RealGM Basketball Wiretap

Hawks Seriously Considering Ettore Messina

Fri, 17 May 2013 02:43:39 EDT

Ettore Messina has emerged as a serious candidate to become the next head coach of the Atlanta Hawks.

Messina was born in Italy and is the current coach of CSKA Moscow. Messina is a four-time Euroleague championship coach and two-time Euroleague coach of the year. 

Messina was part of the Los Angeles Lakers' coaching staff during the 11-12 NBA season.

Messina left the NBA to take a $1 million-plus a year job with CSKA.

Danny Ferry recently scouted CSKA at last weekend's Euroleague Final Four.

Stan Van Gundy and Quin Snyder are also candidates.

Dario Saric Needs Lottery Promise To Remain In Draft

Wed, 15 May 2013 14:46:05 EDT

Dario Saric, a 19-year-old small forward out of Croatia, is currently in the draft, but could withdraw depending on whether he receives a promise.

Draft Express currently projects Saric being selected at No. 23. 

"Dario Saric. He's not staying in the draft if he's not a lottery pick. So if he stays, someone promised him in the lottery."

Spanoulis, Olympiacos Repeat As Euroleague Champions

Sun, 12 May 2013 20:21:05 EDT

Olympiacos has defeated Real Madrid by a final score of 100-88 to win the 2013 Euroleague championship.

Olympiacos also won the Euroleague last season, defeating CSKA in the title game in Istanbul.

Vassilis Spanoulis was named MVP of the Final Four, the third time he has won the honor.

Real Madrid started the first quarter strong, holding a 27-10 lead after the first 10 minutes of the game. Olympiacos cut the lead to four at halftime and outscored Real Madrid by 12 points in the fourth quarter after tying the game after three quarters.

Spanoulis had 22 points, four assists and two rebounds in the game, while Acie Law had 20 points and five turnovers.

Rudy Fernandez led Real Madrid with 21 points.

Alberto Abalde Named NIJT MVP

Sun, 12 May 2013 19:05:36 EDT

Alberto Abalde of FIATC Muta Joventut has been named MVP of the 2013 Nike International Junior Tournament.

Abalde averaged 17.8 points, 5.8 rebounds and 2.3 assists over four games.

Joining Abalde on the All-Tournament Team is Nedim Buza, Doko Salic, Agusti Sans and Marco Garcia.

Sources: Nets Expect To Sign Bojan Bogdanovic

Fri, 10 May 2013 20:03:29 EDT

The Brooklyn Nets expect to sign Bojan Bogdanovic this summer, multiple sources confirmed.

Bogdanovic, a 24-year old swingman from Croatia, was acquired by the Nets in a draft-day trade with the Minnesota Timberwolves in 2011.

Bogdanovic is averaging 14.4 points and shooting 38.6 percent from the three-point line this season for Fenerbahce Ulker.

Vassilis Spanoulis Named Euroleague MVP

Thu, 09 May 2013 10:27:43 EDT

Vassilis Spanoulis of Olympiacos Piraeus has been named the 2012-13 Euroleague MVP.

Spanoulis averaged 14.7 points per game (4th overall) and 5.59 assists (3rd overall).

Spanoulis is a two-time MVP of the Euroleague Final Four.

Fernandez, Diamantidis, Krstic, Tomic, Spanoulis Named To All-Euroleague First Team

Mon, 06 May 2013 14:32:21 EDT

Rudy Fernandez, Dimiris Diamantidis, Nenad Krstic, Ante Tomic and Vassilis Spanoulis headline the 2013 All-Euroleague First Team.

On the All-Euroleage Second Team are Shawn James, Juan Carlos Navarro, Milos Teodosic, Viktor Khryapa and Nikola Mirotic.

CSKA, Barcelona, Olympiacos, Panathinaikos, Real Madrid and Maccabi were the six teams with first and second team representatives.

Mirotic Wants To Play For Spanish Senior National Team

Thu, 02 May 2013 11:57:11 EDT

Nikola Mirotic would like to one day play for the Spanish senior national team.

A native of Montenegro, Mirotic moved to Spain as a teenager and played for the country’s U20 team at the 2011 European Championship.

"I had a great time playing with the U20," Mirotic said. "I have very fond memories. I am very happy. In Spain, I have felt like at home. We will see what the future holds."

Mirotic hopes to be selected to play for Spain's senior team at the 2014 FIBA World Cup.

"One has to remember that I am a Spanish national and I want to play with them," Mirotic said. "Right now, I belong to them.”

List Of 77 Early Entry Candidates For 2013 NBA Draft

Wed, 01 May 2013 11:18:23 EDT

The 2013 NBA Draft has 77 early entry candidates, with 46 players from United States' colleges and 31 internatinoal players.

Players have the right to withdraw no later than June 17 ahead of the June 27 draft in Brooklyn.

