AI- Team
- ALBA Berlin
- League
- BBL
- Position
- Guard
- Number
- #7
- Height
- 6′3″ (1.90 m)
- Age
- 20 years
- Born
- Jan 27, 2006, Berlin
- NBA rights
- New York Knicks (2026, #39)
About Jack Kayil
The Berlin-born point guard came up through TuS Neukölln and ALBA Berlin's youth program, then played for RASTA Vechta and Serbia's Mega Basket before winning the 2026 German title with ALBA as the BBL's Best Young Player. The Houston Rockets drafted him 39th overall in 2026 and traded his rights to the New York Knicks right away. Instead of going to Gonzaga, he signed a five-year deal with ALBA; the Knicks are stashing him in Europe for now.
Season stats
2026/27 season · 0 games
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Highlights
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Jack Kayil's career
Jack Kayil grew up in Berlin and started out in the youth ranks of TuS Neukölln before moving to the Alba Berlin academy. In 2022–23 he played 20 games for Alba's second team in the 2nd Regionalliga, averaging 12.3 points. In 2023 he won the German U19 title with Alba's youth side and was named best newcomer of the NBBL. He joined SC Rasta Vechta in July 2023, playing in the youth program and for the club's ProA team. With the joint Quakenbrück/Vechta side he won another U19 championship in May 2024 and was named MVP of the final tournament.
After the 2023–24 season Kayil moved to Serbia's KK Mega Basket, where he averaged 7.7 points in 18 ABA League games. He returned to Alba on loan in 2025, averaged 12.4 points in 32 games and won the German championship in 2026. In November 2025 he had committed to Gonzaga, but he dropped that plan in April 2026 and declared for the NBA draft. The Houston Rockets took him 39th overall on 24 June 2026 and immediately traded him to the New York Knicks, who hold his draft rights. He was the third German chosen in that draft, after Hannes Steinbach and Christian Anderson. In August 2026 he signed a five-year contract with Alba, and in October he suffered a calf injury.
For Germany, Kayil won the U16 Division B European Championship in 2022 and bronze at the 2023 U18 EuroBasket, then gold at the 2024 U18 event in Tampere. He debuted for the senior team under Álex Mumbrú in November 2024 and reached the 2025 U19 World Cup final, which Germany lost to the United States.
Facts from: Wikipedia (de), Wikipedia (en), Wikidata