auburn berth to his son Steven. Guiding Duke to a 35-3 regular season record and entering the NCAA tournament as a top seed, Coach Jon Heyer’s Blue Devils lost a 73-72 heartbreaker to Connecticut in the Elite Eight. And Todd Golden’s Florida Gators lost their chance to repeat as national champions, upset 72-70 by the Iowa Hawkeyes and a referee’s double-technical foul call.  
A Jewish athlete gave hockey, indeed American sport, its most memorable 2025-26 vignette. On February 22, the final game of men’s hockey competition at the Milan-Cortina (Italian) Olympics entered a dramatic overtime with U.S. and Canadian teams tied 1-1. America’s Jack Hughes, star center of the National Hockey League’s New Jersey Devils but positioned at forward in the Olympics, endured a high stick to the mouth during a powerplay. Although he fleetingly “looked on the ice and saw… (2) teeth,” that did not slow the explosive playmaker. At 1:41 into overtime, Hughes powered the puck into the Canadian net. The American hockey team had not won an Olympic championship since the iconic 1980 Miracle on Ice nor previously taken the gold medal outside its national borders. Literally draped in the American flag, a gap-toothed, exultant Hughes exclaimed, “This is all about our country right now. I love the USA.” Television appearances on “Today” and “Saturday Night Live,” as well as at the State of the Union, assured Hughes’ status as an enduring national legend.  
An American and Jewish hero, Hughes, growing up, celebrated his bar mitzvah and observed Passover. And he is integral to the first family of American hockey. Brother Quinn, a Minnesota Wild star and recipient of the 2024 Norris Trophy as the NHL best defenseman, is also an Olympian, acing the goal that brought the U.S. victory against Sweden in the quarterfinals. The youngest Hughes brother, Luke, Jack’s Devils teammate and stellar defenseman, missed much of the past season due to a shoulder injury. A Gentile, Jim Hughes, the trio’s father, was a star collegiate player who subsequently held coaching and player development positions. 
The four formidable Hughes men would yield center stage to Ellen Weinberg-Hughes, mother to Quinn, Jack and Luke, and wife to Jim. An International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame inductee, she affirmed feeling “so proud of my Jewish heritage.” In addition to hockey, she also excelled in soccer and lacrosse. Weinberg-Hughes displayed hockey playing prowess on University of New Hampshire and U.S. women’s national teams. Subsequently, she burnished her reputation as a hockey coach, teacher and broadcaster. As player development consultant, she shared the 2026 U.S. women’s Olympic hockey team’s gold medal triumph. 
In contrast to basketball, Jews were relatively late comers to hockey, but their visibility in college and NHL ranks has soared in recent years, abetted by the growth of suburban rinks and travel teams. NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman is Jewish. Boston Bruin Jeremy Swayman joined the brothers Hughes on the 2026 U.S. Olympic Team and was a finalist for the Vezina Trophy, given to the NHL’s top goalie. Other recent Jewish NHL players include Jakob Chychrun (Washington Capitals, defenseman), Adam Fox (New York Rangers, defenseman), Mark Friedman (Vancouver Canucks, defenseman), Jordan Harris (Boston Bruins, defenseman), Zach Hyman (Edmonton Oilers, left wing), Luke Kunin (Florida Panthers, center), and Devon Levi (Buffalo Sabres, goalie). And there are more to come!