College Players
Steven Adams, Pitt
C.J. Aiken, St. Joseph's
Anthony Bennett, UNLV
Vander Blue, Marquette,
Lorenzo Brown, N.C. State
Reggie Bullock, North Carolina
Trey Burke, Michigan
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Georgia
Michael Carter-Williams, Syracuse
Adrien Coleman, Bethune-Cookman
Allen Crabbe, Cal
Deweyne Dedmon, USC
Gorgui Dieng, Louisville
Jamaal Franklin, San Diego State
Archie Goodwin, Kentucky
Tim Hardaway Jr., Michigan
Grant Jerrett, Arizona
Christian Kabongo, New Mexico State
Myck Kabongo, Texas
Shane Larkin, Miami
Ricky Ledo, Providence
Alex Len, Maryland
C.J. Leslie, N.C. State
Nurideen Lindsey, Rider
Amath M'Baye, Oklahoma
Ray McCallum, Detroit
Ben McLemore, Kansas
Tony Mitchell, North Texas
Shabazz Muhammad, UCLA
Nerlens Noel, Kentucky
Victor Oladipo, Indiana
Kelly Olynyk, Gonzaga
Norvel Pelle, Los Angeles College Prep
Otto Porter Jr., Georgetown
Marshawn Powell, Arkansas
Phil Pressey, Missouri
Andre Robertson, Colorado
Joshua Simmons, Spartanburg Methodist (JC)
Trevis Simpson, UNC-Greensboro
Tony Snell, New Mexico
Tahj Tate, Delaware State
John Taylor, Fresno Pacific
Adonis Thompson, Memphis
Deshaun Thomas, Ohio State
B.J. Young, Arkansas
Cody Zeller, Indiana

International Players
Alejandro Abrines, Barcelona 
Giannis Adetokunbo, Filathlitikos
Francois Affia Ambadiang, Geoplin Slovan
Nemanja Besovic, Partizan
Bogdan Bogdanovic, Partizan
Matias Bortolin, Arkadia,
Linos Chrysikopoulos, PAOK
Laszlo Dobos, Zaragoza
Dorde Drenovac, Biancoblu
Viktor Gaddefors, Oknoplast Bologna
Rudy Gobert, Cholet
Mouhammadou Jaiteh, Boulogne
Livio Jean-Charles, ASVEL
Sergey Karasev, Triumph
Louis Laveyrie, Paris-Levallois
Raul Neto, Lagun Aro GBC
Philipp Neumann, Brose Baskets
Lucas Riva Nogueira, Estudiantes
Alexandre Paranhos, Flamengo
Artem Pustovyi, Khimik
Bogdan Radosavljevic, Bayern Munich
Marko Ramljak, Zadar
Dario Saric, Cibona
Dennis Schroder, New York Phantoms
Strahinja Stojacic, Smederevo
Walter Tavares, Gran Canaria
Daniel Theis, Ratiopharm
Janis Timma, Ventspils
Marko Todorovic, Barcelona
Axel Toupane, Strasbourg
Adin Vrabac, Spars Sarajevo 

Ainge Scouting 6-Foot-10 Point Guard

Sat, 06 Apr 2013 15:52:45 EDT

Danny Ainge recently traveled to Greece to scout Giannis Adetokunbo, a 6-foot-10 point guard who plays for Filathlitikos in the Greek A2 League.

With Ainge looking on, Adetokunbo scored 19 points, grabbed 9 rebounds and recorded 2 steals in the championship round of the Greek League.

Afterwards, Ainge was quoted by Greek media as saying Adetokundo reminded him of a young Scottie Pippen.

Teletovic Has No Plans To Return To Euroleague

Thu, 04 Apr 2013 12:27:42 EDT

Mirza Teletovic is not considering leaving the Brooklyn Nets after this season.

“No,” he said flatly about going back to Europe, where Teletovic was last season’s leading scorer of the Euroleague. “Never going to happen.

“I’m going to prove some stuff.”

Teletovic has remained positive despite seeing limited minutes.

“You have to deal with it. It is what it is,” Teletovic said. “You have to learn from it and be ready every time you get in and try to do your best.”

Amath M'Baye Forgoes Senior Season, Enters Draft

Wed, 27 Mar 2013 21:56:28 EDT

Amath M’Baye will forgo his senior season of eligibility to enter the NBA draft.

M'Baye, a native of France, is a longshot to make an NBA roster next year.

"I grew up watching the Euro league stuff. I can tell you it's not that bad over there," he said. "They make a great living for themselves. It's a great environment to play in. The NBA is definitely a dream. It's still a goal of mine. But the options are not bad at all."

M’Baye is set to graduate from the University of Oklahoma in May.

Koponen Named Euroleague Top 16, Game 12 MVP

Sat, 23 Mar 2013 14:37:23 EDT

Petteri Koponen has been named Euroleague Top 16, Game 12 MVP.

Koponen led BC Khimki Moscow Region to a 99-76 win over Fenerbahce Ulker Istanbul with 23 points and seven assists.

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Wed, 22 May 2013 14:17:03 EDT

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