Enes Kanter is a devout Muslim and revealed he is adhering to traditional fasting rituals during Ramadan. This year, Ramadan runs from May 5 to June 4 meaning Kanter will be playing in the Blazers playoff games during the period. Kanter fasts from sunrise to sundown and detailed the meaning of Ramadan in an article he wrote for The Washington Post. Like hundreds of millions of Muslims around the world, I ate my pre-fast meal, suhur, which is what we eat before we practice the first of our five daily prayers. Every year, we observe Ramadan for 29 to 30 days based on the lunar calendar. During this time, the most important month of the year for the Islamic faith, followers of my religion abstain from food, water and even medicine until the sun is no longer visible on the horizon. At the end of each day, we break the fast with a light meal called an iftar following the evening call to prayer. Over the years, I’ve become accustomed to the quiet of that morning meal, a time when I devote myself completely to my faith. Kanter noted that he ate six peanut butter and jelly sandwiches right before Game 5 when he was able to break his fast. The Blazers-Warriors 6 p.m. Pacific time tipoffs represent a challenge as Kanter will likely have to wait until halftime to eat. Kanter managed to play 40 minutes in the Blazers Game 7 matchup against the Nuggets during fasting hours. Kanter finished with 12 points and 13 rebounds. Kanter admitted in The Washington Post article that Ramadan has tested him physically, mentally and emotionally during Portland’s postseason run. Ramadan this year is different from any I’ve ever experienced because it coincides with the NBA playoffs. My team, the Portland Trail Blazers, face our possible elimination Thursday night in what will be one of the most important games I’ve ever played. This year I am testing the limitations of my bodily strength in a way I never have before. But I’ve also come to understand my potential and how inner strength can translate to triumph. Enes Kanter Reached Out to Hakeem Olajuwon for Fasting Guidance https://twitter.com/Enes_Kanter/status/1127727819440652288/ Hakeem Olajuwon is one of the greatest centers to have ever played in the NBA and is also outspoken about his Muslim faith. Kanter reached out to the former NBA big man for guidance on how to make it through Ramadan while playing NBA games. Kanter is dealing with a shoulder injury and also refrains from taking medicine during the fasting period. “I texted Hakeem [Olajuwon], because I met him like two years ago and I know what he did in, I think it was 1995, when he won the MVP in the playoffs,” Kanter told ESPN prior to Game 5 of the Blazers-Nuggets series. “But I texted him and was like, ‘Hey, how did you fast through Ramadan and play at a really high level?’ And he gave me some tips. He gave me what he was eating, when he would wake up — like at 4 in the morning — how much water he was drinking and stuff…I took medicine at like 4 in the morning and I will take medicine again right before the game, because I can break my fast before the game. But I’ll be fine.”<doc-sep>Basketball to me is more than a passion or a paycheck — it is the tool I use to try to have an impact in the world. But not all challenges can be overcome with a willingness and determination, for there are still things that remain out of our control. Today, thousands of prisoners of conscience who are also observant Muslims are observing Ramadan from behind the bars of jails in Turkey. I would like to continue to use my platform to advocate on behalf of people in Turkey who can’t speak out, including at the Human Rights Foundation’s Oslo Freedom Forum. More than anything, I want to be an example for children everywhere, showing them that you can thrive when challenged — fasting for Ramadan, for instance, but also going all out in the NBA playoffs.<doc-sep>Enes Kanter tells reporters that he asked Hakeem Olajuwon for advice on what to eat to maintain a high level of play while observing Ramadan. (1:26) DENVER -- Enes Kanter, a devout Muslim, is fasting from sunrise to sunset each day for the next month in observance of Ramadan. He even sought out an NBA legend for some advice on how to do it while maintaining a high level of play in the playoffs for the Portland Trail Blazers. "I texted Hakeem [Olajuwon], because I met him like two years ago and I know what he did in, I think it was 1995, when he won the MVP in the playoffs. But I texted him and was like, 'Hey, how did you fast through Ramadan and play at a really high level?'" Kanter said Tuesday morning. "And he gave me some tips. He gave me what he was eating, when he would wake up -- like at 4 in the morning -- how much water he was drinking and stuff." Fasting for Ramadan means, throughout the day, no food, no water and, perhaps most importantly for Kanter and his injured left shoulder, no medication. "I took medicine at like 4 in the morning and I will take medicine again right before the game, because I can break my fast before the game," Kanter said. "But I'll be fine." Game 5 will tip off at 8:30 p.m. local time in Denver on Tuesday, with sunset at 8:06 p.m. So Kanter, who has been dealing with a separated left shoulder, can eat, drink and take medicine prior to the game. "I might just have someone get some peanut butter and jelly sandwiches on the bench for me to eat during timeouts," Kanter said. Kanter fasts each year during the regular season "once or twice a week" to get his body ready for Ramadan, and he was unconcerned about it affecting his play. He said he talked to Terry Stotts about it Monday, adding that the Blazers coach was "very respectful