Laith Khalid Zalloum: International Hooper, Entrepreneur

The following was originally published in our latest Sports Edition. Support Palestine in America by downloading a digital version, purchasing a physical copy or become a subscriber for $5 a month.

Laith Khalid Zalloum was bullied by his peers in Amman, Jordan because he was a “huge” kid. So when he played basketball for the first time, the goal wasn’t to become a pro or for the sport to be a bridge back to Palestine, the home of his grandparents. As Zalloum put it, it was “so I can be more myself [and] live a healthier lifestyle.”

Zalloum, who was cut from his seventh grade team, would go onto play for the Jordanian national team, become an American Basketball Association (ABA) player and team owner, and play basketball professionally in Bethlehem, Palestine for the Orthodox club of Beit Jala.

“The best thing that basketball ever did for me was that it actually gave me confidence in myself when I needed it the most,” Zalloum told Palestine in America. “ I had none.”

Zalloum joined Palestine in America on Zoom to discuss an array of subjects. In our first interview with the professional basketball player, we discussed his career, who he modeled his game after, and what it was like visiting Palestine for the first time as a pro basketball player.

Palestine in America (PiA): When is the first time you picked up a basketball? 

Laith Zalloum [LZ]: So it's actually kind of a funny story. I’ve always been tall. When I was in seventh grade, I was about six foot one. I got cut from my school's team. And you know, of course, I just sat there and cried in front of everyone and got bullied even more for that. Luckily, I got picked up by a team in Jordan, because I was 13 and like 6’1’’, 6’2’’. And it was called [the] Applied Science University team. I started playing there when I was about 13, and just went from there. 

PiA: You still currently play for the [St. Mary Bucks]? And you own part of the team. How did that come about?

LZ: I've been in the ABA for about three years. I’ve played with the Jacksonville Giants, which have been ABA champions six times in a row. I played with the St. Augustine Glory. And last year, I played with the new team called the St. Mary Bucks. We'd actually had an amazing startup year. And I grew very close with the owner, Josh Barnett — shout out Josh. So me and him were having [a] conversation recently. I was injured. He asked me if I wanted to come on. And, you know, I love Josh, I love everything the team stands for. We have an amazing community program. We want to do so much, want to do so many good things for the community. So, you know, it was almost a no brainer. The second he offered it to me, I just grabbed it. 

PiA: Where’s St. Mary’s located? 

LZ: It's called Glen St. Mary, Florida. It's in northeast Florida, really close to the Georgia border. It’s about 30 minutes south of Jacksonville where I live. 

PiA: You were born and raised in Jacksonville? 

LZ: No, sir. Born and raised in Amman. I moved here when I was 17. 

PiA: And your parents? How long have they been in the U.S.? 

LZ: My father was born in Kuwait, when the Palestinians left to Kuwait. They went, and he was there, finished high school there. Then he came to the states. And he was in the states for about 14 years [and] went to [the] University of Central Florida. [He] went back to Amman in 1996, when my grandparents moved out of Kuwait, with Palestinians, to Jordan.

PiA: So, when you got cut from that team you were in Jordan playing ball?

LZ: I was in Jordan. 

PiA: Wow. So, what made you pick up basketball instead of soccer, which I know they play a lot of out there?

LZ: The first thing is: I've always been really, really tall. I'm six foot seven now. But I didn't have that growthspert where I was like, five-eight, and then all of a sudden, I'm [tall]. I was always huge. I got bullied a lot for my size, and my father thought that sports would be a great avenue for me to express my frustrations and basically let everything out of me — just so I can express myself and just so I can be more myself [and] live a healthier lifestyle through sports. When I started playing basketball, I just wanted to lose some weight. 

PiA: That was the ultimate goal?

LZ: There was this one man. I love him. His name's Ihsan Qawasmeh. He's from Khalil, too. Ihsan sees me. I love Ihsan, but he saw me — you know I'll never forget this. I was 13. I was 6’1’’ or 6’2’’. I'm not sure. And you know, I went there, and he's like, “Why do you want to play basketball?”  I'm like, “[Because my peers call me] Burj Khalifa.” And like, they bully me. I had a lot of problems with my confidence as a kid. I had so many self-confidence problems. And that was apart from my parents; I have great parents that always validate me and everything. But I never got external validation. You know what I mean? I never really got external validation. And that [with basketball], I felt wanted. I felt loved. 

