Author: Mark Porcaro

The international transfer market has been in full swing for a few weeks now and many players with NBA ties have signed new contracts overseas.  Let’s catch up with some of these players and see what they’ve been doing since we last heard from them.

FORMER NBA PLAYERS

Trey Thompkins – signed a three-year contract with Real Madrid (Spain)

Thompkins was drafted 37th overall by the L.A. Clippers in the 2011 draft.  He played in only 24 games during his rookie season before the Clippers waived him during a sophomore campaign in which he didn’t play a single game.  He resurfaced in the 2014 summer league with the Lakers before signing in Russia with Nizhny Novgorod.  Thompkins had a breakout season this year, averaging 15.8 points and 7.5 rebounds in the VTB United League and 14.5 points and 8.1 rebounds in Euroleague play.  He led his team, which included former NBA player Gal Mekel, to a surprise appearance in the Euroleague Final 16 while also reaching the semifinals in the VTB.  Thompkins parlayed his great season into a three-year deal with the reigning Euroleague champions from Spain.  He will join a team that includes former NBA players Gustavo Ayon, Rudy Fernandez, Sergio Rodriguez and Andres Nocioni as well as potential future Houston Rocket Sergio Llull.

Derrick Brown – signed a 2-year contract with Anadolu Efes (Turkey)

Brown is a three-year NBA veteran with 171 games of experience who was drafted 40th overall in 2009 and who we last saw during the 2011/12 season with Charlotte.  He spent this season in Russia with Lokomotiv Kuban, the same team that Anthony Randolph signed with after being waived by the Magic last year.  Brown had an outstanding season, averaging 14.8 points and 5.2 rebounds per game across 54 combined contests in the VTB United & Euroleague.  He and Malcolm Delaney led Lokomotiv to the Eurocup quarterfinals as well as the VTB semis. Brown now moves to the powerhouse Turkish team that boasts significant young talents in Sixers first-round pick Dario Saric, 2015 draft hopeful Cedi Osman and 17-year old future star Furkan Korkmaz.  Efes made the Euroleague playoffs this year and were also the runner-up to a surprising Karsiyaka team in the Turkish TBL finals.

Darius Johnson-Odom – signed a 1-year contract with Trabzonspor (Turkey)

Johnson-Odom spent parts of two years in the NBA after he became the 55th pick in the 2012 draft. Philadelphia waived him during the 2013/14 season and he went on to put up 22 points, 6.1 assists and 4.4 rebounds per game in the D-League with the Springfield Armor.  That performance led him to Italy where he played this season with Cantu and averaged 14.4 points per game.  Joined by fellow ex-NBA players Metta World Peace and DeQuan Jones, Johnson-Odom’s team actually struggled badly, finishing seventh in the Italian league and getting bounced in the first round of the Eurocup playoffs.  He now heads to Turkey to join former St. John’s star Dwight Hardy on an up-and-coming Trabzonspor team.

Jon Brockman – re-signed with Ludwigsburg (Germany) for one more season

Brockman was the 38th overall pick in 2009 and played in 150 games over three NBA seasons. He last played in 2011/12 for the Milwaukee Bucks before beginning his overseas career in France.  He led the German BBL in rebounding (9.8 per game) this season while also averaging 12.2 points per game.  Paired with the league’s top scorer, former NBA player D.J. Kennedy, he led Ludwigsburg to a playoff berth and decided to stay with the team for another season.

Other notable former NBA players

• Kyrylo Fesenko switched teams in Russia, moving from Avtodor to Lokomotiv Kuban.  The five-year NBA vet was with the Timberwolves for training camp this past fall, but they waived him prior to the start of the season.
• Yi Jianlian will continue with Chinese team Guangdong after signing a reported five-year, $16.1MM extension.  Jianlian last played in the NBA with Dallas during the 2011/12 season and has 272 games of NBA experience.
• Yaroslav Korolev stayed in Greece, signing with Rethymno after spending last year there with Panionios. Korolev’s NBA cup of coffee lasted just 34 games over two seasons after he became the 12th overall pick in 2005.
• Jerry Smith re-signed with German team Bremerhaven for next season.  The former Louisville and one-time Nets guard averaged 11.8 points and 5.1 assists this season.

