Hanno Möttölä


Hanno Aleksanteri Möttölä is a Finnish former professional basketball player. Möttölä played for the Atlanta Hawks in the National Basketball Association, at the power forward position, where he became the first player from Finland to play in the NBA.

College career

Möttölä attended the University of Utah, in the United States, where he played college basketball under head coach Rick Majerus. He was a starter on the Utah Utes team that played in the final of the 1998 NCAA national championship tournament, which they lost to Kentucky.

Professional career

After college, Möttölä was selected in the second round, with the 40th overall pick, in the 2000 NBA Draft, by the Atlanta Hawks. He played two seasons in the NBA with the Hawks. After his time with the Hawks, he returned to Europe. He played in Spain, with TAU Cerámica of the ACB, then in Italy, with Skipper Bologna. He also played in Italy with Scavolini Pesaro.
He also played in the Russian Super League with Dynamo Moscow, in the Lithuanian LKL League with Žalgiris Kaunas, and in the Greek Basket League with Aris, after signing with the team on 26 July 2007.
He announced his retirement from playing basketball on 26 September 2008, but decided to return to basketball just nine months later. In September 2009, Möttölä signed with the Finnish team Torpan Pojat. He played in the team for four seasons, during which the team was the runner-up in the Finnish League championship, in the Finnish Cup, and finished in third-place in Finnish League.

National team career

Möttölä was a long-time member of the senior Finnish national basketball team. With Finland, he played at the 1995 EuroBasket, the 2011 EuroBasket, the 2013 EuroBasket, and the 2014 FIBA World Cup.

Personal life

Finnish ice hockey players, Jarkko Ruutu and Tuomo Ruutu, are Möttölä's second cousins.

Career statistics

NBA

EuroLeague