PiA: ON THE BASKETBALL COURT?

LZ: On the basketball court. I was the man, so to speak. And, you know, I played my first year, I was bad. I don't care. 

PiA: You have to start somewhere, right?

LZ: Third place in the U-13 league. I was like, “Hey we got our medals, even though we got blown out by 40. Well, we got our medals.” I was so happy. All of us were posing. But, I don't know what clicked. I really, really, really loved basketball as a sport after that. And what that really brought out of me was my love for improvement. I really wanted to self-improve a lot. So one of my obsessions [was] to be able to dunk a basketball when I was a kid. I kept jumping, trying to touch the rims and everything. When I was 13 …I touched the rim. [It was like] I’m the man. 

PiA: That’s big. I still can’t touch the rim. 

LZ:  I'll send you my 13-year-old Laith jump program. I became really obsessed with self-improvement and self-development. And I have a fantastic dad. I love my dad so much. 

PiA: Did you get recruited, or did you go try out for the Jordanian national team?

LZ: So the Jordanian national team, they recruit you. So, I actually have a great story about the first time I was ever recruited for the national team. It was for the …  the youth 15 [team]. Even though I thought I was the man, I sucked. Still, the Jordanian national team saw a lot of potential in me. And I'll never forget this. I was watching the men's division of the club that I played for. And I was in the stands. And the same Ihsan came to me and my dad, where we were sitting in the stands. I go down, and he grabs me by the ear and yells to my dad [in Arabic], “Did you see this dummy? The Jordanian national team wants him.” 

Nader, when I tell you I could not sleep that night, it was the absolute best moment of my life. We went [to the national team]. We started out as 40 [players]. They kept cutting us down, down, down, until we got to 12. And then by the time I was 15, we had an amazing team. We [had] probably the greatest team in Jordan in years. We were beating men’s teams. We were so good. And we actually went to Iran out of all places. Iran is a very interesting place to be in. It's really beautiful. 

PiA: It’s funny. This summer they were trying to get a Palestinian national baseball team, and they were going to have a tournament in Iran. But it got canceled because of COVID.. 

LZ: [Iran has] something called Olympic city. No joke. [It’s] maybe 10 miles. There's three hotels, and there's everything for every sport you can imagine. IIt was so dope. We sit in the Olympic hotel and … the rooms were two stories. Have you ever seen anything like that? The rooms were two stories; you have a loft upstairs.

And then you have [a] living area and all that stuff downstairs. And it was just so dope. And we'd get a police escort bus to the games. And that's great. And all that dope stuff. The best thing that basketball ever did for me was that it actually gave me confidence in myself when I needed it the most. I had none. 

PiA: When did you get an invitation or get the opportunity to play pro basketball in Bethlehem? 

LZ: So I played in Bethlehem in 2019. When I signed my first ABA contract with the St. Augustine Gory, that made a few headlines in the Middle East. 

PiA: It’s not every day that you see a palestinian hooping at your level. I think the most successful Palestinian in the basketball world might be Rio Grande Valley Vipers Head Coach Mahmoud Abdulfattah.

LZ: I will say this: We do have some Palestinian players that have really made us proud and [reached] really high levels, for example, Palestinian Jordanians, mostly. We have Zaid Abbas, who's a Jordanian national team legend. He just retired from international ball. He played in the [China Basketball Association]. Sam Daghles played in the CBA. But also one person that should be noted is Sani Sakakini.  Sani Sakakini is a six-foot-nine power forward. He is the first Palestinian professional basketball player. He's the first Palestinian player to ever play a game against an NBA team. He's still out there balling in China. He's the reason why we have a good Palestinian national team. 

PiA: What’s his involvement?

LZ: Man, he's just one of the greatest basketball players in Middle East history.

PiA: Does he still have any involvement with the national team, or is it just because of what he did that he’s inspired so many Palestinians?

LZ: He's not there. He's not very involved with the Federation. I won't say unfortunately. The Federation is very corrupt with anything. The Basketball Federation in Palestine is very corrupt. I'm probably blackballing myself if they ever listened to this, but I don't care. They're very corrupt. I've seen them screw up a lot of players. I've seen them almost intentionally —nonchalantly — ruin some stuff for the league. I've seen them mishandle and mismanage so many things within the league. Because guess what? The Palestinian Premier League is by far one of the strongest leagues in the Middle East. By far the strongest league. It is so competitive. There is a lot of money to be made. As a player, you get treated like royalty because Palestinians — especially in Bethlehem — just adore basketball. When I ended up getting a call from the ABA, I'll never forget the next day. I was in an ice bath after a workout, and … I get a WhatsApp call from Abu Michael [Fouad Al Rabi3], habibi abu Michael. .They flew me out. So the deal that we had was because of my school schedule: I was gonna fly out for three games in December and then go back there in May 2020. 