and respected everything." Olajuwon was his typical stellar self during Ramadan, even producing better numbers in some seasons while fasting. "As for fasting, it is a spiritual mindset that gives you the stamina required to play," Olajuwon told The Undefeated's Marc J. Spears in 2017. "Through Allah's mercy, I always felt stronger and more energetic during Ramadan." Kanter sees it the same way. "It's just mind over matter, man," he said. "I think it just gives you so much positive vibes that just go out there to say, 'You know what, I'm doing this for God, so God [will] help me.'" Kanter said when he reached out to Olajuwon that the Hall of Famer was "very happy and very proud" and that they talked a little about basketball. But mostly, the focus was on Ramadan, the discipline it requires and how observing it during the most high-profile part of the season can serve as inspiration for others. "It doesn't matter what your status is, what your position is, I just want to set an example for the young generation," Kanter said. "Because it's very important for them to follow their religion. "It's awesome to get help from a legend," he added, "so I would love to be the new Hakeem for younger generations."<doc-sep>Enes Kanter, the outspoken NBA star, will be fasting for Ramadan as usual this year, but, in a first, he will be competing in the playoffs at the same time. (Zach Meyer/The New York Times) Enes Kanter, the outspoken NBA star, will be fasting for Ramadan as usual this year, but, in a first, he will be competing in the playoffs at the same time. (Zach Meyer/The New York Times) On Monday, around 4 a.m., Enes Kanter will wake up, eat a light breakfast of yogurt, fruit and peanut butter, and drink as much water as he can. Then for the roughly 16 hours between sunrise and sunset in Portland, Oregon, the center for the Portland Trail Blazers will abstain from eating, drinking and taking medicine, even for the shoulder he separated almost two weeks ago. For Kanter, a Swiss-born Turk who has fasted for Ramadan while playing competitive basketball for the past decade, the routine is nothing new. But this time, the circumstances may be: Never before has he fasted while playing in the NBA’s postseason. This year, with Ramadan having begun Sunday, his fast is coming during Portland’s second-round series against the Denver Nuggets. He’s averaging 16 points and more than 10 rebounds per game against Denver, and has often been a surprise difference-maker for the Blazers behind Damian Lillard. In Islam, Ramadan commemorates the month that God started to reveal the Quran to the Prophet Muhammad, and each year roughly 1.5 billion people observe it through daytime fasting, during which smoking, sex and chewing gum are also prohibited. In Muslim-majority countries like Turkey, where Kanter grew up, businesses and schools often adjust their hours to accommodate the observance. In the United States, it’s business as usual for most of the estimated 3.45 million Muslims, including Kanter. He’s become accustomed to fasting by himself. The first time Kanter observed Ramadan while training seriously for basketball, he was 16 years old, living in Turkey and playing for a team with an international roster. That year, Ramadan started at the end of August — each year, it moves back by about 11 days — and the first two-a-day practice was grueling for Kanter. “I was going against players who were 30, 35 years old, and I was the only one fasting,” he said. “When I would break my fast, I was drinking so much water, like ‘Man, there’s no room left for food.’” Since then, Kanter has spent Ramadan in California, where he attended prep school; in Lexington, Kentucky, where he was recruited to play for the University of Kentucky; and with three NBA franchises before the Trail Blazers: the Utah Jazz, the Oklahoma City Thunder and the New York Knicks. Though there have been other Muslims in the league (Kareem Abdul-Jabbar converted to Islam in 1968, a year before he began a 20-season NBA career, and Hakeem Olajuwon was known for playing well while fasting), Kanter still makes a point of telling teams about the duties of his faith. “Before I go to those teams, I say, ‘Hey, I’m a Muslim and I have to pray five times a day,’” Kanter said. “And they respect it so much that they give me a prayer room. So before the game, after the game, before practice, before I fly out, I can go to that room whenever I want and pray.” After he joins a new franchise, Kanter said, there are always questions at first, like why he does not drink alcohol, but they are typically asked with good intentions. In fact, an Oklahoma City strength coach was so curious about Ramadan that he fasted for three days to better understand Kanter’s nutritional needs. The teams also provide special meals for Kanter, which some of his teammates have grown to love. “Steven Adams was a very, very big fan of halal food,” Kanter said of the Thunder center, “and I remember the day I got traded to the Knicks, he was so sad. He was like, ‘Man, I’m not going to eat halal food anymore.’” Though the past few Ramadans have been during his offseason, Kanter enjoys the feeling of fasting so much that he does it once or twice a week year-round. That routine has helped reassure him that his cravings, typically at their worst 15 minutes after basketball practice, will eventually pass. Even traveling from the East Coast to the West, which adds three hours to the fast, no longer rattles him. “If you can do 15,” he said, “you can do 18.” Fasting does not necessarily pose a nutritional problem for Kanter, said Dr. Richard Bloomer, dean of the School of Health Studies and