André Curbelo

André Jael Curbelo Rodríguez (born October 13, 2001) is a Puerto Rican college basketball player for the Southern Miss Golden Eagles of the Sun Belt Conference. He previously played for the Illinois Fighting Illini and St. John's Red Storm. Curbelo represents the Puerto Rican national team in international tournaments. Listed at 6 ft and 175 lbs, he plays the point guard position.

High school career
Curbelo grew up in Vega Baja, Puerto Rico and started playing basketball at age four. He moved to the New York area when he was 13 years old. Curbelo decided to attend Long Island Lutheran Middle and High School in Brookville, New York after being suggested by a family friend. He spoke little English and struggled academically as a freshman, before gradually adjusting and improving his grades. In his junior season, Curbelo averaged 15.5 points, eight rebounds, nine assists and four steals per game and was named Newsday All-Long Island Player of the Year. He led Long Island Lutheran to the Class AA title at the New York State Federation Tournament of Champions in 2019, his school's first-ever Class AA Federation championship after their seven previous Federation championships in classes A, B and C. In April 2019, Curbelo played for the World Select Team at the Nike Hoop Summit in Portland, Oregon.

Recruiting
Curbelo was considered a four-star recruit, according to major recruiting services. On November 1, 2019, he committed to playing college basketball for Illinois over offers from Oregon, Florida, Kansas and Louisville, among others. Curbelo was recruited to Illinois by assistant coach Orlando Antigua.

2020–21 season
Curbelo joined the Illinois basketball team as a freshman during the 2020–21 season. He debuted against North Carolina A&T, playing 19 minutes off the bench and tallying 8 points and 6 assists while Illinois won 122–60. Against Chicago State, Curbelo scored a career-high 18 points while securing 7 rebounds in the Illini's 97–38 win. During a Big Ten regular season matchup against Nebraska, Curbelo registered a 10-point, 12-rebound double-double, the first of his career. In their final regular season game against Ohio State, Curbelo played 29 minutes and set a new career-high with 19 points.

Curbelo was a significant piece off the bench during the 2021 Big Ten tournament championship run, averaging 26 minutes, 11.7 points, and 5 rebounds. In their final two games during the NCAA tournament, Curbelo averaged 8.5 points and 6 assists. During his freshman season, Curbelo averaged 9.1 points, 4.2 assists, and 4 rebounds per game. He was named to the Big Ten All-Freshman Team and was awarded the Big Ten Sixth Man of the Year Award.

2021–22 season
Curbelo missed his sophomore season opener against Jackson State due to a concussion. Against Kansas State, Curbelo played limited minutes and then missed several games due to continued head trauma. Curbelo played 19 games during the season averaging 19.3 minutes and 7.5 points per game. On March 28, 2022, he announced that he had decided to leave Illinois and enter his name into the NCAA transfer portal.

St. John's (2022–2023)
On April 15, 2022, Curbelo announced that he had committed to St. John's.

Southern Miss (2023–present)
After a lackluster season at St. John's, Curbelo transferred again, this time to Southern Miss. Because this was his second transfer and without a degree, Curbelo was unable to play until the NCAA approved his eligibility waiver. This became a moot point, however, when the NCAA's transfer rule was suspended for the 23-24 season, allowing Curbelo to play.

National team career
In 2016, Curbelo won a gold medal with Puerto Rico at the Centrobasket Under-15 Championship in Patillas, Puerto Rico after averaging 16.5 points, seven rebounds and 6.5 assists per game. At the 2017 FIBA Under-16 Americas Championship in Formosa, Argentina, he averaged a tournament-leading 21.8 points, seven rebounds, 3.2 assists and 3.5 steals per game and won a bronze medal. Curbelo competed at the 2018 FIBA Under-17 World Cup in Argentina, where he averaged 13.6 points, 5.6 rebounds and a tournament-high 5.9 assists per game and led his team to another bronze medal. He averaged 11.1 points and 5.6 assists per game at the 2019 FIBA Under-19 World Cup in Heraklion, Greece as Puerto Rico finished in sixth place.

Personal life
Curbelo's father, Joel, played professional basketball for 18 years and represented Puerto Rico at the 1996 Summer Olympics. His mother, Joann Rodríguez, played for the Puerto Rico women's national handball team. Curbelo's aunt played basketball for the Puerto Rico women's national team.