NBA DRAFT RIGHTS HELD PLAYERS

Ante Tomic – extended contract with Barcelona (Spain) through 2018

The Jazz drafted Tomic 44th overall in the 2008 draft, and he has continued to flourish overseas since then.  Utah was rumored to be willing to pay his buyout and bring him over for next season, but this extension likely puts an end to that conversation for the time being.  Tomic averaged 11.5 points and 7.1 rebounds in Euroleague play and was named to the Second Team All-Euroleague squad.  He received first-team honors during the last two campaigns as well.  He helped Barcelona reach the Spanish ACB finals after a disappointing defeat in the Euroleague playoffs.

Sasha Kaun – announced retirement from European basketball

Kaun won the 2008 NCAA title with Kansas before he became the 56th overall pick in the 2008 draft.  He has played his entire professional career with Russian powerhouse CSKA Moscow, who this season won their fifth consecutive VTB United League title.  Kaun won the 2013/14 VTB United Defensive Player of the Year award along the way as well.  This season he averaged 10.5 points per game in the VTB and 9.9 points per game in Euroleague play.  CSKA lost to Olympiacos by two points in the Euroleague semifinals but were able to regroup and win the third-place game against Fenerbahce.  Kaun’s rights are owned by the Cleveland Cavaliers and he is moving back to the U.S. to pursue an NBA deal.

Other notable draft rights held players

• Robertas Javtokas re-signed with Zalgiris in Lithuania after the team won its fourth consecutive LKL title.  The Spurs hold rights to the 35-year-old, who is in the twilight of his playing career.
• Brad Newley re-signed with Spanish team Gran Canaria after a season that ended with a second-place Eurocup finish.  The Rockets hold Newley’s NBA rights.
• Henk Norel extended his contract with Zaragoza (Spain) for two more seasons.  The big man whom the Timberwolves made the 47th pick in 2009 finished the year with 8.5 points and 4.2 rebounds per game in Eurocup play.
• Ryan Richards recently signed with the Guangxi Rhinos of the Chinese NBL, which is China’s lower division. A 2010 second-round pick of the Spurs, he bounced around this season, moving from Turkey to Austria and finally to Iran.

2015 NBA DRAFT RELATED PLAYERS

• Nedim Buza signed with Oostende in Belgium after spending the year with Bosnian team Spars Sarajevo. He withdrew from the draft after declaring as an early entrant for the second year in a row.
• Tyler Haws has signed a deal with Obradoiro in Spain that includes an NBA out if he gets drafted or signs with a team by July 31st.
• Alpha Kaba signed with Mega Leks, the same Serbian team that produced recent draft picks Nikola Jokic, Vasilije Micic and Nemanja Dangubic.  Although Kaba pulled out of this year’s draft, he drew rave reviews for his length and athleticism during team workouts.

2014-15 NBA SUMMER LEAGUE PLAYERS

• Justin Brownlee moves to Chalon (France) after averaging 16.4 points and 7.9 rebounds per game with Italian second-division team Brescia.
• Melvin Ejim signed with Bayreuth (Germany).  He played this season in Italy with Virtus Roma and averaged 7.7 points and 6.3 rebounds per game.
• Abdul Gaddy extended his contract with Virtus Bologna (Italy) for two more seasons.  He averaged 7.3 points and 3.7 assists per game this year.
• Steven Gray signed a two-year deal with Gravelines (France) after averaging 16.8 points per game with Dijon (France).
• Stephen Holt signed with Melbourne United (Australia) after putting up 10.9 points per contest for the Canton Charge, the one-to-one affiliate of the Cavs, in the D-League.
• Michael Jenkins signed for two years with Turk Telekom (Turkey).  He played for Istanbul BB (Turkey) this year and scored 15.5 points per game.

The NBA Finals are nearly upon us and full attention is soon to turn to the NBA draft.  There are sure to be many players drafted who will continue their careers overseas as they develop more with the hopes of joining an NBA team in the coming years.  Meanwhile, what about those past draft picks?  Who might be ready to come over next season and potentially lock down an NBA roster spot?  Let’s take a look at 10 recent first-round and high second-round picks, how their seasons are going and what kind of chance they have of being in the NBA next year.

