Enes Kanter Freedom

Enes Kanter Freedom (; born Enes Kanter; May 20, 1992) is an Turkish-American professional basketball player who last played for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He also had a brief professional wrestling career, where he is a former WWE 24/7 Champion. Born in Switzerland to Turkish parents, he was raised in Turkey and moved to the United States as a teenager. Freedom was selected as the third overall pick of the 2011 NBA draft by the Utah Jazz. A center, Freedom played for five NBA teams during his eleven year career. Between 2008 and 2015, he represented the Turkish national team in international play. Early years Enes Kanter Freedom was born on May 20, 1992, in Zürich, Switzerland as Enes Kanter. Kanter's parents are Turkish. His father, Mehmet Kanter, received his M.D. from the University of Zurich. The family then returned to Turkey, where Kanter grew up. Mehmet Kanter became a professor of histology and genetics at Trakya University. Kanter's mother, Gülsüm Kanter, is a nurse. Kanter has three younger siblings: two brothers (including basketball player Kerem Kanter) and one sister. Starting in second grade, Kanter attended Hizmet-affiliated schools, part of the Gülen movement in Turkey. He lived in Ankara and then moved to Istanbul to play professional basketball as a teen. At the age of 17, Kanter moved to the United States to play basketball. He attended Findlay Prep in Henderson, Nevada, and then Mountain State Academy in Beckley, West Virginia; neither school allowed him to play high school basketball because of his contract with Nike while he played basketball professionally. Kanter then attended Stoneridge Preparatory School in Simi Valley, California, where he was able to play basketball for a season.