Rony Seikaly

The first-ever draft pick in Miami Heat history, Rony Seikaly became one of the NBA's top centers and later a renowned DJ and music producer.

Ronald Fred Seikaly (born May 10, 1965) is a former professional NBA basketball player, real estate developer, and internationally acclaimed DJ and music producer. The first-ever draft pick in Miami Heat history, Seikaly became one of the best centers in the NBA—and one of the earliest internationally born players to make an impact on American basketball. He earned NBA Most Improved Player, was named NBA Player of the Week twice, captured gold medals, and set multiple franchise and collegiate records while competing against legends such as Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Kobe Bryant, Larry Bird, and Shaquille O’Neal.

Before his professional career, he led Syracuse University to the NCAA Championship Final, making one of the most successful eras in the school’s basketball history. Seikaly is a real estate developer and has managed his own investment fund. His personal residence has been featured in Architectural Digest. In music, Seikaly has established a career as a house music producer and DJ, releasing over 50 tracks that have entered the Top 100 charts.

He has performed at international venues including Circoloco in Ibiza and Space Miami, and has appeared alongside artists such as Marco Carola, Luciano, Black Coffee, Erick Morillo, John Summit, and Keinemusik.

Quick Facts

Born: 10 May 1965
Birthplace: Beirut, Lebanon
Nationality: Lebanese; American
High school: American Schools (Athens, Greece)
College: Syracuse (1984–1988)
Draft round: 1
Draft pick: 9
Drafted by: Miami Heat

Lore & Background

Seikaly was born in Beirut, Lebanon. In 1979, at the age of 14, he moved to Athens, Greece, where he spent the rest of his youth. While in Greece, he attended and graduated from the American School, also known as ACS Athens. As a youth, he played basketball, and also excelled in volleyball, association football, and track & field.

At age 14, he also began to DJ. In 1981, when Seikaly was 16, the Panathinaikos basketball player Takis Koroneos took note of him, after he purchased a pair of basketball sneakers in Koroneos' athletics store. On the recommendation of Koroneos, Seikaly was selected to join Panathinaikos' men's senior team, in order to begin training and practicing with them. In 1982, at age 17, he first played with the team in a tournament in Cyprus.

Panathinaikos is one of the most storied franchises in Greek basketball history. He continued to train and practice with Panathinaikos until 1983. However, because he did not have a Greek passport, he was not able to register with the team to play in any games in the Greek Basket League, since no foreign players were allowed to play in the league until 1988. In 1983, Seikaly moved from Greece to the United States and began attending Syracuse University in central New York, where he played college basketball.

He played center for the Syracuse Orange men's basketball team. He led his Syracuse team to the 1987 NCAA tournament championship finals against the Indiana Hoosiers during his junior year, after averaging 22 points and 11 rebounds per game throughout the tournament. He was an All-American, and was also named to the John R. Wooden All-American Team. He graduated from Syracuse as the school's all-time leading rebounder, second in school history in blocked shots, and fourth in school history in scoring.

At the time, he was only the second player ever to record 1,000 points and rebounds during his tenure at Syracuse. He was named to the Orange's All 20th Century Team, and his number 4 jersey has been retired and raised to the rafters at the Carrier Dome.

Reader's Guide

Seikaly was taken by the Miami Heat with the 9th pick in the first round of the 1988 NBA draft. As well as being the franchise's first ever college draft pick, Seikaly became the first player born in Lebanon to compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The rookie center quickly emerged not only as a pivotal player within the team, but also among the league's top centers. In his second season, he led the Heat in points (16.6), rebounds (10.4) and blocks (1.7) while placing sixth in the league in rebounding.

At the conclusion of the season he was awarded with the NBA Most Improved Player Award. In the 1990–91 season, Seikaly increased his rebounding average to 11.1 rebounds per game while maintaining his 16 points per game average and then they acquired other young players to serve as scoring options such as Glen Rice and Steve Smith. In the 1991–92 season, Seikaly again averaged 16 points and 11 rebounds (6th in the league) as the Heat, bolstered by his play and Rice's scoring, led the team to 38 wins and the first playoff berth for the franchise.

Despite the breakthrough, Miami was no match for the defending champions, the Michael Jordan-led Chicago Bulls, who swept the Heat in three games. For the series against the Bulls, Seikaly averaged 19.1 points with 9.2 rebounds. Seikaly increased his scoring to 17.3 and once again averaged 11.8 rebounds a game (8th in the league) during the 1992–93 season. He managed to win the NBA player of the week after averaging 30 points and 20 Rebounds for the week of March 7.

The following season featured increased scoring by Rice and Smith, and Seikaly averaged 15.1 points a game for third on the team while leading the team in rebounds with 10.3 rebounds per game. The Heat won 42 games, good enough to make the playoffs. Facing off against the Atlanta Hawks in the first round. Seikaly's career with Miami saw him setting numerous single-game team records, including blocks (8), rebounds (34) and double–doubles.

During his run with the Heat, he had the nickname 'The Spin Doctor', due to his trademark low-post spin moves. His career highs with the Heat are 40 points, 34 rebounds, 8 blocks, 8 assists, and 5 steals. On November 2, 1994, Seikaly was traded to the Golden State Warriors for Billy Owens and the rights to Sasha Danilović.