Alex Abrines (G/F) — 2013 pick No. 32: Rights owned by the Thunder

Abrines dramatically improved his shooting this season for Barcelona of Spain. The 21-year old has put up 48-48-94 splits during ACB play.  He’s hit 52 of 109 three-point attempts this season over 26 games.  However, during Euroleague play, he was just 29 of 85 (34.1%) from deep.  He was named to the ACB All Young Players Team for the second consecutive season and is clearly a rising star in the top European domestic league.  It’s all great news for OKC except for one small problem:  Abrines signed a four-year contract extension last week that could keep him in Spain until 2019.  The silver lining is that his contract includes NBA buyouts after each season.  It’s likely we won’t see Abrines in the NBA for another season or two as he should get a much bigger role in Barcelona’s rotation next year, but rest assured he has a very bright future that will include the NBA at some point.

Nemanja Bjelica (F) — 2010 pick No. 35: Rights owned by the Timberwolves

Bjelica had a career year for Fenerbahce of Turkey, leading his team to the Euroleague Final 4 and being named Euroleague MVP.  At 27 years old, this might be the time for Bjelica to make the NBA jump after being rumored to do so over the past couple of seasons.  He’s a skilled combo forward who’s a solid rebounder (8.2 in 26 minutes per game across all leagues) with three-point range (46.4% in Turkish TBL play).  Bjelica has one more year on his contract but it’s hard to believe he could improve his stock any further, and he could very likely be a solid rotation piece on the rebuilding Timberwolves next year.  The timing is right, but it might come down to whether or not the price is right.

Bogdan Bogdanovic (SG) — 2014 pick No. 27: Rights owned by the Suns

Bogdanovic is a teammate of Bjelica’s with Fenerbahce and has also been integral to their success this season.  He signed a four-year deal with the Turkish team this year after spending the last few seasons with Partizan.  He has dramatically improved his three-point shot to the tune of 43.1% in TBL play and was named Euroleague Rising Star for the second consecutive season.  His contract includes NBA outs starting in 2016 and upon being drafted he was expected to stay in Europe until then.  However, given his continued success, it’s quite possible that the Suns make a run at him this offseason and at least see how much it would cost to buy him out early.

DeAndre Daniels (SF) — 2014 pick No. 37: Rights owned by the Raptors

Fresh off a national championship with Connecticut, Daniels moved to Australia and joined the Perth Wildcats.  He missed three weeks early in the season with an elbow injury but returned to help his team reach the playoffs.  He put up 14.8 points and 7.3 rebounds per contest, but his shooting numbers left much to be desired.  Daniels is an excellent summer league candidate who will need to show that his shooting woes were mostly a result of the elbow injury.  If he can prove himself there, he could become a cheap reinforcement for the Raptors next season.

Josh Huestis (SF) — 2014 pick No. 29: Rights owned by the Thunder

The Stanford grad is best known for being the 29th overall pick because he agreed to spend the season in the D-League, a fact that sparked great controversy after the draft.  The OKC Blue were said to be molding him into a “3 and D” type player and while the defense was there, the three-point shooting (31.6%) has been slower to come along.  Huestis will undoubtedly join the Thunder’s summer league team but will likely have a tough time finding an open roster spot with OKC as the Thunder already have 13 players under contract for next season. Plus, there are restricted free agents Enes Kanter and Kyle Singler to consider, and that forthcoming lottery pick.

Livio Jean-Charles (F) — 2013 pick No. 28: Rights owned by the Spurs

Jean-Charles is a raw forward who plays for ASVEL Villeurbanne, the French team owned by Spurs point guard Tony Parker.  He missed the entire 2013/14 season after undergoing knee surgery and returned this year to mixed results.  He played limited minutes off the bench and didn’t shoot particularly well in the process.   He has no three-point range for someone who’s supposed to be a combo forward, which would seem to limit his NBA potential, given his skinny frame.  He should get a look at summer league, but it’s likely that he’ll return to France for at least another season.

Nikola Jokic (F/C) — 2014 pick No. 41: Rights owned by the Nuggets

Jokic is a 6’11”, 250-pound brute who managed to dominate the very tough Adriatic League while leading a team basically filled with young prospects. He finished with 15.4 points and 9.3 rebounds per game for Serbia’s KK Mega Vizura en route to winning MVP honors at just 20 years old.  There have been rumors throughout the season that the Nuggets are already working on a deal to sign the Serbian prospect prior to summer league.  He could eventually form quite the frontcourt tandem with rising star Jusuf Nurkic.

