Nets' Ben Saraf, Danny Wolf bring new wave of Jewish talent to NBA

Yahoo

5 days ago

The Nets made history this summer, becoming the first NBA team to select five players in the first round of the 2025 NBA Draft, including two Jewish players in Ben Saraf and Danny Wolf, the first such duo selected in the same draft since 2006.
Brooklyn drafted Saraf and Wolf with consecutive picks at Nos. 26 and 27, instantly doubling the league's Jewish player count from two to four, joining Portland Trail Blazers forward Deni Avdija and Sacramento Kings center Domantas Sabonis. Amari Bailey, who played for the G League Long Island Nets last season, also identifies as Jewish.
'To be honest, it's fantastic, the way it just worked out,' Nets general manager Sean Marks said. 'If you think about it, the game of basketball is such a worldly game, played all over the globe… What I will say is, there's talent everywhere, and that's our job, to bring in the best talent regardless of race, ethnicity and so forth.'
In 2023, the UJA-Federation of New York reported approximately 1.4 million Jews in the New York area. Brooklyn, the most crowded Jewish borough with about one-third of this population, now features two prominent ambassadors in Saraf and Wolf.
Jacob Gurvis of Jewish Community Voice reports that Saraf, the son of two former Israeli professional basketball players, wears No. 77, symbolizing the Hebrew word 'mazal', which means luck. Wolf gained Israeli citizenship to compete for Israel at the FIBA U20 European Championship in Greece.
'It's definitely going to be unique having them both here and we're excited about that,' Marks said. 'I know the borough is excited about that. I know the Jewish community here is very excited about that, too.'
Saraf, the third point guard selected by the Nets on draft night, averaged 11.8 points, 3.1 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 1.0 steals in 42 games for Ratiopharm Ulm last season. In 2023-24, he played for Elitzur Kiryat Ata in the Israeli Basketball Premier League, earning the league's top young prospect award. He was also named MVP of the FIBA U18 EuroBasket 2024, leading the tournament with 28.1 points per game.
The 19-year-old believes his overseas professional experience will set him apart in Brooklyn.
'I've been playing pro for three years now, so I've played a lot of games so far,' Saraf said. 'I think it's going to be helpful knowing how to manage your body, to really stick to your routines and be willing to compete every night so things can translate the right away for the NBA.'
Wolf, the Nets' only non-guard pick in 2025, averaged 13.2 points, 3.6 assists and 1.4 blocks per game at Michigan last season, leading the Wolverines to a Big Ten Tournament title and a Sweet 16 appearance. Previously, he earned All-Ivy League honors at Yale over two seasons. The 21-year-old also helped Israel secure a silver medal at the 2023 FIBA U20 European Championship in Greece, where he practiced with Saraf.
'I think just the jump I made from Yale to Michigan and now — obviously the NBA is a different animal and going to have to keep working on a lot of different things, but I think there's just a lot of different things I can do on a basketball court,' Wolf said. 'Whatever coach Jordi and the staff want me to do, I'm going to do to the best of my ability, while still working and developing to become that kind of player.'
Beyond their Jewish heritage and tireless work ethic, positional versatility connects Saraf, Wolf and Brooklyn's 2025 draft class. Marks credits David Blatt, a former NBA head coach and Israeli American basketball executive, for aiding in identifying Saraf and Wolf during the draft process.
'I think words of wisdom are always important,' Marks said. 'I have a lot of respect for Coach Blatt, as a person, as a coach. And when we do our due diligence, you want to watch the players themselves, but also you need to know all the things that you didn't know. And everything was very positive coming from coach Blatt. He really liked these two guys, and he knew them pretty well. So, he really helped us and finally we were lucky enough to get them both here.'
Now teammates in Brooklyn, Saraf and Wolf have the opportunity to represent Israel on basketball's biggest stage. Though both are considered developmental projects — Saraf must improve his outside shooting, and Wolf needs to clean up turnover issues — their future looks promising. On a rebuilding Nets team, they could make an immediate impact.
'I think I really enjoyed watching Ben overseas,' Marks said. 'We went over to watch him live a couple of times, so it was great to watch how hard he competes. I think that was something that really stood out, passing ability, pride on defense. I think he's playing at a high level over there.
'Danny, I think we already sort of talked a little about the high IQ and a skill set that's very unique for a person his size. So, to see him out there, other teams continue trying to figure out, well, how do we stop him? Who do we guard him with? What system do we put around him? And that's a unique problem to have, right? How do we use both of those young men to the best of their abilities and watch them grow and so forth.'