Enes Kanter Freedom (born Enes Kanter; May 20, 1992 ) is an American former professional basketball player and political activist who last played for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA).
He also had a brief professional wrestling career, where he is a former WWE 24/7 Champion.
Born in Switzerland to Turkish parents, he was raised in Turkey and moved to the United States as a teenager.
Enes Kanter Freedom was born on May 20, 1992, in Zürich, Switzerland as Enes Kanter.
Kanter's parents are Turkish people who moved to Switzerland as a child.
His father, Mehmet Kanter, received his M.D. from the University of Zurich.
The family then returned to Turkey, where Kanter grew up.
Mehmet Kanter became a professor of histology and genetics at Trakya University.
Kanter's mother, Gülsüm Kanter, is a nurse.
Kanter has three younger siblings: two brothers (including basketball player Kerem Kanter) and one sister.
Starting in second grade, Kanter attended Hizmet-affiliated schools, part of the Gülen movement in Turkey.
He lived in Ankara and then moved to Istanbul to play professional basketball as a teen.
At the age of 17, Kanter moved to the United States to play basketball.
He attended Findlay Prep in Henderson, Nevada, and then Mountain State Academy in Beckley, West Virginia; neither school allowed him to play high school basketball because of his contract with Nike while he played basketball professionally.
Kanter then attended Stoneridge Preparatory School in Simi Valley, California, where he was able to play basketball for a season.
1998
His point total was a record for the event, breaking Dirk Nowitzki's record set in the 1998 game.
Both Rivals.com and Scout.com (now known as 247Sports.com) rated Kanter as a five-star prospect, the highest possible rating.
2006
Before moving to the United States, Kanter played under Serdar Apaydın's management for the Fenerbahçe youth squad between 2006 and 2008 and then, during the 2008–09 season, Kanter was a seldom-used reserve for the Fenerbahçe senior team.
He played in at least nine games with the team: four in the EuroLeague and five in the Turkish Super League.
Fenerbahçe and the Greek League basketball team Olympiacos both offered Kanter professional contracts, but he declined because he wanted to play high school and college basketball in the United States.
2008
Freedom represented the Turkish national team in international play between 2008 and 2015 before his Turkish citizenship was revoked in 2017.
He became an American citizen in 2021.
2009
In 2009, Kanter moved to the United States, where he enrolled at Stoneridge Preparatory School in Simi Valley, California, and played for the basketball team in 2009–10.
On November 23, 2009, Kanter verbally committed to play for the Washington Huskies.
Kanter chose Washington over UCLA, USC, Indiana and UNLV.
2010
At the 2010 Nike Hoop Summit, Kanter played for the international team, recording 34 points and 13 rebounds.
However, he re-opened his recruitment in February 2010, and on April 14, Kanter signed a National Letter of Intent to play college basketball for Kentucky.
However, despite signing with the Kentucky Wildcats, the NCAA declared him permanently ineligible as a collegiate athlete because he received approximately $33,000 from Fenerbahçe in excess benefits.
The NCAA ruled that this amount was above and beyond what was considered acceptable.
2011
Freedom was selected as the third overall pick of the 2011 NBA draft by the Utah Jazz.
A center, Freedom played for five NBA teams during his eleven-year career.
On January 7, 2011, the NCAA rejected Kentucky's appeal, upholding that Kanter was permanently ineligible.
Kanter, a center, was drafted third overall by the Utah Jazz in the 2011 NBA draft.
Upon being drafted, he said "I'm so happy, I'm so excited. I know the Utah Jazz fans are crazy and I love them. I will bring the team toughness and post moves, rebounding, everything. I will try to do everything to make the playoffs."
On December 9, 2011, he signed his rookie scale contract with the Jazz following the conclusion of the NBA lockout.
In 2011–12, he became the 10th Jazz rookie in franchise history to appear in every regular-season game.
He also recorded the most rebounds for a Jazz rookie in debut with 11 against the Los Angeles Lakers on December 27.
In the season, he averaged 4.6 points and 4.2 rebounds in 66 games.
2012
In 2012–13, Kanter improved his averages in every major statistical category, led the team in scoring three times and rebounding four times, and scored in double-figures 22 times.
In 70 games (two starts), he averaged 7.2 points and 4.3 rebounds per game.
