Background and career
Thabo Patrick Sefolosha (; born 2 May 1984) is a Swiss former professional basketball player. He played in the National Basketball Association (NBA), the Turkish Basketball League, LNB Pro A, and Lega Basket Serie A. In 2006, Sefolosha became the first player from Switzerland to play in the NBA, and in 2013, he was labelled the best Swiss basketball player of all time by Swiss newspaper Freiburger Nachrichten.
Sefolosha was born on 2 May 1984 in Vevey, Switzerland to Patrick Sefolosha, a South African musician, and Christine Sefolosha (née Beck), a Swiss artist. Sefolosha speaks French, Italian, and English.
Sefolosha was invited to join the junior Swiss national basketball team, and at age 17, he began a professional career with Vevey Riviera Basket, in Switzerland's top domestic league. On a team trip to France, Sefolosha was approached by a French talent scout to play with Élan Chalon in the premier pro league in France. Sefolosha spent his first year in Chalon-sur-Saône playing with the junior under-21 squad, which traveled alongside the senior club. The following year (2002–03), Sefolosha earned a rotation spot on the senior club, where he played 30 games and averaged 4.0 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.0 assists per game. The following season, Sefolosha earned a starting spot on the senior team, which he helped lead to a third-place finish in the French league and his team advanced to the playoffs semifinals. During the season, Sefolosha averaged 9.4 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 1.0 steal in 30.7 minutes per game. Before the start of his fourth season with Élan Chalon, a contract dispute between Sefolosha and the team arose. Sefolosha's agent and the team president could not reach an agreement on a new contract, so Sefolosha signed with Italian team Angelico Biella. "Last summer, I had the chance to re-negotiate my contract with the club. We were supposed to reach an agreement, but when my agent and the president started talking, they couldn't agree on a contract. They wanted to keep me, but at the same time I had this offer from Italy. That's when I decided that the best thing for my career was to play in Biella. Yes, there was a little bit of trouble, but in the end it was OK."
Sefolosha was taken with the 13th pick of the 2006 NBA draft by the Philadelphia 76ers and promptly traded to the Chicago Bulls for the 16th pick (Rodney Carney), and cash considerations. In an article on Bulls.com, Sefolosha was quoted saying "I was certainly surprised (at the draft) when someone came up and said that I was the next to be picked. I thought maybe he had made a mistake or something. But a few minutes later he came back and told me that not only was I going to be picked, but that I was going to be traded to Chicago, which really got me excited." Bulls head coach Scott Skiles cited that Sefolosha's wingspan and past pro basketball experience as reasons why the Bulls were interested in him. "Thabo's got great physical gifts that, frankly, a lot of guys in the league just don't have. He's got tremendous length and has really quick hands, he grabs your attention whenever you watch him play. It's easy to see that he knows what he's doing out there. You can tell he likes to play defense, too. He's eager to get after it." After the NBA summer leagues finished, ESPN asked several NBA talent scouts and executives to rank the summer league players, and Sefolosha scored high. "He excelled at just about everything," reported one of the professionals. "Thabo Sefolosha showed that he's going to be able to step in right away and contribute to the Bulls."
On 19 February 2009, the trade deadline, Sefolosha was traded by the Bulls to the Oklahoma City Thunder for Denver's 2009 first-round draft pick, which Chicago used to draft Taj Gibson. Sefolosha was selected to the All-NBA Defensive Second Team for the 2009–10 NBA season. In October 2011, during the 2011 NBA lockout, Sefolosha signed with Fenerbahçe Ülker in Turkey, but only for Euroleague matches. His deal had an out-clause that allowed him to return to Oklahoma City at the end of the lockout. He played seven games with Fenerbahçe Ülker during the 2011–12 Euroleague season. In 2012, Sefolosha and the Thunder reached the NBA Finals, but were defeated by the Miami Heat in five games. Sefolosha was a permanent member of the starting five, including in the Thunder's run to the finals. Starting as shooting guard, before James Harden (who came off the bench), Sefolosha received major playing time mainly due to his defensive abilities.
On 15 July 2014, Sefolosha was acquired by the Atlanta Hawks in a sign-and-trade deal, along with rights to Giorgos Printezis, in exchange for the rights to Sofoklis Schortsanitis. On 31 January 2015, Sefolosha was ruled out for six to eight weeks with a strained right calf. On April 9, he was ruled out for the rest of the regular season due to a fractured tibia suffered while being arrested by members of the New York City Police Department.
Sources
Net-worth figure: Celebrity Net Worth (October 2026), in USD. Biography and career facts: the person's Wikipedia article and linked reporting. Snapshot date for all StarWorth figures: 28 October 2026.