Tibor Pleiss (C) — 2010 pick No. 31: Rights owned by the Jazz

Pleiss is a 7’2″ monster in the middle who played this past season as a teammate of Alex Abrines with Barcelona of Spain.  Pleiss left a starting role with Spain’s Laboral Kutxa to come off the bench and so his numbers aren’t a very fair reflection of his talents.  In ACB play, he shot 65% from the field and 88% from the free throw line.  He was acquired by Utah from Oklahoma City in the Kanter trade and there were rumors shortly thereafter that the Jazz were trying to buy him out of his contract.  It’s safe to say that he has a place in the Jazz’s future, though the apparent mutual dissatisfaction between Pleiss and Barcelona that reportedly fueled talks between Utah and Pleiss earlier this year is rumored to have resulted in a different outcome. Barcelona is expected to convey him to Germany’s Bayern Munich, according to Nikos Varlas of Eurohoops.net.

Dario Saric (PF) — 2014 pick No. 12: Rights owned by the 76ers

Saric moved from Cibona of Croatia to Turkey’s Anadolu Efes this season and is averaging 10.3 points, 6.3 rebounds and 2.4 assists in 24.2 minutes per game over 54 contests.  He was named Euroleague MVP of the Month in November while also picking up his second consecutive FIBA Europe Young Men’s Player of the Year Award.  Saric’s contract doesn’t have a NBA out until 2016, but the Sixers have been in constant contact with him, and he won’t dismiss the idea that he might play for Philadelphia next season.  His past has been riddled with contract controversy, so it would be quite a feat for Philly to make that happen.  Even so, Saric is improving rapidly and, whether he comes over in 2015 or 2016, he figures to be a big piece of the 76ers’ future.

Tomas Satoransky (G) — 2012 pick No. 32: Rights owned by the Wizards

Satoransky is a 6’7″ combo guard and yet another player for Barcelona.  Last summer, Satoransky refused to play in summer league for the Wizards unless the team signed him to the regular roster. He failed to receive the money he sought from Washington and signed for two years with Barcelona instead. He excelled this season, with shooting splits of 58-49-81, and he has the ability to fill up the stat sheet.  It’ll be interesting to see if he’ll change his tune and join Washington this summer, but regardless, he’s just 23 and another year with one of the top international teams will only aid his improvement.

There are only 450 available spots on NBA rosters during the regular season each year, and that leaves a lot of players on the outside looking in.  When a player leaves the league, that doesn’t mean his career is over. Many choose the D-League, believing it’s their best opportunity to attempt an NBA comeback, but most players take their talents to other countries and professional leagues around the world.

International player movement can have a ripple effect in the NBA. John Lucas III reportedly had a workout scheduled with the Lakers earlier this season, but he broke off those plans to sign to play with Fujian in China, and now he’s with the Pistons on a 10-day contract. Jordan Farmar received a two-year contract for the biannual exception from the Clippers this past summer and drew preliminary interest from the Cavs shortly after buying his way out of his Clippers pact. Still, last week he jumped at a deal to play in Turkey for more than the prorated NBA minimum salary.

Below is a look at some of the international transactions for the 2014/15 season that involve former NBA players, recent undrafted NCAA players and draft rights held players. We’ll be keeping this post up to date throughout the rest of the 2014/15 regular season, and you can find it anytime on the right sidebar under “Hoops Rumors Features.”

April 11, 2015

• Rick Jackson – signed w/ Cocodrilos (Venezuela)
• Will Sheehey – signed w/ Panionios (Greece)

April 8, 2015

• Sam Young – signed w/ Usak (Turkey)

April 7, 2015

• Fab Melo – signed w/ Humacao (Puerto Rico)

April 6, 2015

• Rashad McCants – signed w/ Trotamundos (Venezuela)

April 4, 2015

• Tu Holloway – signed w/ Guaros (Venezuela)
• Malcolm Thomas – signed w/ Quebradillas (Puerto Rico)

March 31, 2015

• Terrence Williams – signed w/ Gigantes (Puerto Rico)

March 24, 2015

• Metta World Peace – signed w/ Cantu (Italy)

March 23, 2015

• Andray Blatche – extended contract w/ Xinjiang (China) through the 2017/18 season

March 18, 2015

• Dominique Jones – signed w/ Manati (Puerto Rico)

