International Rumors | Hoops Rumors

International Notes: Serbia, Bahamas, Gordon, Croatia

August 22nd, 2023 at 3:59pm CST by Luke Adams

The Serbian national team has officially announced its 12-man roster for the 2023 World Cup, which tips off on Friday (Twitter link). The Serbians are missing star center Nikola Jokic, along with accomplished veteran guard Vasilije Micic, who made the move from the EuroLeague to the NBA this offseason.

However, the squad still features multiple current and former NBA players, starting with Hawks guard Bogdan Bogdanovic. Heat forward Nikola Jovic, Sixers big man Filip Petrusev, and former Grizzlies guard Marko Guduric are among the notable players representing Serbia at this year’s World Cup.

Here are a few more notes from around the international basketball world:

The Bahmas defeated Argentina on Sunday in the final of an Olympic pre-qualifying tournament, with Suns guard Eric Gordon scoring a game-high 27 points, writes Tim Bontemps of ESPN. Following the Bahamian victory, former NBA forward Andres Nocioni – who won an Olympic gold medal with Argentina in 2004 – questioned whether it was fair for FIBA to allow Gordon to suit up for the Bahamas despite representing Team USA earlier in his international career (Twitter link). “Let’s not lose the essence of international competitions,” Nocioni added in a follow-up tweet.
A Croatian team led by Warriors forward Dario Saric and Clippers center Ivica Zubac scored an upset victory over Alperen Sengun and Turkey in the final of another Olympic pre-qualifying tournament on Sunday, as Eurohoops details. Croatia, the Bahamas, Cameroon, Poland, and Bahrain won this month’s pre-qualifying tournament to secure spots in next year’s Olympic qualifiers.
Vangelis Papadimitriou of Eurohoops highlights a handful of non-U.S. NBA players who could be difference-makers in this year’s World Cup, including Canadian forward RJ Barrett and Dominican big man Karl-Anthony Towns.

International Notes: Evans, Montero, Babkov, History

August 21st, 2023 at 4:28pm CST by Rory Maher

Former NBA guard Tyreke Evans is mulling a move to Europe in order to continue his professional career, according to Tomer Givati of Israel Hayom (Twitter link).

Evans, 33, was dismissed and disqualified from the NBA in May 2019 for violating the league’s anti-drug program. He was reinstated in February 2022 and subsequently tried out for several teams — and briefly played for the Bucks’ G League affiliate — but has been unable to find another NBA opportunity.

The fourth overall pick of the 2009 draft, Evans was named the NBA’s Rookie of the Year in 2009/10 after averaging 20.1 points, 5.8 assists, 5.3 rebounds and 1.5 steals in 72 games with the Kings. Unfortunately, he was never quite able to match that debut, but he still played 594 regular season games over 10 seasons with Sacramento, New Orleans, Memphis and Indiana.

We’ll have to wait and see whether Evans catches on with a European team for the 2023/24 season.

Here are a few more international notes:

Guard Jean Montero, who hails from the Dominican Republic and is representing his country in the upcoming World Cup, is reportedly nearing a deal with Turkey’s Anadolu Efes, reports David Rodriguez of Spanish outlet La Provincia (hat tip to Eurohoops). Montero was one of the top undrafted players in 2022, and part of the reason his Exhibit 10 contract with the Knicks never materialized is because he had a significant buyout clause with Spain’s Gran Carania. According to Rodriguez, Efes is willing to pay Montero’s buyout – worth 500K Euros – in order to sign the 20-year-old.
Sergei Babkov, who won two World Cup silver medals with Russia in the 1990s and had a lengthy international career, has passed away at age 56, as Eurohoops relays.
In an interesting story for HoopsHype, Jake Uitti details how the NBA became such a popular game around the globe, with top international players dominating the league in recent years and the percentage of international players continuing to grow over time.

Grant Riller To Play In China

August 21st, 2023 at 1:17pm CST by Rory Maher

Free agent guard Grant Riller has agreed to a contract with the Beijing Royal Fighters of the Chinese Basketball Association, sources tell Ennio Terrasi Borghesan of Sportando. The deal includes an NBA opt-out clause, Borghesan adds.

