| Free agent | |
|---|---|
| Position | Shooting guard / point guard |
| Personal information | |
| Born | (1987-07-08) July 8, 1987 (age 36) Bihać, SR Bosnia and Herzegovina SFR Yugoslavia |
| Nationality | Bosnian / Canadian |
| Listed height | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) |
| Listed weight | 185 lb (84 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | King George (Vancouver, British Columbia) |
| College | McNeese State (2007–2011) |
| NBA draft | 2011: undrafted |
| Playing career | 2011–present |
| Career history | |
| 2011–2012 | Zrinjski Mostar |
| 2012 | ETB Wohnbau Baskets |
| 2012–2013 | Apollon Limassol |
| 2013–2014 | Kolossos Rodou |
| 2014 | ETB Wohnbau Baskets |
| 2014–2015 | WBC Wels |
| 2015–2017 | Ourense |
| 2017–2018 | Melilla |
| 2018 | Šiauliai |
| 2018–2019 | St. John's Edge |
| 2019 | Soles de Mexicali |
| 2019 | Gimnasia Indalo |
| 2019 | Fraser Valley Bandits |
| 2019–2020 | Granada |
| 2020–2021 | Real Murcia |
| 2021–2022 | CD Povoa |
| 2022–2023 | Ionikos Nikaias |
| 2023–2024 | Panserraikos |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Diego Kapelan (born July 8, 1987) is a Bosnian-Canadian professional basketball player for PANSERRAIKOS of the Greek National League. He played college basketball for McNeese State.
Kapelan was born in Bihać, a city located in what is now known as Bosnia and Herzegovina, to Zdravko and Hedita Kapelan.[1] He attended King George Secondary School, a small high school in Vancouver, British Columbia.[2] As a senior, Kapelan averaged 32 points, 6 rebounds, and 4 assists per game and was named team most valuable player (MVP) for his fourth straight season, leading his team to a lower mainland championship. He also ran cross country, winning a provincial title, and played soccer as a striker.[3]
In his freshman season for McNeese State, Kapelan averaged 7.3 points, 1.8 rebounds, and 0.5 assists in 17.8 minutes per game.[4] On February 9, 2008, he scored 24 points with 7 three-pointers in a 74–71 loss to Nicholls State.[5] Kapelan averaged 11.7 points, 2.9 rebounds, and 0.7 assists per game as a sophomore.[4] On February 18, 2009, he scored 37 points with a school-record 9 three-pointers to defeat Northwestern State.[6] In his junior campaign, Kapelan averaged 12.6 points, 1.9 rebounds, and 1.2 assists per game.[4] In January 2010, he was named player of the week in the Southland Conference, shortly after scoring 31 points with 8 three-pointers against Rice.[7] As a senior, Kapelan averaged 14.9 points, 2.4 rebounds, and 1.1 assists per game.[4] He scored a career-high 39 points with 9 three-pointers in a February 19, 2011 win over Northwestern State.[8] He earned second-team All-Southland honors.[9]
Kapelan played for Zrinjski Mostar of the Bosnian League and Balkan League in the 2011–12 season. Through 18 games, he averaged 14.3 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 1.7 assists per game.[4] Kapelan scored a season-best 28 points on November 5, 2011, in an 85–77 win over Brotnjo.[10] In January 2012, he left Zrinjski Mostar to sign with ETB Wohnbau Baskets of the ProA, the German second-tier league.[11] Through 13 games in Germany, Kapelan averaged 16.8 points, 2.2 rebounds, and 1.4 assists per game.[12] For the 2012–13 season, he joined Apollon Limassol of the Cypriot League and FIBA EuroChallenge.[13] Through 23 Cypriot League games, he averaged 12.8 points, 2.7 rebounds, and 1.5 assists per game, and through 6 EuroChallenge games, he averaged 9.7 points per game.[4] On January 8, 2013, Kapelan scored 25 points in a 96–92 win over APOEL.[14]
On March 8, 2013, he moved to Kolossos Rodou of the Greek Basket League.[15] After 7 games, he was averaging 6.4 points in 12.7 minutes per game.[4] On January 30, 2014, after 3 games for Kolossos Rodou in the 2013–14 season, Kapelan returned to German team ETB Wohnbau Baskets.[16] He scored 28 points on March 1, in a 109–103 win over VfL Kirchheim Knights.[17] On May 28, 2014, Kapelan signed with WBC Wels of the Austrian League.[18] Through 32 games, he averaged 13.4 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 2.3 assists per game.[4] Kapelan scored 34 points with 6 three-pointers in a December 13 loss to Swans Gmunden.[19] He took part in the league All-Star Game and led his team to the finals, while earning all-league honorable mention accolades from basketball website Eurobasket.com.[12]
On September 16, 2015, Kapelan signed with Ourense of the LEB Oro, the second-tier Spanish league.[20] Through 35 games, he averaged 14.1 points, 2.1 rebounds, and 1.3 assists per game.[4] On November 20, 2015, he scored 25 points with 6 three-pointers in a 71–62 win over Miraflores.[21] Kapelan remained with Ourense for the 2016–17 season, averaging 11.9 points, 2.2 rebounds, and 1.3 assists per game through 38 appearances.[4] On August 16, 2017, he signed with LEB Oro team Melilla.[22] After 48 games, he was averaging 11.3 points per game, leading Melilla to the playoff finals.[12]
Kapelan, on July 14, 2018, signed with Šiauliai of the Lithuanian Basketball League.[23] He left the team after only 6 games, scoring a season-high 11 points in a September 22 loss to Levski SofiainBasketball Champions League qualification.[24] In November, Kapelan joined the St. John's Edge of the National Basketball League of Canada.[25] On November 18, 2018, in his Edge debut, he scored a team-best 22 points with 6 three-pointers in a 107–103 loss to the London Lightning.[26]
In March 2019, he left the Edge to sign with Mexican team Soles de Mexicali for the 2018–19 LNBP playoffs.[27]
On December 8, 2020, he signed with Real Murcia of the Spanish LEB Oro.[28] He subsequently spent the next season with Portuguese club CD Povoa.
On September 13, 2022, Kapelan signed with Greek club Ionikos Nikaias. In 9 league games, and in spite of an injury-plagued season, he averaged 10.3 points, 1.9 rebounds and 1.1 assists, playing around 23 minutes per contest.
Kapelan is a dual citizen of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Canada.[29] He joined the Bosnian national team in preparation for EuroBasket 2011 but did not make the final roster.[30] Kapelan joined Canadian team 3D Global Sports for the 2017 William Jones CupinTaipei, Taiwan. He was named MVP after averaging 18 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 2.2 assists while shooting 53.3% from the three-point line.[31]