the Center for Wellness and Fitness at the University of Memphis. “A lot of people think, ‘Gee, my carbohydrate or glycogen stores could be depleted,’” he said. “That would be problematic, but the reality is, if they’re eating adequately during the ‘acceptable’ feeding period, they should be able to store all of the energy that they need.” Recent studies have shown that fasting can both help and hurt an athlete’s anaerobic performance; Bloomer said that players’ experiences also depended on their mindsets. If Kanter believes that fasting inhibits his play, it may, “even though there may not be physiological adverse outcomes,” Bloomer said. For Kanter, though, that is not a problem. “I actually work harder during Ramadan because my body’s used to it,” he said. Tareq Azim, a San Francisco-based NFL trainer who was a linebacker at Fresno State, felt the same. “The level of clarity during Ramadan was just always insane — the way I can think and take in information,” Azim said. “Technically, I’d become really sound during that month. I wouldn’t rely so much on strength and power.” Like Kanter, Azim has learned to cope with the challenges of fasting during Ramadan as he’s gotten older. In the fifth grade, when he started attempting to fast for Ramadan, he would wake up with his parents around 4 a.m. to eat suhur, the meal right before sunrise. “It’d be so difficult to try and stay up and eat,” he said.<doc-sep>
Portland Trail Blazers center Enes Kanter, forward Maurice Harkless and forward Al-Farouq Aminu, from left, watch from the bench in the waning minutes of Game 5 of the team's NBA basketball second-round playoff series against the Denver Nuggets on Tuesday, May 7, 2019, in Denver. The Nuggets won 124-98. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski) This morning I woke up at 3, long before sunrise. It is Ramadan. It is also the NBA playoffs. Both require my absolute focus in a way that I have never experienced before. Like hundreds of millions of Muslims around the world, I ate my pre-fast meal, suhur, which is what we eat before we practice the first of our five daily prayers. Every year, we observe Ramadan for 29 to 30 days based on the lunar calendar. During this time, the most important month of the year for the Islamic faith, followers of my religion abstain from food, water and even medicine until the sun is no longer visible on the horizon. At the end of each day, we break the fast with a light meal called an iftar following the evening call to prayer. Over the years, I've become accustomed to the quiet of that morning meal, a time when I devote myself completely to my faith. Ramadan this year is different from any I've ever experienced because it coincides with the NBA playoffs. My team, the Portland Trail Blazers, face our possible elimination Thursday night in what will be one of the most important games I've ever played. This year I am testing the limitations of my bodily strength in a way I never have before. But I've also come to understand my potential and how inner strength can translate to triumph. My observance as a practicing Muslim in the NBA is somewhat uncommon. Since joining the league in 2011, my dedication to my faith has aroused the curiosity of teammates, coaches, trainers and fans. The other night, before Game 5 against the Denver Nuggets, as I was counting down the seconds to iftar, my teammates watched eagerly as I finally broke my fast with a painkiller for my injured shoulder and six peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. They started asking me questions and joking that I was going to throw up. I laughed and told them to get out on the floor and start warming up and that I'd join after I was done eating. I actually felt great. Many people are fascinated by how I follow my faith, including the fasting (which I do regularly throughout the year), the meaning behind praying five times a day and what Muslims can and cannot do during this holiest month of the year. I recently texted NBA legend Hakeem Olajuwon, and he provided some much-needed guidance about persevering in the postseason during Ramadan. Ultimately, as I take my final sips of water during the morning suhur, I prepare for the day's challenges by turning inward. The challenges might involve exhausting training sessions, or physical therapy for my shoulder, or dealing with unsettling news from family or friends in Turkey, where the nation suffers under an authoritarian regime. My faith in Islam is not unlike my faith in the game of basketball: Both require immense determination, focus, passion and discipline. But the challenges I face during Ramadan are not unique to me. Millions of Muslims around the world can relate to the struggle to make it through each day without food or water. The only reason people talk about my experience during Ramadan is that I am a professional basketball player with a prominent platform. Basketball to me is more than a passion or a paycheck — it is the tool I use to try to have an impact in the world. But not all challenges can be overcome with a willingness and determination, for there are still things that remain out of our control. Today, thousands of prisoners of conscience who are also observant Muslims are observing Ramadan from behind the bars of jails in Turkey. I would like to continue to use my platform to advocate on behalf of people in Turkey who can’t speak out, including at the Human Rights Foundation’s Oslo Freedom Forum. More than anything, I want to be an example for children everywhere, showing them that you can thrive when challenged — fasting for Ramadan, for instance, but also going all out in the NBA playoffs.