Riller, 26, was the 56th overall pick of the 2020 draft by the Hornets. He spent his rookie season on a two-way deal with Charlotte, appearing in seven NBA games for a total of 27 minutes. The Hornets chose not to give him a qualifying after 2020/21, making him an unrestricted free agent.

In ’21/22, Riller caught on with the Sixers on a two-way deal, but unfortunately his stint was plagued by injuries — he sustained a torn meniscus in October 2021 and then sustained a shoulder injury the following month that required surgery. Due to the lengthy recovery timeline, the Sixers waived Riller in December 2021.

Riller worked out for multiple teams last summer after recovering from the injury, ultimately signing a short-lived training camp deal with Dallas in the fall (he was waived the same day). He spent the ’22/23 season playing for the Texas Legends, the Mavs’ NBA G League affiliate, averaging 21.3 points, 3.8 assists and 2.8 rebounds on .520/.324/.808 shooting in 26 regular season games (27.7 minutes per contest).

The Royal Fighters, who are coached by former NBA All-Star Stephon Marbury, finished last season with a 16-26 record, 15th out of 20 CBA teams.

Ed Davis To Sign With Chinese Team

August 20th, 2023 at 8:46pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Former NBA big man Ed Davis is signing with a Chinese team. He has reached an agreement with the Xinjiang Flying Tigers, according to Sportando.

Noted for his rebounding ability, Davis had a lengthy NBA career. The 13th pick in the 2010 draft, Davis appeared in 722 regular-season games, including 106 starts. He averaged 5.9 points and 6.4 rebounds in 19.1 minutes per game with stops in Toronto, Memphis, the Los Angeles Lakers, Portland, Brooklyn, Utah, Minnesota and Cleveland. He also made a combined 33 postseason appearances with three different clubs.

Most recently, he appeared in 31 regular season contests with the Cavaliers during the 2021/22 season. He was unable to receive an NBA contract last season despite his desire to remain in the league.

Davis had a stint in Puerto Ric0 with the Guaynabo Mets last season, averaging more than 13 points and 16 rebounds per contest.

International Notes: Bahamas, Poland, Green, Lessort

August 20th, 2023 at 3:23pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Veteran Pacers swingman Buddy Hield submitted a team-most 17 points, while Suns guard Eric Gordon and center Deandre Ayton both made meaningful contributions during Bahamas’ 78-62 blowout win over Uruguay during the 2024 Olympics pre-qualifiers Saturday, per Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic.

Bahamas will now square off against home team Argentina in the final of this year’s Olympic pre-qualifying tournament Sunday night, with the winner earning a spot in next summer’s Olympic qualifying tournament. This is an entirely separate event from the FIBA World Cup, which tips off next week.

Here are more international hoops notes:

In winning one of this month’s Olympic pre-qualifying tournaments, Poland has now clinched a spot in the 2024 Olympic qualifying tournament, according to Eurohoops. Poland vanquished Bosnia and Herzegovina, 76-72, in the final. Napoli Basket small forward Michal Sokolowski paced Poland with 16 points and seven boards.
While playing their fourth FIBA World Cup exhibition game in Tokyo, Team Australia beat Team France 78-74. Boomers (and Mavericks) wing Josh Green departed the warm-up bout with a mild ankle injury, but the ailment appears fairly minor, per Olgun Uluc of ESPN (Twitter link).
After sitting out most of France’s training camp with an ankle issue, national team center Mathias Lessort has been given the green light to suit up for next week’s World Cup, reports Eurohoops. The Knicks own Lessort’s draft rights, though it remains unclear whether he will ever come stateside.

Terrence Ross Received Offer From Serbian Team

August 20th, 2023 at 10:11am CST by Luke Adams

Appearing on a Twitch live stream, veteran NBA wing Terrence Ross confirmed that he has received a contract offer from a Serbian team (Twitter video link via B92 Sport).

“They did offer me (a contract),” Ross said when asked about rumors that he could make the move to Serbia. “I was like, ‘Oh?’ Who knows.”