[The] three games in December went well; they went very well. I was excited to go back, but then COVID shut [it] down. 

PiA: So are there any plans for going back and playing for them?

LZ: I actually made one of my best friends in the world playing in Palestine. His name is Charlie Murra. I love that man to death. I was talking to him this morning. [The team he’s with] was talking about maybe extending an offer [to me] for this year,  but if they do it next year? I promise I'll sign.

PiA: What’s that feeling like, the first time you stepped on a court in Palestine?

LZ: Unreal. Unreal. The first time I just stepped foot in Bethlehem in general [was unreal]. 

PiA: Was that the first time in Palestine, or had you visited before?

LZ: First time. 

PiA: Wow, so the first time you’re going to go play there it’s for professional basketball? That’s amazing. That’s awesome.

LZ: It gives you superpowers. Nader, it makes you feel like you're standing for something bigger than yourself. One thing I love [are the] Palestinian jerseys. All the teams have [a] basic format for how the jerseys have to look. So I'm just gonna show you this [pans camera to his framed jersey]. You see what's in that center right there? The flag. They put that above anything else — before your team [name], before the Federation, before FIBA, before anything. It's Palestine. And you feel like when you're there, you're playing for a cause; you feel like you're fighting for a cause. When you go to the airport , they ask about your reason for [the] visit. If you tell them that you're going to play basketball, they will turn you around. I had to tell them that I'm visiting relatives and I have to give them relatives’ phone numbers. I have to do all that stuff. Because I've had friends that were like, “Oh, I just came on a contract,” and they sent them on the next flight back. 

PiA: Of course. They aren’t trying to let us do any of that. 

LZ: They won't. And in its simplest forms, it's resistance. 
PiA: [Israel] knows how important sports are to societies, too. 

LZ: It's so funny because they have team “Israel.” They play in the Europa League. 

PiA: It is them telling on themselves.

LZ: Funniest thing ever. I'm like, “Jordan’s right here.”

PiA: I thought I was the only one who thought about that. I was like, “Dude, what? They’re telling themselves they’re European.”

LZ: It just pisses me off. And what got to me more than anything now that I was there [is this]: 

I have a U.S. passport. When we would get stopped or [be at] checkpoints to ours, all my teammates with Palestinian papers [were] harassed, checked, patted down. You don't even look at my passport. I just show them. Like, “Have a good day.” I was with family. I have a lot of family in Al Quds. And I was taking them out to Bethlehem because I got really familiar with the area. And a lot of people knew me, and I knew a lot of people, so I wanted to show them around, which was really cool.

PiA: That is really cool. And they don’t really get a lot of chances to go travel [within their own country].

LZ: They don't. They were all mentally preparing me. They're like, “Oh, get ready. Say this. Don't say that. If they ask you this, say that.” Even with my family, if I'm in the car [and I show the IDF my U.S. passport they tell me] “Have a good day.” My cousin was sitting next to me in the car; of course he yelled an expletive. But he's like, “This is the first time in my 26 years of life in this country that somebody has told me to have a good day.” 

PiA: Who would you say your game is modeled after?

LZ: Charles Barkley. [He was] 6’ 7’’, 250. Big boy ball Rebound,

PiA: What are your thoughts on this NBA season? Who do you think is gonna come out of the East and the West?

LZ: I've been saying this for years. Zach Lavine is the truth. DeMar DeRozan finally doesn't look depressed anymore. 

PiA: He's so happy in Chicago, dude. 

LZ: I know for a fact [that] man has nightmares about LeBron James]. 

PiA: But he's an assassin this year. 

LZ: He’s so good. And Lonzo Ball is finally just looking good. So the Bulls are my team to watch. The West? As much as I'm a LeBron fan through and through — LeBron is my goat [greatest of all time]. I’m saying this to a Chicago fan, and I'm sorry.

