-
By Oguz Solak / Staff writer
Former Formosa Dreamers player Ilkan Karaman was killed in a traffic accident in Datca, Turkey, Turkish media reported yesterday.
He was 34.
The former Turkish national team player was reportedly hit by a car, the driver of which was allegedly drunk, while he was standing on a sidewalk, Turkish newspaper Sozcu reported.
Photo: CNA
Karaman and his friends were on their way to the beach town of Dalaman to go scuba diving when they stopped at a gas station to buy gasoline, it reported.
Karaman was hit by the car while waiting on a sidewalk as his friends were buying gasoline, it said.
Karaman played for the Formosa Dreamers — then named the Formosa Taishin Dreamers — of the P.League+ during the 2022-2023 season. He played in 13 games for the franchise.
He also played for teams such as Fenerbahce Beko and Besiktas Fibabanka in Turkey. He was drafted by the Brooklyn Nets in the 2012 NBA draft, but never played in the league.
Karaman was most recently playing for Cayirova Belediyesi in the Turkish Basketball League, the nation’s second division.
Following Karaman’s death, his former teams Fenerbahce Beko and Besiktas Fibabanka shared messages on X.
“We have learned with deep sadness that national player Ilkan Karaman, who played for our team from 2012 to 2014, passed away,” Fenerbahce Beko said. “May God have mercy on Ilkan Karaman. We offer our condolences and wish for patience to his family, relatives and the basketball community.”
Comments will be moderated. Keep comments relevant to the article. Remarks containing abusive and obscene language, personal attacks of any kind or promotion will be removed and the user banned. Final decision will be at the discretion of the Taipei Times.