March 16, 2015

• Carlos Arroyo – signed w/ Santurce (Puerto Rico)
• Hamed Haddadi – signed w/ Mahram (Iran)
• Kalin Lucas – signed w/ Turk Telekom (Turkey)

March 13, 2015

• Bojan Dubljevic – extended contract w/ Valencia (Spain) through the 2017/18 season

March 8, 2015

• Renaldo Balkman – signed w/ Arecibo (Puerto Rico)
• Terrence Williams – signed w/ Bayamon (Puerto Rico)

March 5, 2015

• Magnum Rolle – signed w/ Mayaguez (Puerto Rico)

March 4, 2015

• Mickael Pietrus – signed w/ Guaynabo (Puerto Rico)

March 3, 2015

• Josh Akognon – signed w/ Partizan (Serbia)

March 1, 2015

• Jahii Carson – signed w/ Metalac (Serbia)
• Victor Claver – signed w/ Khimki (Russia)

February 27, 2015

• Keith Benson – signed w/ Kalev/Cramo (Estonia)
• D.J. Covington – signed w/ Nea Kifisia (Greece)
• DeAndre Liggins – signed w/ Bremerhaven (Germany)

February 26, 2015

• Austin Freeman – signed w/ Virtus Roma (Italy)

February 24, 2015

• Andrei Kirilenko – signed w/ CSKA (Russia)
• Gal Mekel – signed w/ Nizhny Novgorod (Russia)
• Darius Miller – signed w/ Brose Baskets (Germany)

February 17, 2015

• Kevin Jones – signed w/ Cholet (France)
• Dijon Thompson – signed w/ Hapoel Tel Aviv (Israel)

February 14, 2015

• Josh Harrellson – signed w/ Guayama (Puerto Rico)
• Kenny Kadji – signed w/ Sassari (Italy)
• C.J. Leslie – signed w/ Guaynabo (Puerto Rico)

February 10, 2015

• Primoz Brezec – signed w/ AEK Larnaca (Cyprus)
• De’Mon Brooks – signed w/ Galil Gilboa (Israel)
• Orlando Sanchez – signed w/ Santurce (Puerto Rico)
• Walter Sharpe – signed w/ Cocodrilos (Venezuela)

February 9, 2015

• Mickell Gladness – signed w/ Canterbury Rams (New Zealand)
• TreVon Hughes – signed w/ Sakarya BSB (Turkey 2nd division)

February 8, 2015

• Troy Bell – signed w/ Akhisar Belediye (Turkey 2nd division)
• Donell Taylor – signed w/ Maccabi Ashdod (Israel)

February 6, 2015

• Kim English – signed w/ Guaros (Venezuela)
• Jordan Farmar – signed w/ Darussafaka (Turkey)
• Tyshawn Taylor – signed w/ Mayaguez (Puerto Rico)

February 5, 2015

• Tony L. Mitchell – signed w/ San German (Puerto Rico)

Febuary 4, 2015

• Oleksiy Pecherov – signed w/ Kalev/Cramo (Estonia)
• Chris Smith – signed w/ Peja (Kosovo)

February 3, 2015

• Mario Austin – signed w/ Peja (Kosovo)

Read more

The teams that owe picks and the teams that have them coming, along with the protections attached to each, are broken down below, by round. The stipulations that the picks carry are in many cases convoluted, the product of each front office straining to create an edge. So, we’ve taken care to simplify the information as much as possible so that it’s easy to digest. Note that some protections carry on for several years.