PiA: We won't get into this now. This is not a normal sports show. We don't do that whole LeBron versus MJ thing. LeBron is great, but MJ is 6-0 in the NBA Finals.

LZ: Ok, we’ll talk about that later, but LeBron is my goat. And I really want the Lakers to make it out [of] the West. I would love the Bulls-Lakers finals. I would never bet against LeBron when he goes into zero dark 30. 

PiA: Trust me. You're talking about DeMar having nightmares. I have nightmares from my D Rose-era Bulls constantly. Whether LeBron was in Cleveland or in Miami, it doesn't matter. It just was always a nightmare for Bulls fans. We would get so close, and then him and Dwyane Wade would just turn it on. 

LZ: And don’t forget D Rose. You always have that shot, though!

PiA: Trust me. We've had our moments, and I was happy with our moments. 

LZ: And you have that little Nate Robinson moment. 

PiA: Oh, God,. God, Robinson had some moments with the Bulls, but forget him. He played for Israel.

LZ: Fun fact. So no one knew that at the time, but Jordan’s [national team] was actually in deep negotiations with [Robinson] to make him their naturalized player. In FIBA, every country gets a certain number of [naturalized] players. And Nate Robinson was in very close negotiations that went sour because that is also when they found out that he played for [an Israeli club team]. It's the ultimate sin in Middle Eastern basketball. And a small part of me [doesn’t] even want to blame the players as much because I know what they're going through mentally. They don't know. They're just trying to chase a bag. But at some point, you have to like chuck it [up] to ignorance and wanting money. 

PiA: What moment would you say is your ultimate moment up until now? 

LZ: Honest, honestly, my first bucket in Palestine. 

PiA: Describe how it went down.

LZ: Okay. It's really funny because my first game was 11 hours after I landed. 

PiA: So you didn't even get to practice with the team before the game?

LZ: I went to shoot around that morning. 

PiA: Talk me through that entire day.

LZ: I land in Tel Aviv at four in the morning. I land. I get questioned for two hours. I have the driver waiting for me. We go to Bethlehem. The sun's starting to rise. It was beautiful. [I] go down to get breakfast. I take a nap. I get [a knock] on my door, and it's the team owner. They start showing me around Bethlehem, and then they take me to the club headquarters because they have to do a signing day. So, I signed. I did the whole “carry the jersey” thing. It was amazing. They said it was a press conference when it was just a dude for a Facebook page, bro. The guy interviewed me; he asked me maybe 10-15 questions. And then he just reshared my own post. They just translated my own caption. Then they take me to shoot around. Shoot around was dope. I met all my teammates. I don't know any of their names, but I get to know everybody. They ran me through two plays that were really simple. We actually scrimmaged for a bit just so I can get loose. And that scrimmage was amazing. That probably was my best scrimmage I've ever played. I made three threes in a row. I had a dunk. It was fun. It was fun. Game time comes — packed stadium. Best feeling in my life. I walk in, [and] unfortunately [there’s] just clouds of cigarette smoke. It's one of those feelings like it felt like it came out of a movie.

PiA: Did you start the game?

LZ: I was supposed to start. But then the Federation wanted me to take [a] couple pictures, so I checked in five minutes in. It was just loud. People are so loud. I love it. I walked in, [and] I was playing against one of the best big men over there. He's like a 6’8’’ [or]6’9’’ guy. My first play, he's trying to post up on me, and he elbows me right [in the throat.] This is war. So, next play down, my teammates score. I go down, [and] he's posting up. I push him like this. And you know, he flops and he's like, “Ah,

don't do that.” 

So, next play down. My teammate shoots and misses. I rebound it, and I go back for an and-one, and I'm like, “Oh, I showed him. I'm mad.” He goes [and] gives me a [high-five]. He's like, “Hey, first of many buckets, big fella. Good job. I'm proud of you.” 

PiA: Wow, that must have been nice. 

LZ: So nice. And then his other teammates were like, “Hey, congrats. First bucket man. Proud of you.” It was so nice. It showed me even though we're on different teams, we are [all one]. We're all fighting for the same cause because again, even though [we’re] not physically fighting wars, [we’re] fighting in spirit. They don't want us to do it, but we're doing this. [It’s] like rebellion in itself. 

So tell our listeners what else you do outside, 

you know, so um, you know, ever since I was a kid, like my father really emphasized business in me. My father is a great businessman, one of the greatest businessman that ever seen in my life. I see many.