Seton Hall basketball adds Israeli big as roster nearly finalized

Seton Hall basketball has mined the international pipeline here and there over the years. Now, for the first time, that pipeline has extended to Israel.

Ilay Dolinski, who grew up in Tel Aviv, has joined the Pirates' 2026-27 roster right at the start of the fall semester.

Here are three things to know about the 6-foot-9 forward.

1. He has extensive international experience.

Dolinski, who will turn 22 in February, played for Israel's senior national team in the 2026 FIBA World Cup. Over four games he averaged 4.3 points, 2.3 rebounds and 2.5 fouls in 12 minutes, shooting 7-of-17 from the field, 2-of-6 from 3-point range, and 1-of-3 from the free-throw line.

He also played professionally for Kiryat in Israel's Winner League, that county's highest level of pro hoops, appearing in 20 games during the 2025-26 campaign and averaging 7.7 points, 4.3 rebounds, 1.2 assists, 0.9 blocks, 2.8 fouls and 1.9 turnovers in 17 minutes. He shot 49 percent from 2-point range, 25 percent from 3-point range (8-of-32) and 75 percent from the free-throw line (27-of-36).

Though he's listed as a center in some places and no weight is available (as is often the case with internationals), Dolinski doesn't appear to have the frame of a Big East center and likely will factor as more of a power forward.

On July 22 Draft Express's Jonathan Givony announced that Dolinski had committed to Tulsa, citing agent Misko Raznatovic as the source. However, he never turned up on Tulsa's 2026-27 roster as listed on the program's website. You know who is listed there, though? Mike Williams, who averaged 7.0 points as a mercurial starting guard for Seton Hall last winter.

Consider it a trade of sorts: Early last offseason, Williams had arrived at an agreement with the Hall's staff to return to the Pirates for this season, only to renege and relocate.

The bottom line: In 2026 commitment announcements should be taken with a grain of salt (the Pirates lost two commits already this offseason). When a player arrives on campus and is practicing with the team, that's how you know he's committed. Dolinksi arrived in South Orange this week and has begun working out on campus.

Dolinski is among a handful of incoming Pirates who hail from another country. This mirrors a sport-wide trend in search of better value and marks the first time Shaheen Holloway has mined this route to a significant extent. As has been reported, Seton Hall is also zeroing in on adding Theo Airhienbuwa, a 6-foot-7 wing from Italy, to round out the roster before fall semester add/drop ends Sept. 8.

If the foreign pipeline works out this coming season, and assuming the NCAA continues to lax eligibility standards for foreign pros, expect it to become a regular feature of the Hall's recruiting going forward.

Seton Hall's projected 2026-27 depth chart

Guards (7): Del Jones, Simeon Wilcher, Trey Parker, Kareem Thomas, Roddie Anderson, Mihailo Petrovic, Darien 'Payday' Moore.

Bigs (4) : Terry Copeland, Devin Williams, Ilay Dolinski, Abdulai Fanta Kabba.

Jerry Carino has covered the New Jersey sports scene since 1996 and the college basketball beat since 2003. Contact him at jcarino@gannettnj.com .