by By Dan Ninham (Oneida)
One of the top-level recently former basketball players at the NCAA DI University of Wisconsin – Green Bay men’s basketball team was Oneida tribal member Sandy Cohen III.
Sandy, 24 years old, was a dynamic star for the UWGB Phoenix for two seasons. Add an outstanding head coach, coaching staff and teammates and the result is a winning team in a winning program that isn’t looking back because it’s constantly moving forward.
“My pro team is Maccabi Tel Aviv and it is located in Tel Aviv, Israel,” said Sandy. “It is one of the top clubs in all of Europe. We are in the top league which is the EuroLeague and we are currently in fourth place. Our team is very talented, we have five former NBA draft picks, and one potential top 10 draft pick for the 2020 draft.”
The website for the team is located here: https://www.euroleague.net/competition/teams/showteam?clubcode=tel
“My role on the team right now is developing every day learning the European system and to be ready when my name is called upon,” said Sandy. “Some games I am playing and some games I am not. Right now, I am not a big scorer on the team. However, I signed a four-year contract and I’m a rookie. The team wants to develop me, and they see me eventually having a big role on this club.”
“Tel Aviv is an amazing city. They treat us like NBA stars. The weather is amazing here, winters are very mild, and everyone speaks English. It is a great place to play overseas and I got very lucky to be on such a good club and good location.”
“As an indigenous man I feel like I am adjusting very well. I’ve always been very open-minded. I’m interested in new cultures and love meeting new people and this has been a great opportunity for me to do both.”
“My tribal core values consist of always giving thanks to the Creator and just being very appreciative and humbled by the situation that I’m in,” said Sandy. “This is something that I’ve dreamed about since I could remember so it is just amazing to be in the situation and I am continuously giving thanks.”
“So many people have positively influenced me. You know that saying ‘it takes a village…’ and that saying holds true with me. So many people in the Seymour and Oneida community have helped shape who I am today. From helping me get to practices, to helping me with my homework, and just giving me positive role models to look up to,” added Sandy.
Sandy hopes to keep developing by getting better and stronger gaining more knowledge of the game. He continues to hope to make his way back to the states and play in the NBA. Maccabi Tel Aviv is highly scouted by the NBA as is all EuroLeague teams.
“I believe my pro basketball career looks very bright,” said Sandy. “Not a lot of players come directly from college and go straight to EuroLeague. It is truly an honor to be playing in such a high-level league at such a young point in my career.”
Sandy had a stellar career at Seymour HS, Seymour, WI, leading the Thunder to two Bay Conference Championships, a conference player of the year, an All-State honor, and a Top 100 recruit classification.
Recruited by NCAA DI Marquette University, Sandy played two seasons for the Golden Eagles: 2014-15 and 2015-16. He began his junior season at Marquette but made a major decision soon after the game schedule started.
“Marquette is a great university,” said Sandy. “However, it just wasn’t the right fit for me. I don’t know exactly what went wrong, but I was in a mindset that was not very healthy or good and it showed on the court.”
“Transferring to UW Green Bay had been one of the best decisions I’ve ever made,” said Sandy. “Playing for head coach Lync Darner was an amazing opportunity. Lync is truly a player’s coach. He allows you to play with freedom within a system and with that freedom I was able to find myself again. All credit goes to the coaching staff and my teammates.”
Sandy transferred to the University of Wisconsin – Green Bay on December 6, 2016. He sat out the remainder of the season and was granted an NCAA waiver making his first game appearance a year later, on December 17, 2017.
During his junior season, Sandy started and played in 22 games. He was second on the team in scoring at 16.6 ppg and averaged 33 minutes per game playing time. Sandy was ranked sixth in the Horizon League in scoring at 17.1 ppg and first with 1.8 steals per game. He scored a season best 36 points at Oakland University and was named Horizon League Player of the Week once. Sandy scored in double figures in 16 of the 22 games he played in, and also had five double-doubles during the season.
Sandy was named First Team All-Horizon League during his redshirt senior season in 2018-19 as well as several honors and recognition. He set UWGB’s DI single season program scoring in a season with 666 points. Sandy was ranked fifth in Horizon League scoring and had 20 or more points in 14 games. He led the team in all major statistical categories, including points, assists, rebounds, steals and blocks.
A fan favorite, Sandy earned the distinction with scoring, block shots, steals, and dunks. He also had two home game-winning baskets last season versus Cleveland State and Texas Southern. The video links to the game winners are here:
Sandy went undrafted in the 2019 NBA Draft and signed a four-year contract with Maccabi Tel Aviv in August 2019.
Sandy Cohen III knows where he has been, where he is now, and has the hope, dreams and fire to where he is going.
Photo Credit: Maccabi Tel Aviv
What a great article. Well worded and positive.
Blessings to Sandy, the team and all his future ventures. So proud of him & everyone who had a positive influence in his life. ❤
Thanks again Dan Ninham for the article.
Blessings to my nephew, hes such a positive influence in native american communities. Its heartfelt to see his journey, and its still ongoing. The outcome will be awesome. Congrats Nephew, i pray creator blesses your walk, and you live a prosperous life. Thank you Dan Ninham for a fine article write up.