Former North Dakota State men's basketball standout Vinnie Shahid has signed a contract to play his fourth professional season in Italy.
 
Shahid joins Pallacanestro Varese, located in northern Italy and competing in the country's top league – Serie A. He has captured back-to-back Player of the Year awards in Iceland and France.
 
Shahid played his rookie season in Luxembourg in 2020-21, before earning Player of the Year honors in the French NM1 league in 2021-22, averaging 21.0 points and 3.9 assists. For his third professional season in 2022-23, Shahid led the Icelandic league with 26.4 points and 8.7 assists per game for Thor Thorlákshöfn, winning Player of the Year once again.
 
Shahid played for NDSU from 2018-20 after spending two seasons at Western Nebraska Community College. He was named the Summit League Newcomer of the Year and Summit League Tournament MVP as a junior in 2019, then claimed first team All-Summit League honors and Tournament MVP for the second time in 2020.
 
Shahid totaled 608 points for NDSU in the 2019-20 season – becoming the sixth Bison ever to top 600 points in a year – and averaged 20.9 points and 3.6 assists in league play.