While Ross didn’t specifically name the team, there are only two Serbian clubs that compete in the EuroLeague and could make a viable offer for a player with the 32-year-old’s professional résumé. Of those two, Crvena Zvezda isn’t believed to be in the market for a player like Ross, per Eurohoops, so the 11-year NBA vet is likely referring to KK Partizan.

Whether that offer remains on the table is unclear. KK Partizan has recently added two other NBA veterans, including one wing, having signed PJ Dozier and Frank Kaminsky. According to Christos Harpidis of Bet Corner News (Twitter link), Partizan isn’t necessarily looking to acquire another NBA player right now.

It’s also not clear whether or not Ross is enthusiastic about the idea of playing overseas. He has been in the NBA since being selected with the eighth overall pick in the 2012 draft, appearing in a total of 733 regular season games and another 47 playoff contests during those 11 years.

Ross spent his first 10 NBA seasons in Toronto and Orlando, then was bought out by the Magic after the 2023 trade deadline. He caught on with the Suns and finished the season in Phoenix, averaging 9.0 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 2.0 assists in 18.4 minutes per game across 21 appearances with his new club.

A career 36.2% three-point shooter, Ross should still appeal to an NBA team seeking three-and-D depth at the back of its roster, but he has yet to find a new home after becoming a free agent on July 1. Presumably, he’ll continue to exhaust his NBA options before seriously considering a move to Europe.

International Notes: Landale, Jackson, Kaminsky, James, Loyd

August 18th, 2023 at 8:58am CST by Luke Adams

Rockets center Jock Landale confirmed on Twitter that he won’t be part of the Australian national team that will compete in the World Cup beginning next week. As we detailed on Thursday, Landale suffered an ankle injury during an exhibition game against South Sudan this week.

“Sitting here this morning knowing the Boomers are about to take off to Japan and I’m absolutely kicking myself I’m not right there beside them,” Landale wrote. “All the build up and preparation we go through as athletes just to have it yanked away 12 hours beforehand sucks.

“… Focus turns to supporting them how I can and preparing for this season with the Rockets,” Landale added.

Landale was said to be undergoing an MRI on his injured ankle on Friday. The results of that MRI and a diagnosis have yet to be reported, but hopefully the big man will be back to full health by the time the NBA season begins in October.

Here’s more from around the international basketball world:

Former NBA first-round pick Justin Jackson is believed to be receiving some interest from Israeli team Hapoel Tel Aviv, per a Walla Sport report (hat tip to Sportando). The veteran forward, who has played for six teams since entering the NBA as a 15th overall pick in 2017, appeared in 23 games for Boston in 2022/23. He was traded to Oklahoma City and waived in February.
Having signed with the Belgrade-based team KK Partizan, veteran NBA big man Frank Kaminsky noted that he has Serbian roots on his mother’s side and said that he spoke to former Hawks teammate Bogdan Bogdanovic before he agreed to join Partizan. “I called him first when the possibility arose to move to Partizan,” Kaminsky said, per Eurohoops. “He said a lot of nice things about the club and the city, which helped me make the decision to sign the contract.”
Appearing on the URBONUS podcast with Donatas Urbonas of BasketNews.com, former NBA guard Mike James confirmed that the plan is for him to remain with AS Monaco alongside new addition Kemba Walker for the 2023/24 season. James – who was rumored to be a Suns target early in the offseason – has one more season left on his contract with Monaco and sounds like he’s looking forward to exploring his options in 2024. “I think for this season, I’m here,” James said. “Free agency is the next summer and we’ll see what happens.”
Another former NBA guard who is playing for AS Monaco, Jordan Loyd, is expected to miss at least the next two or three months after undergoing lumbar spine surgery, tweets Urbonas.

Frank Kaminsky Signs One-Year Deal With Partizan

August 17th, 2023 at 3:52pm CST by Rory Maher

KK Partizan has officially signed free agent big man Frank Kaminsky to a one-year contract, as Eurohoops.net relays.

A report last month indicated that the 30-year-old would only consider joining a European team after exhausting his NBA options. Evidently he was unable to find a suitable contract in North America, as he’ll be heading overseas for the first time in his professional career.

Kaminsky was the ninth overall pick of the 2015 draft. He has appeared in 413 total regular season games for the Hornets, Suns, Hawks and Rockets over the past seven seasons.

