Christian Eyenga (1m95 – G – 1989 – DKV Joventut Badalona)

Eyenga did not see that much minutes with DKV Joventut Badalona through out the season. So at a first look, his presence here may be a surprise. The move behind this is however that Eyenga wants to go either undrafted or for a 2nd round spot which would give him more opportunities when being able to move to the NBA one day. First of all, he needs to crack the rotation of Joventut though.

Current mocks: Draftexpress #56 – NBA Draft.net undrafted

Rodrigue Beaubois (1m86 – G – 1988 – Cholet Basket)

Beaubois showed his great combination of athleticism and basketball skills at the Reebok Eurocamp. His shooting remains however a bit suspect at the moment even he has made a great move forward in that area this season. He has definitely nice upside but I have some doubts about his abilities to turn into a PG in the future. The team that will draft him will get a scoring guard with great athletic abilities.

Draftexpress #30 – NBA Draft.net #50

Nando de Colo (1m94 – G – 1987 – Cholet Basket)

Still being listed at more than 2m by some outlets, the guard from Cholet has been officially measured at 1m94 without shoes in Treviso. This does not take away from him his great creativity and passing skills that make him on of the most interesting PG prospects in Europe. He has already signed a deal with Pamesa Valencia according to different reports so that there is the possibility to park for a year or two in Europe. Lacks the athletic potential of Beaubois but has a great shot out of the dribble with a quick release.

Draftexpress #54 – NBA Draft.net undrafted

Omri Casspi (2m04 – F – 1988 – Maccabi Tel Aviv)

The Israeli forward has impressed quite a lot of people during his workouts with his toughness. He got used to play physically by getting lots of minutes with a Euroleague powerhouse. His good speed helped him to beat his man of the dribble in Europe but is this enough for the NBA when his shot does not fall? He looks currently as one of the most promising wings of the draft and he may be the first Israeli player to get drafted and actually play in the NBA.

Draftexpress #26 – NBA Draft.net #23

Henk Norel (2m12 – F/C – 1987 – DKV Joventut Badalona)

Norel was hyped a lot more one year ago and several minor injuries have slowed down his development this year. You have here a hard working big guy who can run the floor extremely well and is a fighter in the paint. He has a very nice shot from outside which he does not use that much for the moment but that gives him interesting offensive potential. Despite showing good athletic abilities, he needs to gain some weight in order to have an impact in the NBA.

Draftexpress #55 – NBA Draft.net undrafted

Milenko Tepic (1m98 – G – 1987 – Partizan Belgrade/Panathinaikos Athens)

The Serbian guard is not what you call a typical NBA prospect. Still he remains eligible due to his age but I doubt that any team will go after him especially as he has signed a deal with Panathinaikos Athens a few weeks ago. Tepic is a tall guard who can play all the 1-2-3 positions. He is a correct athlete but his main asset is his versatility and he has become a correct shooter from behind the three point line.

Draftexpress undrafted – NBA Draft.net #57

Emir Preldzic (2m06 – F – 1987 – Fenerbahce Ülker Istanbul)

The SF from Fenerbahce had a nice run in the middle of the season for his team. He displays excellent ball handling skills and creativity for a player of his size, something that made his coach play him as a PG during stretches. Currently, he is not really considered as a NBA prospect as his game and physical abilities translate more into the Euroleague type of basketball.

Draftexpress undrafted – NBA Draft.net undrafted

Gasper Vidmar (2m10 – C – 1987 – Fenerbahce Ülker Istanbul)

Vidmar has not seen the same development than Preldzic with Fenerbahce. Vidmar plays the Center position and his statistical progression has stopped this year in the Euroleague. This has of course not helped him to improve his draft stock and most of the observers don’t see a future for him in the NBA right now.

Draftexpress undrafted – NBA Draft.net undrafted

Victor Claver (2m04 – F – 1988 – Pamesa Valencia)

The Spanish forward had his season shortened by a broken leg but he is however in the Draft this year. His newly signed deal with Pamesa Valencia indicates also why he has chosen this option, getting drafted below the first round in order to be able to sign an open deal with a NBA team when he ever joins the league. He has the tools to do so but the next season in Spain will show how strong he can come back after this year.

