Iran Before officially playing for a professional Iranian team, Haddadi started his basketball stint with a hometown team of his known as
Shahin Ahvaz. His stint there would ultimately allow Haddadi to play in the
Iranian Basketball Super League with
Paykan Tehran and
Saba Battery. In 2004, Haddadi would also play for
Sanam Tehran for a bit as well. In August 2007, while still playing in Iran, he rejected a contract offer from the
Serbian League team
Partizan Belgrade in order to play for Saba Battery. During the
2011 NBA lockout, Haddadi signed a short-term contract with his hometown team,
Melli Haffari Ahvaz. During this period Haddadi received no salary from the team. During the 2013 offseason, Haddadi signed a short-term contract with
Foolad Mahan Isfahan. After his first stint with the
Chinese Basketball Association, Haddadi would return to Iran once again to play for
Mahram Tehran to play out the rest of their season. On March 9, 2016, Haddadi signed with
Petrochimi Bandar Imam of the
Iranian Super League. However, he wouldn't make his debut until later on in March due to his CBA Finals duties with the
Sichuan Blue Whales at the time. He would return to that same team once again after the
2016-17 CBA season concluded for Sichuan. This time around, however, he would play for them for the entirety of the 2017–18 season. On December 14, 2025, Haddadi signed with
Esteghlal BC of the
Iranian Basketball Super League (IBSL).
United Arab Emirates In 2003, Haddadi was assigned by Paykan Tehran to play for
Al-Nasr from
Dubai in the
United Arab Emirates for a short period of time. He would ultimately return with Paykan after his stint with Al-Nasr.
NBA career Memphis Grizzlies Before the
2004 NBA draft, Haddadi declared himself
eligible for the draft as an early entrant. However, he went
undrafted in the draft and therefore became a free agent who is free to sign with any NBA team. Haddadi received offers from NBA teams prior to the
2008 Summer Olympics and stated he would sign with a team after the games. Complications existed because of legal restrictions regarding business dealings between U.S. companies and Iranian citizens. On August 28, 2008, Haddadi signed with the
NBA's
Memphis Grizzlies as a free-agent. Haddadi scored four points in 17 minutes of action in his first NBA preseason game, an October 7, 2008 loss at the
Houston Rockets. Haddadi averaged 1.7 points and 3.3 rebounds in 9.7 minutes in six preseason games with the Grizzlies, and made his regular season debut on December 30, when he played 4 minutes in a loss against the
Phoenix Suns, hitting both of his
free throws and grabbing one rebound. On November 25, 2008, Memphis assigned Haddadi to the
Dakota Wizards of the
NBA D-League. On Tuesday, December 23, 2008, Haddadi was recalled by the Grizzlies. Haddadi scored a then career-high 10 points, with 8 rebounds and a block in less than 10 minutes to key a 12–0 run in the 4th quarter, sparking the Grizzlies to a come-from-behind victory at the
Golden State Warriors on March 30, 2009. On December 31, 2011, he re-signed with the Memphis Grizzlies a one-year $1.3 million contract. On April 17, 2012, Hamed came off the bench to score 8 points in 12 minutes and give the Grizzlies a boost to lead them to a victory over the rival Minnesota Timberwolves. On July 28, 2012, Haddadi re-signed with the Memphis Grizzlies. On January 30, 2013, Haddadi was traded to the
Toronto Raptors along with
Rudy Gay as part of a three-way deal that sent
José Calderón to the Detroit Pistons and
Ed Davis,
Tayshaun Prince,
Austin Daye, and a second round pick to the Memphis Grizzlies. However, Haddadi could not immediately report to the Raptors due to immigration issues. He would never play a single game for the Raptors.
Phoenix Suns On February 21, 2013, the Raptors traded Haddadi and a second-round draft pick to the
Phoenix Suns for
Sebastian Telfair. During his tenure with the Suns, Haddadi decided to wear the number 98 as a tribute of sorts to his home nation's national telephone code. Haddadi did not play for the Suns until March 6, 2013, in a game against the Raptors, the team that Haddadi was first traded to. On March 9, 2013, Haddadi recorded 6 points, 3 blocks and a career-high 11 rebounds in 28 minutes off the bench, contributing to the Suns 107–105 win over the
Houston Rockets. Despite gaining professional career highs in his short stint with the team, Haddadi was waived by the Suns on June 29, 2013.
China In September 2013, Haddadi signed with the
Sichuan Blue Whales of the
Chinese Basketball Association as the bonus foreign Asian player that's allowed to be on the expansion CBA team. On September 15, 2014, Haddadi agreed to terms with
Qingdao DoubleStar Eagles. With Haddadi's help, the Eagles were one of the top teams during the
2014–15 season. During his time in Qingdao, Haddadi would average 20.4 points, 13.9 rebounds, 3.7 assists, and 2.3 blocks for the team's surprise rise. However, due to Qingdao's success that season, they could not re-sign him afterwards. In September 2015, Haddadi returned to the Sichuan Blue Whales as their bonus foreign Asian player due to them having one of the worst records that season. During his second stint in Sichuan, Haddadi would help the team reach their first playoff stint in CBA history. He would help the Blue Whales sweep the
Zhejiang Lions in the first round and the
Xinjiang Flying Tigers in the second round before playing in the championship series against the
Liaoning Flying Leopards. Before Haddadi would return to his home nation with
Petrochimi Bandar Imam in Iran, he would help finish the job that was needed with the Blue Whales, as he would help lead Sichuan to a 4–1 Finals series win over the
Liaoning Flying Leopards, and thus becoming the
CBA Finals MVP in the process. After finishing his most recent stint in his home nation, he'd return to Sichuan as an exception player for the two international players allowed on their roster. After taking a year off from Chinese basketball, Haddadi returned to the CBA once again, this time playing as a starting centre for the
Xinjiang Flying Tigers. ==National team career==