Updated 8-3-15

2016 FIRST ROUND PICKS

• BKN to BOS
  • 2016 – No protection
• CLE to PHX
  • 2016 – Top 10 protected
  • 2017 – Top 10 protected
  • 2018 – Top 10 protected
  • 2019 – No protection
• DAL to BOS
  • 2016 – Top 7 protected
  • 2017 – Top 7 protected
  • 2018 – Top 7 protected
  • 2019 – Top 7 protected
  • 2020 – Top 7 protected
  • 2021 – No protection
• GSW to PHI
  • 2016 – Philadelphia has the right to swap their Miami or Oklahoma City 2016 1st with Golden State’s pick
• HOU to DEN
  • 2016 – Top 14 protected
  • If pick not sent by 2016 then pick becomes Portland’s 2017 2nd round pick
• LAL to PHI
  • 2016 – Top 3 protected
  • 2017 – Top 3 protected
  • 2018 – No protection
• MEM to DEN
  • 2016 – Top 5 & 15-30 protected
  • 2017 – Top 5 protected
  • 2018 – Top 5 protected
  • 2019 – No protection
• MIA to PHI
  • 2016 – Top 10 protected
  • 2017 – No protection
• MIN to BOS
  • 2016 – Top 12 protected
  • If pick not sent by 2016 then pick becomes 2016 and 2017 2nd round picks
• NYK to DEN
  • 2016 – Denver has the right to swap picks with New York
• NYK to TOR
  • 2016 – Toronto will receive the lesser of the New York & Denver picks
• OKC to PHI
  • 2016 – Top 15 protected
  • 2017 – Top 15 protected
  • If pick not sent by 2017 then pick becomes 2018 and 2019 2nd round picks
• POR to DEN
  • 2016 – Top 14 protected
  • 2017 – Top 14 protected
  • If pick not sent by 2017 then pick becomes 2018 (lesser of POR/SAC picks) and 2019 2nd round picks
• SAC to CHI
  • 2016 – Top 10 protected
  • 2017 – Top 10 protected
  • If pick not sent by 2017 then pick becomes 2017 2nd round pick (only if pick is between 31-55)
• SAC to PHI
  • 2016 – Right to swap (only if pick is not sent to Chicago)

2016 SECOND ROUND PICKS

• BOS to MEM
  • Memphis will receive the lesser of the Boston & Toronto picks
• BKN to LAC
  • L.A. Clippers have the right to swap picks with Brooklyn, but only if the Clippers’ pick falls between 31-55
• CHA to OKC
  • Only if pick is between 31-55
• CHA to SAN
  • Top 55 protected
• CHI to ORL
  • Orlando will receive the better of the Chicago & Portland picks
• CLE to BOS
  • No protection
• DAL to BOS
  • Boston will receive the better of the Dallas & Memphis picks
• DEN to PHI
  • No protection
• GSW to UTH
  • No protection
• HOU to MIN
  • Top 45 protected
• LAC to CLE
  • Top 55 protected
• MEM to DAL
  • No protection
  • Pick may be sent to Boston
• MIA to BOS
  • No protection
• MIN to BOS
  • Only sent if Minnesota’s 1st round pick not received by 2016
• NOP to MIL
  • Milwaukee will receive the better of the New Orleans & Sacramento picks
  • Sacramento’s pick is top 55 protected
• NOP to OKC
  • Oklahoma City will receive the lesser of the New Orleans & Sacramento picks
  • Sacramento’s pick is top 55 protected
• NYK to HOU
  • No protection
• ORL to MIA
  • Top 55 protected
• PHI to BOS
  • No protection
• POR to CHI
  • No protection
  • Pick may be sent to Orlando
• SAC to NOP
  • Top 55 protected
  • Pick may be sent to Milwaukee
• SAN to SAC
  • No protection
• TOR to UTH
  • Utah will receive the better of the Boston & Toronto picks
• WAS to ATL
  • No protection

2017 FIRST ROUND PICKS

• BKN to BOS
  • 2017 – Boston has the right to swap picks with Brooklyn
  • If picks are swapped, Boston will send a top 45 protected 2017 2nd round pick to Brooklyn
• GSW to UTH
  • 2017 – No protection
• LAC to TOR
  • 2017 – Top 14 protected
  • 2018 – Top 14 protected
  • 2019 – Top 14 protected
  • If pick not sent by 2019 then pick becomes 2020 & 2021 second round picks
• SAC to PHI
  • 2017 – Right to swap (only if pick is not sent to Chicago)

2017 SECOND ROUND PICKS

• ATL to SAN
  • Top 55 protected
• BKN to ATL
  • No protection
• BOS to BKN
  • Top 45 protected
  • Only if Boston swaps 2017 1st round picks with Brooklyn
• CLE to BOS
  • No protection
• DEN to HOU
  • No protection
• DET to UTH
  • No protection
• GSW to UTH
  • No protection
• HOU to NYK
  • No protection
• LAC to BOS
  • No protection
• LAL to ORL
  • Only sent if L.A. Lakers’ 1st round pick is not received by 2017
• MEM to OKC
  • 2017 – Top 35 protected
  • 2018 – No protection
• MIA to ATL
  • 2017 – Top 40 protected
  • 2018 – No protection
• MIN to BOS
  • Only sent if Minnesota’s 1st round pick is not received by 2016
• NOP to MIN
  • Top 55 protected
• NYK to UTH
  • No protection
• POR to HOU
  • No protection
• SAC to CHI
  • Only sent if Sacramento’s 1st round pick is not received by 2017
  • Also pick must fall between 31-55
• SAC to CLE
  • Top 55 protected

