Ruben Boumtje-Boumtje

Ruben Boumtje-Boumtje
Personal information
Born	20 May 1978 (age 46); Edéa, Cameroon
Nationality	Cameroonian
Listed height	7 ft 0 in (2.13 m)
Listed weight	257 lb (117 kg)
Career information
High school	Archbishop Carroll (Washington, D.C.)
College	Georgetown (1997–2001)
NBA draft	2001: 2nd round, 50th overall pick
	Selected by the Portland Trail Blazers
Playing career	2001–2011
Position	Center
Number	44
Career history
2001–2004	Portland Trail Blazers
2004–2005	Fayetteville Patriots
2005–2006	Panellinios
2006–2007	Alba Berlin
2007–2010	EWE Baskets Oldenburg
2010–2011	Artland Dragons
2011	Bayern Munich
	Stats at NBA.com
	Stats at Basketball-Reference.com

Ruben Bertrand Boumtje-Boumtje (born 20 May 1978) is a Cameroonian professional basketball executive and former player who last served as the assistant general manager of the Delaware Blue Coats of the NBA G League. He played college basketball for the Georgetown Hoyas and professionally in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Portland Trail Blazers. Boumtje-Boumtje retired in November 2011 at age 33 due to a heart condition.

High school and college career

Boumtje-Boumtje attended Archbishop Carroll High School in Washington, D.C. for one year.^[2] He played college basketball at Georgetown University and holds career averages of 9.6 points and 6.8 rebounds per game. He ranks fourth on the Hoyas' all-time blocked shots list with 255, behind Patrick Ewing, Alonzo Mourning and Dikembe Mutombo.^[3]

Professional career

NBA

Boumtje-Boumtje was selected in the 2001 NBA draft by the Portland Trail Blazers with the 50th overall pick^[4] and participated in 44 games over three seasons from 2001 to 2004. What ended up being his final regular season NBA game took place on December 20, 2003 while the Blazers visited the San Antonio Spurs in a losing effort; Boumtje-Boumtje recorded one foul and one missed field goal in four minutes of playing time.^[5] On January 21, 2004, when he was traded along with guard Jeff McInnis to the Cleveland Cavaliers in exchange for small forward Darius Miles.

He was waived soon afterwards, having never played a game for them. In July 2005, Boumtje-Boumtje was drafted in the 2005 AAPBL Draft but the league folded before a game was even played. On August 22, 2005, it was announced the Orlando Magic had signed him to a contract of undisclosed terms.^[6] He had played five games with them during the 2005 Reebok Vegas Summer League while averaging 4.8 points, shooting 56.3 percent of his field goals (9-of-16), and 3.6 rebounds in 16.8 minutes per game.

European leagues

Boumtje-Boumtje played the 2006–07 season for Alba Berlin^[7] in the ULEB Cup and the German Basketball Bundesliga. After the season, his contract was not renewed, but he joined league rival EWE Baskets Oldenburg in November as a replacement for injured Dan McClintock and later signed for the remainder of the 2007–08 season. Oldenburg renewed his contract for the 2008–09 season. The team became the German league champions in June 2009.

In 2010 Boumtje-Boumtje joined the Artland Dragons in Germany. In 2011, he signed with Bayern Munich, but he immediately retired after just 4 games, because of an irregularity with his heart.^[8]^[9]^[10]

Off-the-court

Boumtje-Boumtje speaks three languages - a native Cameroonian language, French and English.^[11] At Georgetown he was a pre-med, as well as a mathematics and biology double major.^[12] He was named Big East Scholar-Athlete of the Year in 2001, an honor often reserved for athletes in non-televised sports, and used the occasion to restate his intention to attend medical school if he were not drafted by the NBA.^[13] In 2014, Ruben earned a master's degree in Applied Mathematics and Statistics from Georgetown University. He recently interned at Elder Research.^[14]

After his playing career, he joined the Philadelphia 76ers’ staff as a technical scout.^[15] In 2019, he was hired as the assistant general manager of the Delaware Blue Coats of the NBA G League.^[16] In June 2020, he was let go from the 76ers organization after his contract was not renewed.^[17]

NBA career statistics

Regular season


Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
2001–02	Portland	33	1	7.4	.406	–	.520	1.7	.1	.1	.5	1.2
2002–03	Portland	2	0	2.5	.000	–	–	.5	.5	.5	.0	.0
2003–04	Portland	9	0	2.9	.200	–	1.000	.1	.1	.0	.1	.4
Career		44	1	6.3	.368	–	.556	1.3	.1	.1	.4	1.0