Draftexpress #33 – NBA Draft.net #24

Sergio Llull (1m90 – G – 1987 – Real Madrid)

The Spanish guard showed a great season this year and he may end up in the Draft this week. Llull has tremendous speed and leaping abilities for a European player and his three point shot has made some interesting breaks for Real Madrid this season. His is very present in defense and offensively can create a lot of scoring in shots stretches. He may become a very interesting role player for a NBA team that creates the right situation for him.

Draftexpress #42 – NBA Draft.net #44

Ricky Rubio (1m92 – G – 1990 – DKV Joventut Badalona)

The top European talent in this Draft and even for the whole decade is Ricky Rubio. Everything has been said about the Spanish phenomenon already; great defensive instincts, fantastic drive and creativity and difficulties to shot out of the dribble. The question that remains is if Rubio will be able to lead a NBA team at his young age.

Draftexpress #4 – NBA Draft.net #2

Jonas Jerebko (2m06 – F – 1987 – Angelico Biella)

The Swedish forward has developed into a very interesting player over the last years. Being 2m06 tall and playing the SF, he has all the tools to be successful in the NBA. He has grown step by step by concentrating on his role, long distance shooting and aggressiveness attacking the basket. Jerebko may stay another year in Europe though to progress with a Euroleague team before joining the NBA.

Draftexpress #29 – NBA Draft.net #28

Rudy Mbemba (1m81 – G – 1987 – Vanoli Soresina)

The tiny PG is the second Swedish player that is available for the NBA Draft this year. He has been a player observed for years now and still the doubts remain if he can ever develop enough to be a player to be asked to run the PG. His outstanding athletic abilities are a major asset for him in Europe but don’t make him that special in the United States.  His decision making and shooting selection has improved this year but is it enough to see a team make a gamble on him?

Draftexpress undrafted – NBA Draft.net undrafted

Sergiy Gladyr (1m96 – G – 1988 – Mykolaiv)

The Ukrainian sharp shooter had one of the better showing during the Reebok Eurocamp which probably was the reason for him to stay in the Draft. Being represented by Comsport as agency is probably another reason as the team around Bouna N’Diaye is known for getting players in the right light to be drafted. Gladyr is a great scoring guard with interesting athletic capabilities but who has currently a certain lack of experience of high level basketball as he only played for a medium-level Ukrainian team.

Draftexpress #49 – NBA Draft.net #48

Vyacheslav “Slava” Kravtsov (2m12 – C – 1987 – BC Kyiv)

The Ukrainian Center may have a decent chance to hear his name called on Thursday as he offers a good physical built and jumping abilities to play as a role player in the NBA. He can make the difference with his rebound and shot blocking on the defense end while his offensive game is still improving.