2018 FIRST ROUND PICKS

• BKN to BOS
  • No protection
• LAL to ORL
  • 2018 – Top 5 protected
  • 2019 – No protection
  • If Laker’s 2016 1st round pick is not sent to Phoenix by 2017 then pick becomes 2017 and 2018 2nd round picks
• MEM to BOS
  • 2018 – Top 12 protected
  • 2019 – Top 8 protected
  • 2020 – Top 6 protected
  • 2021 – No protection
  • First allowable draft after Memphis send 1st round pick to Denver
• MIA to PHX
  • 2018 – Top 7 protected
  • 2019 – No protection
  • First allowable draft after Miami send 1st round pick to Philadelphia
• MIN to ATL
  • 2018 – Top 14 protected
  • 2019 – Top 14 protected
  • 2020 – Top 14 protected
  • If pick not sent by 2020 then pick becomes 2020 and 2021 2nd round picks
• OKC to UTH
  • 2018 – Top 14 protected
  • 2019 – Top 14 protected
  • 2020 – Top 14 protected
  • First allowable draft after Oklahoma City sends 1st round pick to Philadelphia
  • If pick not sent by 2020 then pick becomes 2020 and 2021 2nd round picks
• SAC to PHI
  • 2018 – Top 10 protected
  • 2019 – No protection
  • First allowable draft after Sacramento sends 1st round pick to Chicago

2018 SECOND ROUND PICKS

• BKN to CHA
  • Charlotte will recieve the lesser of the Brooklyn and Cleveland picks
• BKN to PHI
  • Philadelphia will receive the better of the Brooklyn and Cleveland picks
• BOS to OKC
  • Top 55 protected
• CLE to BKN
  • No protection
  • Pick will be sent to either Charlotte or Philadelphia
• DAL to MIL
  • Top 55 protected
• DEN to UTH
  • No protection
• GSW to DEN
  • No protection
• LAC to NY
  • No protection
  • Pick may be sent to Philadelphia
• LAL to ORL
  • Only sent if L.A. Lakers’ 1st round pick is not received by 2017
• NYK to PHI
  • Philadelphia will receive the better of the New York & L.A. Clippers picks
• OKC to DEN
  • Only sent if Oklahoma City’s 1st round pick is not received by 2017
• POR to DEN
  • Only sent if Portland’s 1st round pick is not received by 2017
  • lesser of POR/SAC picks
• POR to SAC
  • Sacramento has the right to swap picks with Portland

2019 SECOND ROUND PICKS

• BKN to CHA
  • No protection
• BOS to MIA
  • Top 55 protected
• CLE to NYK
  • No protection
• CLE to POR
  • Portland will receive the better of the L.A. Lakers and Minnesota picks
• DET to BOS
  • No protection
• HOU to NYK
  • No protection
• LAL to CLE
  • No protection
• MIA to MIN
  • No protection
• MIL to PHI
  • Philadelphia will receive the better of the Milwaukee & Sacramento picks
• MIN to CLE
  • No protection
• NYK to ORL
  • Right to swap pick with either Cleveland or Houston picks
• NYK to PHI
  • No protection
• OKC to DEN
  • Only sent if Oklahoma City’s 1st round pick is not received by 2017
• POR to DEN
  • Only sent if Portland’s 1st round pick is not received by 2017
• SAC to MIL
  • Milwaukee has the right to swap picks with Sacramento
  • Pick may be sent Philadelphia
• WAS to ATL
  • No protection

2020 SECOND ROUND PICKS

• BKN to PHI
  • No protection
• CLE to POR
  • No protection
• DET to PHX
  • No protection
• LAC to TOR
  • Only sent if L.A. Clippers’ 1st round pick is not received by 2019
• MIA to BOS
  • No protection
• MIN to ATL
  • Only sent if Minnesota’s 1st round pick is not received by 2020
• NYK to PHI
  • No protection
• OKC to UTH
  • Only sent if Oklahoma City’s 1st round pick is not received by 2020
• POR to ORL
  • Top 55 protected
• WAS to MIL
  • Top 55 protected

