March 2011 International Wiretap

Donatas Montiejunas To Test Draft Waters

Apr 24, 2011 2:47 PM

Donatas Montiejunas of Lithuania has decided to test the NBA draft waters.

"He applied today,'' Herb Rudoy, Montiejunas' Chicago-based agent, told me. "I don't know where he'll go in the draft, but he'll be a lottery pick. I'm pretty sure of that.''

Most NBA officials would concur with Rudoy's assessment. The 7-foot, 220-pound Montiejunas is generally regarded as one of the best big men in the draft.

In a recent informal poll of several NBA GMs, player personnel directors and scouts by The Journal Times, Montiejunas was considered one of the top 10 prospects for the draft.

Gary Woelfel/Racine Journal-Times

Tags: Donatas Motiejunas, NBA, NBA NBA Draft, International, NBA Draft General, NBA Draft Declarations

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Dumars Scouting Slovenia

Apr 23, 2011 3:22 PM

Pistons president basketball operations Joe Dumars checked out the talent this week in the Final Four of the NLB in Ljubljana, Slovenia.

The NLB, a regional league in the former Yugoslavia, said on its Web site that more than 50 scouts from NBA and European clubs were in attendance, at least 17 NBA teams had representatives and Dumars was the “most recognized name.”

Dumars gave an interview with kosarka.si, which was posted Thursday in Slovenian. Dumars praised the level of hoops in the NLB, said he knew a lot about basketball in the former Yugoslavia, mentioned former Pistons Darko Milicic and Zeljko Rebraca, and said he came to Slovenia’s capital to scout because the timing was right since the NCAA tournament was over and the Pistons were not in the playoffs.

Detroit Free Press

Tags: Detroit Pistons, NBA, International

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Lucas Nogueira Declares For Draft

Apr 23, 2011 3:19 PM

Lucas Nogueira has entered his name into the June 23 NBA draft.

Nogueira’s representatives informed the NBA in a letter sent on Friday. They plan to use the predraft workout process with teams to gauge how far into the first round Nogueira could climb this year.

Prospects have until June 14th to pull out of the draft.

After an impressive performance at the under-18 FIBA championships in July in San Antonio, Nogueira became an intriguing prospect for NBA executives. With a 7-foot-6 wingspan, he’s shown the potential to be a dominant force on the defensive end. Nogueira is still working to add strength to his 220-pound frame.

Adrian Wojnarowski/Yahoo! Sports

Tags: Lucas Nogueira, NBA, NBA NBA Draft, International, NBA Draft General, NBA Draft Declarations

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Nominees For 2010-11 All-Euroleague Announced

Apr 22, 2011 7:33 AM

The nominees for the 2010-11 All-Euroleague have been announced.

Dimitris Diamantidis of Panathinaikos and Jeremy Pargo of Maccabi Electra are the point guards, while Juan Carlos Navarro of Regal FC Barcelona, Sergio Llull of Real Madrid, Vassilis Spanoulis of Olympiacos and Fernando San Emeterio of Caja Laboral are the nominated shooting guards and small forwards.

At power forward and center are Dusko Savanovic of Power Electronics Valencia, Sofoklis Schortsanitis of Maccabi Electra, Ksistof Lavrinovic of Montepaschi Siena and Mike Batiste of Panathinaikos.

The All-Euroleague first and second teams, plus the Euroleague MVP, will be named at EFES Pilsener Euroleague Awards Ceremony on May 7 at the Final Four in Barcelona.

RealGM Staff Report

Tags: Euroleague, International, International Award, International League

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Nikola Mirotic Named 2011 Euroleague Rising Star

Apr 21, 2011 8:57 AM

Nikola Mirotic of Real Madrid has been voted the 2011 Rising Star Trophy winner in a ballot of Euroleague head coaches.

With 16 points in 17 minutes in late January, Mirotic sparked a huge comeback that propelled Madrid to a key group victory in the Top 16. From that point forward, he scored in double-digits during five out of six games, with his three-point shot deciding Game 1 of the playoffs.

Press Release

Tags: Nikola Mirotic, Euroleague, NBA, NBA NBA Draft, International, NBA Draft General, International Award, International League

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Dimitris Diamantidis Wins Sixth Best Defender Trophy In Seven Seasons

Apr 20, 2011 6:44 AM

Panathinaikos point guard Dimitris Diamantidis was named the Best Defender Trophy after dominating a vote by Euroleague head coaches. This marks the sixth time in seven seasons since its inception that Diamantidis has won the award. 