Draftexpress #60 – NBA Draft.net #52

NBA Draft 2009: the European candidates is a post from: European Prospects
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• Let’s start with a player that got drafted already but who is still considered as a prospect. Joel Freeland, the 1987 born forward of Kalise Gran Canaria finished his season with the Spanish team this Sunday on a positive note despite the loss as he was the top scorer. Freeland showed a variety of ways to score from low post moves to jump shots and drives. In the post, he mostly used some kind of running hook which he executed of his left or his right hand. Additionally, he showed a nice catch-and-shoot baseline jump shot from 5 meters. He also beat his opponent of the dribble from the top of the key with very nice speed of his right hand. Freeland is also very present in rebounding where he essentially uses good positioning and boxing out go average nearly 6 boards per game in 22 minutes of play.
• Another 1987 born player in Spain but being automatically eligible in the Draft this year is Sergio Llull of Real Madrid. The guard impresses with great speed, good athleticism and a quick shot release on catch-and-shoot plays. And it is with these kind of skills that Llull scores the most for his team where he has a role a energy back-up and booster from the bench. Additionally, he has a role as defensive stopper if needed where he can use his athleticism to overpower the often smaller or less athletic European guards.
• Pau Ribas had a good game for Joventut in the last Playoff game of the season. The 1987 born guard scored mostly on difficult shots out of the dribble or with open shots around the arc. Not much considered as a NBA prospect, Ribas should however develop into a target for several high-level Euroleague teams in the next 2-3 years.
• It was probably the last game for Ricky Rubio in Europe and it was certainly not one of his best. Coming back from a small injury in a do-or-die game for his team, Rubio could not really make the difference as he still suffered from his leg. His defensive presence of course was not as usual and also his offensive creativity got hurt through the lack of speed he displayed. However, the overall talent level is not questioned.
• Recently elected Rookie of the Year in Germany, the 1988 born PG Per Günther finished his first BBL Playoff series against Bonn. The former Hagen player established himself as the backup of Dru Joyce throughout the season and all the executives of the team are highly satisfied with the work done by Günther. It would not be a big surprise if ratiopharm Ulm gives him the Starting job next season. The 1m84 tall guard is in fact doing an excellent job in running the point for the team of coach Mike Taylor. Setting up the plays, giving instructions to his team mates and calling them together for huddles, he looks like the future team captain already. Besides these soft skills, Günther scores mostly of open three point shots which he is not afraid of taking despite a pretty poor percentage so far. His ball handling skills have improved nicely over the season so that he gets less in trouble against aggressive defenses than a year ago. This skills together with nice speed open him some possibilities to attack the basket but his lack of athletic abilities prevent him often from scoring against the big guys.
• Another surprise in the German playoffs is 1988 born SG Karsten Tadda. Excellent defender (2 charges taken again this Sunday together with 13pts and 8rebs), Tadda played himself into the rotation of Brose Baskets Bamberg and is stealing the show from all the established pros of the team and also from the highly looked at NBA prospect Tim Ohlbrecht. The German PF is currently totally of and does not see many minutes with his team. I doubt he will stay in the draft or get any kind of return from his early entrance as it looks like his team will stay for a long playoff run which takes him away from possible NBA workouts.
• Another early-entrance candidate I had the possibility to see is Roger Aboubakar Zaki. The 7-footer from Nancy saw some Garbage minutes on Friday but he did not really display a lot of will for the few seconds he was on court. He was very active cheering on the bench but once on the court, all this energy was gone as you could see him walk up and down the court instead of trying to spring to get a possible look on the break. This did not look very promising in terms of mental approach for a NBA future.

Playoff picks is a post from: European Prospects
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I will start my roundup with the players that will or may enter the 2009 NBA Draft as early entrants. They can declare until April 26th if they want to put their name on the Early-Entrants list in order to test their value for the upcoming Draft. Then, the can withdraw their name until the 15th of June if they are not happy. As an international player, you can withdraw twice from the Early Entrants list, when entering your name for a third year, you are automatically in the NBA Draft.

Player having declared officially for the 2009 NBA Draft

The only International player that has officially declared so far is the French-German-Portuguese forward Fernando Raposo as reports jump-shot.net from France. The 2m06 tall and 1989 born PF, who plays his first full professional season with Elan Béarnais in France this year had some interesting games in a tough sportive situation. Having signed with agent Kenny Grant this season, Raposo is probably just testing the waters to see his value and put his name on the list of the different scouts that did not know him so far. Without going for some huge workouts or a mind-blowing Reebok EuroCamp, Raposo will most likely withdraw before the dead-line.

Brandon Jennings is a specific case as he is the first US born player to join a European professional team right out of High School. This makes him automatically a NBA Draft candidate according to a rule of the NBA Players collective bargaining agreement. His year in Italy has put him under different spotlights than the typical NCAA Freshman and gave the NBA scouts a possibility to evaluate him under professional circumstances.

Omri Casspi has declared to be officially eligible for the 2009 NBA Draft in different reports in the Israeli press. I consider the chances for him to stay in the Draft are pretty high, but he may not want to get drafted in the first round except if he becomes a Lottery pick which is highly unlikely. Casspi certainly can sign a more lucrative contract in Europe so a low first round pick is not that interesting for him. We will see how his situation evolves.

Players declaring highly likely during the next days

Rodrigue Beaubois will declare officially that he is in the Draft during the next days. His agent announced it already to Draftexpress, so it is pretty obvious that he will enter the early-entrants list for the third and will be in for good. Beaubois got quite some buzz over the last days and weeks due to his great play during March. If he can continue on that level, he will have good chances to see a very interesting Draft spot coming up.