2021 FIRST ROUND PICKS

• MIA to PHX
  • 2021 – No protection

2021 SECOND ROUND PICKS

• LAC to TOR
  • Only sent if L.A. Clippers’ 1st round pick is not received by 2019
• MIN to ATL
  • Only sent if Minnesota’s 1st round pick is not received by 2020
• NYK to PHI
  • No protection
• OKC to UTH
  • Only sent if Oklahoma City’s 1st round pick is not received by 2020

Each year around draft time you’ll hear the term draft-and-stash being tossed around in regard to international players and late second-round picks, but what happens to these players? It seems like the majority of them stay overseas and never make it to the NBA. The truth is the very best of these players are honing their skills in some of the best leagues around the world. The remainder become trade assets for the teams holding their rights.

This season we have seen five such players join the league after having been stashed overseas. The most recent was Furkan Aldemir, who joined the 76ers last month nearly two and a half years after he was drafted. Others, like Chicago’s Nikola Mirotic and Brooklyn’s Bojan Bogdanovic, have made strong impressions in their rookie seasons. Kostas Papanikolaou and Lucas Nogueira, in Houston and Toronto respectively, also have debuted this season after playing last season abroad. All five players have plenty of skill and potential to boot and all have something else in common. Every one of those five players was drafted by a different team and their rights were traded elsewhere.

Usually, if a player doesn’t come over within two years of having been drafted, he will never make the leap. Mirotic and Bogdanovic are two exceptions to the rule, as both joined their teams three years later, but both were highly regarded prospects to begin with. Only five other such cases exist in the last 10 drafts, with Joel Freeland (six years later) standing as the only player to stay overseas longer than three years after he was drafted and still make the NBA jump. From 2005-2012, there were 90 international players drafted who played their predraft seasons overseas. Fifty-five of them, or 61.1%, have made their NBA debuts. Twenty-nine of those players were first-round picks, and all except for Fran Vazquez (the 11th pick in 2005) and Petteri Koponen (the 30th pick in 2007) have played in the NBA at some point.  That’s a 93.1% success rate!  That also means the success rate for second-round picks is just 45.9% (28 of 61).  It’s even grimmer if we take just the second half of the second round (picks 46-60), wherein just 13 of 36, or 36.1%, of players have worn a NBA jersey.

While not all players pan out the way teams expect them to, they at worst become tradeable assets for teams that don’t want to part with a future second-round pick.  Each team must give up something in a trade, which is why you will see a lot of top-55 protected second-round picks moving around the league.  Older draft rights held players who clearly will never come over to the NBA are essentially the same, for all intents and purposes.  One recent example is 2004 draft pick Serhiy Lishchuk.  At the beginning of the season, Lishchuk’s draft rights were held by Houston.  On December 19th, Houston took part in a 3-team trade that netted them Corey Brewer.  In that deal, Houston sent out a combination of three future second-round picks to Minnesota and Philadelphia.  Instead of sending a fourth pick, Houston sent Lishchuk’s rights to Philly.  About two weeks later, Philly acquired Jared Cunningham from the Clippers with the sole intention of waiving his contract.  Not wanting to part with an asset of any value (even top-55 protected picks can end up being conveyed), the sole asset that the Sixers sent out was the rights to Lishchuk.

So, with all that being said, here’s the list of all current players who still have their draft rights held by a NBA team:

Updated 8-15-15

Atlanta Hawks

• Dimitrios Agravanis
  • Drafted 59th overall in the 2015 draft by Atlanta
  • PF, 6-10/230, 20 years old from Greece
  • Currently playing in Greece for Olympiacos
  • Under contract until 2018
• Marcus Eriksson
  • Drafted 50th overall in the 2015 draft by Atlanta
  • SG, 6-5/195, 21 years old from Sweden
  • Currently playing in Spain for Barcelona
  • Under contract until 2018
• Sergii Gladyr
  • Drafted 49th overall in the 2009 draft by Atlanta
  • G/F, 6-5/190, 25 years old from Ukraine
  • Currently playing in Turkey for Istanbul BB
  • Under contract until 2016
• Alain Digbeu
  • Drafted 50th overall in the 1997 draft by Atlanta
  • SG, 6-6/220, 39 years old from France
  • Retired in 2011

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