Suleiman Braimoh

Suleiman Okhaifoede Braimoh Jr. (born October 19, 1989) is a Nigerian professional basketball player who last played for Karşıyaka Basket of the Basketbol Süper Ligi (BSL). He played college basketball for Rice University before playing professionally in the NBA Development League, Qatar, Japan, New Zealand, Mexico, Germany, Russia, France, Israel, Turkey, and the Philippines.

Early life Braimoh was born in Benin City, Nigeria, but moved to the United States with his parents in 2001. Playing primarily soccer as a child, it was not until 2004–05 that he started playing organised basketball.

College career In his freshman season at Rice, Braimoh was the Owls sixth man and was the team's leading shooter from the field, connecting on 46.3 percent of his shots. In 30 games (seven starts), he averaged 4.0 points and 3.3 rebounds per game.

In his sophomore season, his role and production was relatively similar as he was still the team's sixth man. In 32 games (15 starts), he averaged 4.5 points and 3.0 rebounds per game. He was later acquired by the Reno Bighorns on November 1 but did not end up making the final team as he was waived on November 21 prior to the start of the season. In January 2013, he signed with Al Rayyan of Qatar for the rest of the season, going on to help the club win the 2013 Emir Cup and Heir Apparent Cup.

In April 2013, he was released from his contract with the Mountainairs after his application for a visa was turned down.

2013–14 season In October 2013, Braimoh signed with Niigata Albirex of Japan for the 2013–14 season. On February 5, 2014, he left Niigata and joined the Shinshu Brave Warriors for the rest of the season, but on February 21, he was released by Shinshu after appearing in just three games.

In March 2014, he re-signed with the Taranaki Mountainairs for the 2014 New Zealand NBL season. On May 1, he was named Player of the Week for Round 4. He went on to earn Player of the Week honors the following three rounds as well, making it four consecutive on the season. He finished the season with averages of 24.9 points, 12.2 rebounds and 1.5 blocks in 18 games and subsequently earned All-Star Five honors.

2014–15 season In September 2014, Braimoh signed with Huracanes de Tampico of Mexico for the 2014–15 LNBP season. In 46 games for Huracanes, he averaged 20.1 points and 8.2 rebounds per game.

On March 25, 2015, he signed with the Hawke's Bay Hawks for the 2015 New Zealand NBL season. On May 1, he was named Player of the Week for Round 4 after recording 21 points and 14 rebounds against Taranaki on April 26. In 16 games for the Hawks, he averaged 17.8 points, 8.6 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 1.2 steals and 1.1 blocks per game.

2015–16 season On July 16, 2015, Braimoh signed with the Gießen 46ers of Germany for the 2015–16 Basketball Bundesliga season. In 32 games for the 46ers, he averaged 12.3 points, 3.7 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game.

2016–17 season On September 17, 2016, Braimoh signed with Enisey Krasnoyarsk of the VTB United League. Braimoh won the VTB United League Sixth Man of the Year Award for the 2016–17 season. He played in 24 games during the regular season (starting 22 on the bench), averaging 13.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 1.8 assists and a 13.8 efficiency rating.

On May 12, 2017, Braimoh signed with French team Nanterre 92 for the rest of the 2016–17 Pro A season.

2017–18 season On June 21, 2017, Braimoh re-signed with Enisey Krasnoyarsk for the 2017–18 season. In 23 league games, he averaged 10.9 points, 6.4 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 1.1 steals per game. He also averaged 9.8 points, 6.5 rebounds and 1.0 blocks in 14 BCL games.

2018–19 season On November 4, 2018, Braimoh signed a one-year deal with the Israeli team Hapoel Eilat as a replacement for Devin Thomas. On February 28, 2019, Braimoh recorded a season-high 28 points, shooting 11-of-15 from the field, along with four rebounds and two steals in a 93–75 win over Ironi Nahariya. On April 4, 2019, Braimoh was named Israeli League Player of the Month after averaging 19.0 points and 5.5 rebounds for 27.3 PIR per game in four games played in March.

Braimoh helped Eilat reach the 2019 Israeli League Final Four, where they eventually lost to Maccabi Tel Aviv. In 34 games played for Eilat, he finished as the league fourth-leading player in efficiency rating (19.3 per game), to go with 15.3 points, 6.1 rebounds, 1.3 steals and 1.2 blocks per game. On June 7, 2019, Braimoh was named the Israeli League Sixth Man of the Year and earned a spot in the All-Israeli League Second Team.

2019–20 season On July 11, 2019, Braimoh signed a 1+1 contract with Hapoel Jerusalem. On September 28, 2019, Braimoh won the Israeli League Cup title with Jerusalem after an 84–83 dramatic win over Maccabi Tel Aviv, where he recorded 16 points and 5 rebounds. He was subsequently named the Tournament MVP. On December 28, 2019, Braimoh recorded a double-double with a season-high 25 points and 10 rebounds, while shooting 9-of-16 from the field, along with three steals in a 91–84 win over Hapoel Holon. He averaged 12.2 points and 5.2 rebounds per game.

2020–21 season On August 9, 2020, Braimoh re-signed with Hapoel Jerusalem.

2021–22 season On July 21, 2021, Braimoh signed with San Pablo Burgos of the Spanish Liga ACB,

2022–23 season On July 8, 2022, Braimoh signed with Tofaş of the Turkish BSL. In 12 games, he averaged 8.6 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 1.7 assists per game.

On January 19, 2023, Braimoh left Turkey and joined Maccabi Tel Aviv in Israel for the rest of the season. In 11 EuroLeague games, he averaged 2.2 points and 1.3 rebounds in 8 minutes per contest.

2023–24 season On October 18, 2023, Braimoh signed with the Meralco Bolts of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) as the team's import for the 2023–24 PBA Commissioner's Cup. He left the team in early December after undergoing surgery on a torn Achilles.

2024–25 season In September 2024, Braimoh joined the Al-Ittihad Jeddah of the Saudi Basketball League (SBL).

On March 28, 2025, he signed with Karşıyaka Basket of the Basketbol Süper Ligi (BSL).

Personal life Braimoh is the son of Suleiman Sr., a PhD holder, and Igho, a law school graduate.