Free agent forward Ish Wainright has signed a two-year contract with Hapoel Tel Aviv, the Israeli team announced on Wednesday (via Twitter).
Wainright has spent most of the past three seasons with the Suns after initially signing a two-way contract with Phoenix in October of 2021. He was promoted from his two-way deal late in the 2021/22 season, then repeated that process in ’22/23. The 29-year-old had a brief stint with the Trail Blazers at the start of the ’23/24 campaign before being waived by Portland in January and returning to Phoenix in March.
Across those three seasons, Wainright has appeared in a total of 116 NBA regular season games, averaging 3.3 points and 1.8 rebounds in 11.5 minutes per contest.
A bulky 6’6″ forward who also played tight end in college for Baylor, Wainright is no stranger to international basketball, having played for teams in Germany and France from 2018-21 before getting a shot in the NBA.
The Suns, who will have a new G League affiliate of their own in 2024/25, may end up entirely turning over their two-way slots this offseason, with more of a focus on developmental prospects instead of players who can contribute immediately. After finishing last season with Wainright, Saben Lee, and Udoka Azubuike in those slots, Phoenix has signed Collin Gillespie and Jalen Bridges to two-way deals so far this month.
Interesting, ish or איש in Hebrew means man.
I’m still convinced Ish can be a solid rotational piece in the NBA. I’m sure he’s following the money, but I hope he gets another chance in the NBA