This season, Diamantidis was the overwhelming top choice of Euroleague head coaches, who gave him more than double the votes of any other player. Although Diamantidis ranked 10th in the competition with 1.6 steals per game and was second among all guards with 3.8 rebounds, his impact is much greater than numbers. On-the-ball pressure, an unique ability to guard multiple positions and the leadership of his team's entire defense all make Diamantidis a constant concern for opposing teams.

Diamantidis was followed in the coaches' voting by three more players who put their teams in the Final Four: power forward Shaun Stonerook of Montepaschi Siena, the Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv duo of guard Doron Perkins and forward Chuck Eidson. Also getting multiple votes were Ricky Rubio and Fran Vazquez of Regal FC Barcelona, as well as James Gist of Partizan Belgrade. 

Press Release

Tags: Dimitris Diamantidis, Euroleague, International, International Award, International League

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Agent Claims He Can Prove Biyombo's Age

Apr 18, 2011 10:33 AM

Many NBA scouts and executives believe Bismack Biyombo is older than his listed age of 18.

Coaches who have worked with Biyombo earlier in his career while he was still in Congo think he's “no older than 20 at most,” while Biyombo's agent, Igor Crespo, has evidence that proves Biyombo is even younger.

Crespo claims he took Biyombo to a specialist to conduct a bone age study immediately upon his arrival in Spain. The study involves taking x-rays of an adolescent's wrist and hand to see if his growth plates are still open. Because the cartilage in Biyombo's hand hadn't fused at that point, the specialist came to the conclusion that he could be 16 or 17 at most, but not 18, when growth plates are expected to be closed.

This obviously rules out the possibility of Biyombo being five to eight years older than he's listed, as the wild speculation we've seen recently on the Internet indicates. Crespo says he will willingly share these x-rays with any NBA team that requests them.

Jonathan Givony/DraftExpress.com

Tags: Bismack Biyombo, NBA, NBA NBA Draft, International, NBA Draft General

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Biyombo Not Concerned About Potential Lockout

Apr 11, 2011 10:30 AM

Bismack Biyombo registered the very first triple-double in the history of the Nike Hoop Summit, shattering Kevin Garnett's record for blocked shots in the process. Now he's projected as a potential lottery pick by many teams.

Biyombo is under contract with Fuenlabrada for another three years, but he has a relatively simple NBA buyout clause (€1 million Euros). What's even more attractive is the fact that the NBA team that drafts him can rest assured knowing that he can continue to play in Europe in the event of a lockout, which won't slow his development.

“The lockout is not worrying me,” Biyombo told us. “If there is a lockout, I can continue to play in Spain. I want to make a mark before I leave Spain. When I decided to enter the draft I spoke to my agent Igor [Crespo], and I said, ‘Igor, before I leave Spain, I want to put my name on the basketball court. So when I leave Spain my name will be remembered the right way.' About the NBA, I still have time to be on the floor, still have time to work, still have time to make myself better.”

Jonathan Givony/DraftExpress.com

Tags: Bismack Biyombo, NBA, NBA NBA Draft, International, NBA Draft General

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Kanter Disappointed In NCAA Ruling, Plans To Train With Tim Grover

Apr 9, 2011 2:46 PM

Enes Kanter, whom the NCAA ruled permanently ineligible to play at UK for accepting benefits in excess of his expenses while playing for a pro club in his native Turkey, still seems unsure of the reason behind the ruling.

“I didn't think I did something bad,” Kanter said Friday after throwing out the first pitch at the UK baseball game against Auburn. “I just came here (to America) for education. When I'm in Turkey, I was only 14, 15 and 16 years old and I didn't know anything. When I was 14, 15, 16 years old, I didn't understand what money was. I always take money from my dad.”

The NCAA ruled Kanter ineligible after it and UK agreed that Kanter had accepted $33,033 in benefits in excess of expenses from pro club Fenerbahce Ulker, which he played for before moving to the United States.

Kanter said he'll finish out the semester at UK then head to Chicago to work with Tim Grover, the trainer whose most famous client is Hall of Famer Michael Jordan.

Brett Dawson/Louisville Courier-Journal

Tags: Enes Freedom, Kentucky Wildcats, Southeastern Conference, NCAA, NBA, NBA NBA Draft, International, NBA Draft General

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Real Madrid Advances To First Euroleague Final Four In 15 Years

Apr 7, 2011 5:02 PM

Real Madrid defeated Power Electronics Valencia by a final of 66-58 to advance to the Euroleague Final Four for the first time in 15 years.

On May 6th in Barcelona, Real Madrid will play Maccabi Electra one semifinal, while Panathinaikos will take on Montepaschi Siena in the other.

RealGM Staff Report

Tags: Euroleague, International, International League

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