“Jewish Jordan” Retires from Professional Basketball

CROWN HEIGHTS, Brooklyn [CHI] — Tamir Goodman, the “Jewish Jordan”, announced today his retirement from professional basketball during a press conference and fundraiser at the Jewish Children’s Museum in Brooklyn, NY. Goodman, 27, who played his last season with the Maccabi Haifa professional basketball team (Israeli Premier League), has been named the Director of the Haifa Hoops for Kids charity program, an initiative spearheaded by Maccabi Haifa and United Jewish Communities of MetroWest NJ, which benefits underprivileged and special needs children in Israel.

Goodman, an Orthodox Jew, garnered national media attention in 1998 while starring at the Talmudical Academy of Baltimore, where he was named the 25th best high school player in the country. He averaged 35.4 points his junior year (1998-1999) and 24.6 points his senior year (1999-2000), leading his team to a 65-11 record over two seasons in the competitive Baltimore City Conference.

Goodman’s success led to more than 700 media interviews, including 60 Minutes, ESPN, CBS, and Fox Sports, as well as cover stories in the New York Times, NY Daily News, Washington Post, and Baltimore Sun. Goodman was also featured in a four-page spread in Sports Illustrated, in which he was dubbed the “Jewish Jordan”.

In 1999, Goodman turned down a full scholarship at the University of Maryland, College Park due to scheduling conflicts and instead accepted a scholarship at Towson State University where the entire American East Conference (AEC) rearranged the league schedule so that the majority of games would not interfere with the Jewish Sabbath. After playing two seasons at Towson, Goodman was signed by Maccabi Tel Aviv to begin his professional career in Israel. Goodman played five seasons in Israel for four different teams, reaching the Israeli Cup finals and Israeli Premier League Semifinals in 2003 with Maccabi Givat Shmuel. Goodman also served in the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF), earning the “Outstanding Soldier Award”.

In 2007, Goodman became the first Orthodox Jewish basketball player to play professionally both in the U.S. and in Israel, when he returned to the United States to play for the Maryland Nighthawks of the newly formed Premier Basketball League (PBL), but was limited to two games due to injuries.

Goodman, who played limited minutes last season with Maccabi Haifa due to a wrist injury, has been an advocate over his career for assisting victims of terror as well as underprivileged and special needs children. Goodman will continue his charitable work as spokesman for Maccabi Haifa and Director of Haifa Hoops for Kids, an initiative that distributes Maccabi Haifa VIP tickets to underprivileged and special children in Israel, who otherwise could not afford to attend a professional basketball game.

“Haifa Hoops for Kids is an innovative way to use basketball as a tool to bring light to the world, connect people to Israel, and create a stronger Israel for tomorrow,” said Tamir Goodman.

Goodman resides in Cleveland, Ohio with his wife, Judy, and their three children.

Today’s press conference was in honor of Ari Halberstam, a yeshiva student who was tragically murdered in a terrorist shooting in New York City in1994.