More and more rumors say that Ricky Rubio will declare for this year’s Draft. The Spanish PG comes however from a season where his progress was a bit handicapped by a hand injury in the beginning of the 2008/2009 exercise. Still, he is considered as a top lottery pick and could even go as high as the Top3 according to the different Mocks.

Several sources indicate that Vladimir Dasic will enter his name to the NBA Draft 2009 during the next days. The SF from Montenegro has played a great U20 European Championship last summer but struggled a bit to put up regular performances throughout the season in the Adriatic League. He finished the season strong though with several big scoring performances but still not being accurate from behind the arc.

Testing the waters

Draftexpress also reports that Roger Zaki may enter his name this year in order to test the waters. Zaki comes of a season where he saw some minutes on the Euroleague level, but he showed that he is currently far away from being a factor on that level, especially defensively where he gets pushed around at will. He needs to find a team first where he can earn some minutes, and being born in 1988, he needs to do that quickly if his goal is to being drafted. Still, the potential is there, but is that enough?

Giorgi Shermadini is probably exactly the opposite case. The Georgian big man destroyed everything in his home league and moved to Panathinaikos in November 2008 and played only 4 league games since then.

Possible entrants

A player that may enter the NBA Draft after his recent performances at the Nike Hoop Summit (I will talk about that in a later post) is the Lithuanian Forward/Center Donatas Motiejunas. The seven footer with the great touch played a correct for a small team in Lithuania and managed to qualify the to the Challenge Final Four of the Baltic League.

Players that could have been ready this year for an early entrance but got kicked back by injuries or poor play are Victor Claver (broken leg) or Tim Ohlbrecht (limited playing time and multiple injuries). They may try to put their name back on the board of the NBA scouts by entering early and withdrawing before the deadline.

Ludo Vaty from Pau-Orthez is also a possible entrant according to several sources. The French PF played a good season and improved every season since he is with the former French powerhouse. He may have a future as a hard working rebounder and hustle guy in the big league.

Automatically eligible

On the list of players that are automatically eligible, being born in 1987, you will find also some interesting names.  Inside players like Henk Norel or Slava Kravtsov may get a shot somewhere in the second round. These type of players can boost their stock with a good performance during the Reebok Eurocamp in June.

A multi-task player like Emir Preldzic may be interesting for some franchises, something that counts also for Milenko Tepic. For both of these guys, the future will however be probably in Europe as they lack some NBA typical characteristics. Jonas Jerebko is another player that may have some NBA potential due to his interesting combination of size and shooting skills.

Finally, you have two guards that may get a pick this year as they played both some interesting seasons in the past. Sergio Llull had his breakout party this year and boosted the Real Madrid play during stretches with his athletic and speedy drives or three point bombs. While Nando de Colo had a great last season, he slowed down a bit this year but he may be picked down the road somewhere late in the second round.

A first look at the upcoming 2009 NBA Draft is a post from: European Prospects
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For the 1987 born’s, my choice went immediately to Sergio Llull. The Spanish guard has made his place now in the stacked Real Madrid roster and is the only prospect of the whole list that contributes in this way in the Euroleague. Llull can play both guard spots which is his advantage but also a problem as he won’t develop his still lacking PG skills. His role currently is more of an energizer coming from the bench. With his great speed and athleticism, Llull excels in the fastbreak and can score even on difficult drives.

Victor Claver is coming of an excellent start into the new season in the ACB. The highly athletic wing is putting up great numbers in the toughest national league of the continent. He showed great touch from behind the arc several times and pleases the crowd with some nice dunks. Still, he looks particularly skinny in comparison to other big guys so it is no wonder that he plays more SF than in the paint. He looks currently like one of the most promising players in Europe with his current production.

The problem remains in the 1989 generation where it is tough to find quality players that already play big minutes on the highest level. So my choice fell on Thomas Heurtel who I already presented a bit more in detail a few days ago. Heurtel still does not manage to make his team winning some games but his beginning of the season was particularly interesting on an individual way. Now he has to confirm as the other teams will wait for him and prepare on his playing style.

