The top scorer of the last FIBA Europe Cup arrives at Derthona: Christian Vital is black and white
Bertram Derthona announces that the agreement has been reached with Christian Lucien Vital, a guard born in '97 who last season was the best scorer in the FIBA Europe Cup wearing the Legia Warsaw jersey.
CAREER – Born in Queens Village, New York, on March 21, 1997, Vital took his first steps in basketball at a very young age, playing for the PSA Cardinals Amateur Athletic Union. From the age of five, still in this program, he also began playing chess, playing numerous tournaments in New York, and then continued to play in high school.
Christian moved to Connecticut for high school, which began at the Rectory School in Pomfret and concluded – for the last two years – at St Thomas Moore School in Oakdale. In his final year the new Juventus point guard recorded 16.8 points, 7 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game, leading the team to an annual record of 31 wins and 7 losses and reaching the final of the National Prep Championship.
The numbers recorded at the high school attracted the interest of numerous prestigious colleges: Vital decided to remain in Connecticut, playing for the glorious University of UConn. At the end of his second year with the Huskies, who finished with 14.9 points, 5.4 rebounds (best on the team) and 1.6 steals per game, Christian decided to become eligible for the 2018 NBA Draft, before deciding to return to College.
In the following two years, the numbers and impact of the new Juventus player grew further, reaching 16.4 points, 6.3 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 2.5 steals in his senior year, which earned him inclusion in the Best Quintet of the 'American Athletic Conference. In his four-year stint at UConn he scored 1735 points and made 235 three-point baskets, an AAC record.
Vital was not selected in the 2020 NBA Draft and, after some brief experiences in the NBA, in October 2021 he signed with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, a G League franchise associated with the Houston Rockets. With an average of over 12 points and 40% three-point shooting in the 45 games played, he contributed to the team's final success in the competition. In May 2022 he moved to the Hamilton Honey Badgers, in Canada: his performances (17.4 points and 4.8 rebounds) were decisive in winning the team's first Canadian title. Christian was also named MVP of the final, which he concluded by scoring 17 points.
After playing the Summer League with the Toronto Raptors, the player born in '97 begins the 2022/23 season wearing the Raptors 905 jersey, the affiliated G League franchise. In December of the same year he moved to the Salt Lake City Stars. He concluded the year again by signing for the Brampton Honey Badgers, in Canada, being included in the second best quintet of the championship.
In 2023/24 Vital makes his debut in Europe, wearing the Legia Warsaw jersey. In Poland he showed off his skills as a great scorer: with over 20 points per game he contributed to the victory of the Polish Cup and was included in the best quintet of the tournament. With Legia he also takes part in the FIBA Europe Cup, of which he is the best scorer with 21.9 points per game. Between January and February, he further raised his performance to 26.3 points, 5 rebounds, 3.5 steals and 27.3 rating, resulting in him being MVP of the month of the competition in both months. On June 6, he signed with the Henan Golden Elephants of the Chinese National Basketball League, debuting with 44 points and 10 rebounds in his debut match and producing 48 points and 9 rebounds in his last match. From next season he will be a Bertram Derthona player, thus starting another chapter in his career.
“We welcome Christian Vital to our team – the words of Marco Picchi, President of Bertram Derthona -. He is a player with strong scoring skills, as he has already shown during his already successful career, and he will be able to give us a great contribution next season.".