John DiBartolomeo

DiBartolomeo was born in New York to an Italian-descended father and a mother of Russian Jewish descent. He later described a childhood in which Catholic observance was more prominent than Jewish practice, alongside family Passover gatherings; after moving to Israel, he embraced the holidays there while continuing to celebrate Christmas.[1][6] These accounts concern his family background and experiences and do not establish a religious identity for him.

He attended the University of Rochester, an NCAA Division III institution. In an interview, he said he received no college scholarship offers, partly because he was physically small in high school, and that his parents paid for his studies. He had completed his degree by the time he reached his final college year and did not begin considering professional basketball until then, after an assistant coach introduced him to teams that could cover living expenses.[6]

Leaving home for the first time and moving abroad proved difficult: DiBartolomeo recalled calling his parents and wanting to return, while they encouraged him to persist. Strong play eventually brought interest from Spain, where he began his professional career.[6]

DiBartolomeo spent two years playing in Spain before joining Maccabi Haifa in 2015. One report identifies his Spanish team as San Agustín, while another names Palma Air Europa; the available accounts do not clarify the relationship between those names. With Palma Air Europa in Spain’s second division, he averaged 11.3 points, 4.1 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.6 steals in 28 games. He had also been named Spain’s third-division player of the year in 2014 after helping Palma earn promotion, averaging 15.1 points, 3.6 rebounds and 4.7 assists.[1][8]

At Haifa, DiBartolomeo became one of the Israeli league’s leading players. He was named player of the season for 2016–17, with his postseason performances a prominent part of his case for the award. In the quarterfinals against Holon, he averaged 22.5 points, 3.8 assists and 3.8 rebounds in 28.3 minutes per game, made 67.9 percent of his three-point attempts and converted all 17 free throws.[7] Haifa reached the playoffs on the last day of the regular season, became the first eighth seed to eliminate a top seed in the quarterfinals, and then defeated Maccabi Tel Aviv in the semifinals before losing 83–76 to Hapoel Jerusalem in the final.[9]

DiBartolomeo joined Maccabi Tel Aviv after his Haifa spell and became the club’s captain during his first season.[4] Reports give differing years for the move: one says he had been with Maccabi Tel Aviv since 2017, while a 2022 profile describes him as signing in 2018.[5][3]

In his first season as captain, he helped lead the club to a 95–75 championship win over Hapoel Holon in June 2018, scoring 13 points. After the win, he invited former captain Itay Segev, who had been removed from the role after requesting to be cut from the team, to lift the championship plate with him.[10] In the season after taking the captaincy, DiBartolomeo led the Israeli league in plus-minus and regular-season free-throw percentage, was selected to the league’s all-star five and was named Final Four MVP.[4]

His record with Maccabi included domestic league, State Cup and Winner Cup titles.[3] In June 2021, the club beat Hapoel Gilboa Galil 73–67 to win a best-of-three final series 2–1, securing its 55th league championship and fourth consecutive title; DiBartolomeo, then captain, lifted the championship plate.[11] A 2024 report said he had won six Israeli league championships in seven years with the club.[4]

A 2023 profile reported that DiBartolomeo was averaging 15.56 minutes and 5.6 points per EuroLeague game at that point in the season, then his highest full-season scoring average with Maccabi. He had made 30 of 66 three-point attempts, a rate of 45.5 percent.[12] In March 2024, he scored 19 points in 21 minutes in a 90–78 victory over Hapoel Jerusalem, including 14 points in the second half and four-for-four shooting from long distance. At that time, his reported Israeli league averages were 9.4 points per game and 46.9 percent from three, while his EuroLeague averages were 4.1 points and 34.7 percent from three.[5]

In July 2024, DiBartolomeo extended his contract through the summer of 2026.[4] He and teammate Jake Cohen were honored in May 2025 for each having played 500 games in a Maccabi Tel Aviv uniform. Fans presented them with framed jerseys bearing the number 500 before a quarterfinal game against Ness Ziona.[13]

A July 2026 report said DiBartolomeo signed another two-year deal, which would bring his time with the club to 11 years. He described Maccabi as his home and said he did not take wearing its jersey or serving as captain for granted.[14] In October 2026, he scored 21 points and made a career-high seven three-pointers in a 116–89 Israeli Premier League win over Kiryat Ata.[2]

DiBartolomeo has been described as a captain who leads through discipline, consistency and example rather than by becoming more vocal. In his account of being offered the captaincy, he recalled receiving a midnight call from Nikola Vujčić about seven months after joining Maccabi Tel Aviv. His first reaction was to ask his fiancée what he had done wrong; before accepting, he sought conversations with outgoing captain Itay Segev and coach Neven Spahija. He regarded the position as a major responsibility at a prominent European sports club.[6]

A 2023 profile said teammates and club staff regarded his work ethic as exceptionally high. It recounted that he added an individual workout before a game in Eilat until fitness coach Regev Fanan stopped him so he could rest, and reported that he had completed five years as Maccabi captain in January 2023.[12] A coach described him as a role model for the club’s youth players, praising his positivity and competitiveness.[3]

His captaincy was also evident in the club’s public celebrations and milestones. Following Maccabi’s 2021 league title, he lifted the championship plate, and in 2018 he shared that moment with former captain Segev.[10][11] On the occasion of his 500-game milestone, Cohen called him “my brother in so many ways” and “a really special person.”[13]

DiBartolomeo missed 355 days after tearing a chest muscle during a game against Bayern Munich. The injury was described as rare in modern basketball and required a long, painful rehabilitation. He also underwent preventive Achilles-tendon surgery after playing with heel pain.[15]

During recovery, he attended sports-psychology sessions and took up yoga and meditation. After his chest rehabilitation, his agent planned to arrange games with a kibbutz league team so he could regain playing fitness, but the COVID-19 pandemic halted that league.[15]

When Maccabi Haifa signed DiBartolomeo in 2015, he was described as a United States player, and the report said he was expected to receive Israeli citizenship before the coming season.[8] By May 2025, reporting described DiBartolomeo and teammate Jake Cohen as naturalized Israelis from the United States.[13]

DiBartolomeo has spoken about his parents’ backgrounds and the mix of religious traditions in his childhood, including his mother’s Jewish background, his father’s Italian Catholic background, Passover gatherings and continued Christmas celebrations. The available reporting describes those experiences and the citizenship process; it does not establish a personal religious identity.[6]

Published reports differ on whether DiBartolomeo moved to or signed with Maccabi Tel Aviv in 2017 or 2018. One account says he had been with the club since 2017, while another describes his signing in 2018; the available information does not resolve the discrepancy.[5][3]

A January 2024 report described Maccabi Tel Aviv players living and playing in Belgrade and traveling between Belgrade and Israel, with EuroLeague games played away from Israel. DiBartolomeo said the club had initially placed players outside Israel when people felt unsafe following October 7, 2023, to establish routine and normalcy, and that the team was adapting to changing schedules. This account reflects the circumstances and comments reported at that time.[16]