Donatas Motiejunas got critized heavily for moving away from Zalgiris Kaunas to play with Aisciai Atletas. But it looks like his choice was correct when it only comes to playing time. With 24.5 ppg in the Lithuanian league, the goal to play a lot has been reached but on a team that only won 1 game so far. If Motiejunas can continue with his current numbers over the whole year, he may have accumulated lots of confidence and he will be ready to play on the next level from 2009 on.

In the newly added 1991 category, the first choice goes to Nicolo Melli. The Italian forward continues where he played already last season with interesting performances for Trenkwalder Reggio Emilia in the Italian Lega Due. During last season’s playoffs, Nicolo showed his potential and now he has to continue to improve on this level.

Prospect of the month: October 2008 is a post from: European Prospects
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France-Germany

Nando de Colo is probably one of the most interesting names out of this list when it comes to NBA Draft chances, at least according to the Mock experts. After a summer between rumors sending him to Dynamo and his first game with the French NT (28pts 9/9FG), de Colo has to come back to Cholet and drive his team to the same success than it had last year with winning the Semaine des As.

Johannes Lischka is the main man when it comes to 1987 talent in Germany. The strong forward from Giessen 46ers is an important rotation in the system of head coach Simon Cote on the SF position and he showed during the preseason some very impressive stretches on the court. Nowhere close to be an NBA talent but certainly an interesting player for the future.

Nicolai Simon is a special case and also a personal favorite. The 1987 born PG signed a few years ago at ALBA Berlin and had a very promising first season. But a severe injury stopped his progression totally and now after nearly a 1 year break, Simon is back… in the third division. After he made some interesting games with the German B National team during the Summer, ALBA let him go back to Ehingen to gain some playing time this season and then come back. And Dirk Bauermann has high hopes of bringing Simon to the Senior NT soon as he explained in an interview today.

Spain-Italy

Luigi Da Tome is currently not sure about where he is going to play next season. He is still under contract with Montepaschi Siena but it is not sure if he comes back to Mens Sana Basket this season after his loan. The thing is that Roma wants to buy him out of the remaining two years of his contract and MPS can not guarantee him the necessary playing time probably. So we have to see how his situation continues.

Henk Norel is stepping up big in the preseason for Joventut Badalona. It looks like the Dutch Power Forward can make an interesting impact in the Euroleague right from the start. His versatile play may give him some backup minutes behind the experienced Hernandez-Sonseca and Pops Mensah-Bonsu. On the other hand, his correct shot may give him also the opportunity to play on the wing together with Jan-Hendrik Jagla.

Jonas Jerebko comes of a very successful Eurobasket campaign with the Swedish National team in Division B where he was the best rebounder and 2nd best scorer of the team. Now he tries to use the gained confidence in order to improve with Angelico Biella in Italy this season.

Sergi Llull may be on the edge of his development into a Euroleague players this season. The athletic guard of Real Madrid should see some minutes after the departure of Kerem Tunceri as back-up of Pepe Sanchez and Raul Lopez when Real plays against bigger guards.

Pau Ribas will discover the Euroleague this season with Badalona and form an excitingly young back-court at Joventut together with Ricky Rubio. His driving and good pick and roll play will help him as well as his excellent long distance shot.

Greece-Turkey

Dimitris Verginis made a big step by signing with Panathinaikos this summer. Now the question is if he sees any minute with the Euroleague powerhouse because the roster is so packed on the guard positions that I personally don’t see a lot of room for him. However, a year practicing with some of the best PGs in Europe is not the worst thing to happen.

Oguz Savas is slowly but steadily improving his numbers in the Euroleague with his unathletic but very effective style. With Omer Asik out and Semih Erden apparently injured too, Savaz remains the only true center on Fenerbahce’s roster and should see extended minutes in the beginning of the season.

Other countries

Rudy Mbemba is now moving to Italy after a season in his home country Sweden where he put up big numbers. Now he tries to finally translate his talent to the next level and Rieti will offer him the opportunity. Still considered by some as an NBA prospect, Mbemba struggles as PG and is too short to play as SG. We will see if he improves in this area this season after playing a whole season as PG in Solna.

Season Preview: 1987 generation (Part 2) is a post from: European Prospects
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