For Euros, NBA Draft begins in round two

June 24, 2008

With the NBA Draft only two days away, I made some more reflections about this annual ceremony that is the hope for NBA fans to get additional talent for their team.

The trend of drafting Europeans has slowed a bit in recent years after some casting errors and refusals to join the big league. As a European prospect, unless you are an extraordinary talent entering the lottery, it is no longer worth getting drafted in the first round.

I’ve already addressed this in terms of salary in a previous article, but I’m trying to look at this from an NBA executive’s point of view today. If you draft a top European talent like Ante Tomic or an already-confirmed Euroleague starter like Nikola Pekovic at the end of round one, your team will probably never see this guy jumping the ocean to join the NBA.

The contracts that such players are currently signing in Europe are beyond the amount they can ever earn in the United States, due to the rookie salary restrictions. There is, of course, the fame factor of playing against the best, but for many young European basketball players, the NBA is not the top priority anymore.

So can we say that the Euro Draft now begins only in the second round?

This year, the Minnesota Timberwolves have the first choice of this recently undervalued part of the NBA Draft. So are they the real winners of the draft evening, as they can select the best available prospect from Europe?

According to various mock drafts, only Danilo Gallinari is sure to be drafted in the lottery. All the other Europeans are end-of-first-round or second-round projections right now. All of the teams drafting between 20-30 are probably not taking a European player, as they are unlikely to sign him and the pick would become a bust. An exception may come for the French guys in the selection process, as they are in surprisingly low demand in the crazy European market and are more focused on an NBA career.

So the Timberwolves will most likely have the choice between a massive 6’11” center with outstanding positioning and a good arsenal of offensive moves (Nikola Pekovic); a 6’10” athlete with tremendous upside (Serge Ibaka); or even a Boris Diaw/Scottie Pippen-like swingman from France (Nicolas Batum).

Thursday night, we’ll know more about who was drafted where and which NBA teams made the good choices. But for me, the Euro Draft will only start with the 31st pick. Let’s see if this happens…

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This post was published on June 24, 2008
The token American responds: Be afraidThe 2008 National Champions
Comments: 4
  1. 17 years ago

    I love the possibilities of Ibaka, Batum, and especially Pekovic playing in the NBA. Any and all of these three could thrive in the correct system (imagine Batum playing in the triangle with Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum) in the ‘States, and i figure all three will be drafted.

    Christophe, how come some NBA team hasn’t hired you as European consultant? The Boston Celtics, for example, look overly American…

    Cheers,

    Os.

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  2. Eric
    17 years ago

    Great post Christophe, and a good question : why are French prospect so in love with the NBA ???
    It’s clear that, if they get drafted both Batum & Ajinça will go to the NBA. First or secound round, they don’t care.

    So why ?
    I see a lot of explanations:
    – a weak national scene, French basketball is not a mainstream sport in France, handball is stealing our third place in collective sports (we are behind football, rugby + no qualification in the coming Olympics)
    – no results for our team in the European competition, due to our fiscal & financial limits
    – with the exception of Rigaudeau (Bologna), no French baller had ever a major role in a winning Euroleague team, there’s no tradition here
    – no money in France for ballers, compared to NBA or even Euroleague standards.

    And here are, according to me, the major explanations :
    – a wonderful job made by Bouna Ndaye, their agents
    – those guys don’t feel respected : can you imagine that Ajinça (projected mid-first round) was starting on the bench, that Batum was not the main option at Le Mans
    – their game, because of their largely seen exceptionnal body & athlecism, seem more adapted to the NBA.

    And the most tough comments :
    – all of our prospects are Black. They all come from France Islands (Martinique, Guadeloupe). I mean they are French, since they are born…..but they don’t feel French, they feel Black in a White Country.
    And according to the modern mythology, it’s safer to be a pro Black athlete in the States than in Europe. It’s not only about the money, but I try to explain that it’s something more cultural.

    Just take a look at M.Gelabale. He was a part-time starter in Cholet (no respect), then goes to Madrid, where he is considered a starter (before his arguing with coach).
    He gets drafted by Seattle and goes there. Now he is buried deep in the rotation, he was even sent to D-League. And instead of opting for a buy-out and a signing in a Euro-powerhouse, he choose to stay in the US for a ridiculous small pay. Same can be said for Y.Diawara (Nuggets), Mahinmi (Spurs) or even Petro (Sonics).
    Money can not explain why they want to have success in the NBA, it’s beyond the financial aspect, it’s a mix between fate & revenge.

    I don’t know if Batum & Ajinça will have a career in the NBA, or if they will become marginal players, but I am sure they will go after theirs dreams until the last seconds.

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  3. 17 years ago

    Bouna is certainly doing an extraordinary job to place his players in the NBA. The question remains if that is the best possibility for them as the salaries in Europe are climbing. I doubt that Mickael Gelabale earns more money in Seattle than he would gain in Madrid if he would be still there.
    Ajinca and Batum to feel respected: that’s an interesting part. Where in the world see young talents 40 minutes per game? There are not so many countries. Neither Batum nor Ajinca will get this “respect” in the NBA.
    Look which French NBA player has really succeeded in the NBA, there is only 1 for the moment: TP. All the others are second-tier to low level guys. They would earn much more respect and money if they would play in Europe.
    However, with all these NBA dropouts, the French young player has lost of his attractiveness for European teams. The game is so different that somebody like Petro or Mahinmi are not really typed to play in Euroleague.

    But in the end, good luck for both Frenchies and I hope they will earn a lot of titles in their future.

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  4. Eric
    17 years ago

    I totally agree with you.
    And that’s where the mythology of the NBA happens, exactly just like in the commercials !!!.
    It’s not only about facts, it’s about feelings. Feeling that if you know how to play, a player will get more looks in the NBA than in the ProA.
    The French ballers strongly believe that USA is the self-proclaimed “country of opportunity”.
    You are right, when you say that France has only a single star in the NBA (Parker), a part-time starter (Diaw) and a bunch of bench/NBDL players. But, for the newcomers, the NBA is the place to be.

    Money doesn’t count for them. It’s sure that those marginal NBA players would make more cash in Europe…..but this doesn’t count for them.

    In my opinion, it’s impossible to compare Pekovic and Batum or Ajinça. They don’t have the same cultural background.
    Peko will first establish himself in Euro, and then analyzing his chance to make the same noise in the NBA. in 5 years ( à la Scola). Batum will make the opposite: try to make it in the NBA, and in 5 years he could go back in Europe if he failed.
    Same can be said for Diaw and Bodiroga. They have some common points : a multi-dimensional skill level. But Dejan never would have accepted to be a bench player in the NBA, he wants to be the Man. Diaw could be a big force in Europe, but in his mind it’s better to be a 6th-to-8th guy in the NBA…..just because NBA is the NBA.
    At a lower level, Gelabale/Diawara would never make a Khryapa move. If they come back to Europe = they would be kicked out of the NBA. They will try everything to stay.
    To a point you can consider Petro and Mahinmi as US players if they fall (in their opinion) to come to Europe : their goal would be to reshape their game to go back to the NBA.

    Well, I will stop there as my English is not strong enough to make me deliver my message.

    But, even if Batum & Ajinça are drafted 59th and 60th, they will try to stick in the NBA. And with those 2 players, France will have the biggest European crop in the NBA with 10 players.
    More than every Euro-teams going to the Olympics.

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