The veteran forward/center didn’t play much last season after returning from 2021 surgery on his right knee, averaging just 2.5 points and 1.4 rebounds in 6.5 minutes per night across 36 appearances with Atlanta and Houston. Prior to his knee injury, Kaminsky averaged 8.2 PPG, 4.3 RPG, and 1.8 APG with a .468/.344/.682 shooting line in 95 games (17.6 MPG) over three seasons in Phoenix.

Partizan competes in the EuroLeague, widely considered to be the world’s best non-NBA league. The Serbian club finished the regular season with a 20-14 record, losing its hotly contested first-round playoff series against eventual champion Real Madrid in five games (the maximum).

International Notes: Walker, Bridges, Lue, Fournier

August 17th, 2023 at 11:00am CST by Arthur Hill

Kemba Walker talked about promoting the EuroLeague and giving it more worldwide recognition as he arrived in Europe this week to join AS Monaco Basket, writes Antonis Stroggylakis of Eurohoops. The free agent point guard, who had been looking for a new team since the Mavericks waived him in January, agreed to a one-year deal with Monaco last month.

“I hope I can help increase the notoriety of the EuroLeague,” Walker said. “To increase the style of play and just built it up more. … It’s a big step. Something different. I’m just looking forward to the opportunity. I just want to play basketball.”

There are plenty of former NBA players in the EuroLeague, but no one has the resume of Walker, who was a four-time All-Star before a knee injury derailed his career. Even if the experience in Europe doesn’t lead to another NBA opportunity, Walker is hoping to show that he can still play at a high level.

“I’m looking forward to be in a different environment,” he said. “Learning my teammates. Meeting new people… the coaching staff, medical guys, everything. Basketball is basketball. And I’m here to win games.”

There’s more international news to pass along:

Mikal Bridges is enjoying his first time representing the U.S. in international competition, per Joe Vardon of The Athletic. Bridges won two national titles at Villanova and has developed into an elite player with Phoenix and Brooklyn, but he considers playing for the World Cup team to be the highlight of his career. “It’s definitely surreal, just being here, having these colors on, having USA across the chest,” he said. “When Steve (Kerr) first talked to me about being on the team, I was in Phoenix then, and when he called, it was already a ‘Pinch me’ moment. And when I got the official call from Grant (Hill) asking me to be on the team, I was like, ‘Oh shoot, we’re really doing this.’”
Clippers coach Tyronn Lue is part of Kerr’s staff after an injury cost him a chance to join Team USA as a player in 1997, notes Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press. “I think it’s an honor,” Lue said. “You grow up watching basketball, watching the Olympic team, the Dream Team, you always want to play for those teams. I wasn’t good enough, but it’s amazing to have an opportunity to represent my country in any capacity. So, coaching is what it is.”
French guard Evan Fournier reached a milestone Wednesday by taking part in the 100th international game of his career, according to Eurohoops. The Knicks‘ guard had 10 points and two assists in a win over Japan.

Shanghai Sharks Add Noah Vonleh, Yogi Ferrell

August 17th, 2023 at 9:01am CST by Arthur Hill

Noah Vonleh and Yogi Ferrell have signed with the Shanghai Sharks for the upcoming season, according to Dario Skerletic of Sportando.

Vonleh previously played for the Chinese Basketball Association team during the 2021/22 season before returning to the NBA with the Celtics last summer. He appeared in 23 games for Boston, averaging 1.1 points and 2.1 rebounds in 7.4 minutes per night. He was traded to the Spurs in early January before his contract became guaranteed, and San Antonio immediately waived him.

Vonleh was taken by Charlotte with the ninth pick in the 2014 draft, but other than three seasons in Portland, he never spent more than a year with any of his eight NBA teams.

Panathinaikos in Greece reportedly considered signing Vonleh in July, but he opted to return to Shanghai instead.

Ferrell has been out of the NBA since finishing the 2020/21 season with the Clippers. The 30-year-old guard played briefly with Panathinaikos, then moved on to Cedevita Olimpija, where he was named MVP of the Slovenian Basketball League Finals last season.

Ferrell played for five teams during his five NBA seasons.