International Rumors | Hoops Rumors

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.

And-Ones: T. Davis, Player Tiers, 2025 FAs, R. Thompson

August 16th, 2023 at 7:19pm CST by Rory Maher

According to Arale Weisberg of Israeli outlet Walla Sport (Twitter link), Spanish powerhouse FC Barcelona is keeping tabs on free agent wing Terence Davis, who spent the past two-and-a-half seasons with the Kings (hat tip to Dario Skerletic of Sportando).

In 64 regular season games (13.1 MPG) with Sacramento in 2022/23, Davis averaged 6.7 PPG and 2.2 RPG on .423/.366/.791 shooting. In total, the 26-year-old has appeared in 227 games over four seasons with the Raptors and Kings.

A handful of NBA teams were rumored to be interested in Davis once free agency got underway on June 30, but he has yet to find another club. The Kings renounced his rights in order to maximize their cap space this summer.

As Skerletic notes, Barcelona — which recently signed Jabari Parker — would likely have to give Davis a contract in the range of Parker’s deal to entice him to come to Europe. Parker will reportedly receive a one-year, $2MM contract that includes an NBA opt-out clause.

Here’s more from around the basketball world:

Earlier this week, Seth Partnow of The Athletic released his first two player tier rankings ahead of the 2023/24 season. Roughly ranking the top-125 players in the league, tier five consisted of 45 players, while tier four contained 41. His latest installment — tier three — includes 21 players, such as Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton, Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen, and Kings guard De’Aaron Fox. Partnow’s top two tiers will feature 18 total players.
Yossi Gozlan of HoopsHype takes an early look at the potential 2025 free agent class, with Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo ranked No. 1 overall. Wizards guard Landry Shamet rounds out Gozlan’s top-65 list.
Former Indiana forward Race Thompson, who went undrafted earlier this summer, recently revealed that he sustained a right tibia plateau fracture a couple months ago, as Kyler Staley of Hoosier Illustrated relays. Thompson had reached an agreement to play for the Knicks in Summer League action, but obviously the injury prevented that from happening.

Bucks’ Bobby Portis Talks Team USA, Contract, Griffin

August 16th, 2023 at 1:19pm CST by Luke Adams

Bucks big man Bobby Portis is one of 12 players suiting up for the USA Basketball team that will compete in the 2023 World Cup that tips off next week.

Speaking to Sam Yip of HoopsHype, Portis said that it has been “pretty great” representing his country in international competition so far and that the team is still focused on building chemistry and adjusting to the FIBA rules as it gears up for group play.

In his conversation with Yip, Portis also addressed his role as Team USA’s de facto veteran leader, the Bucks’ new head coach, and a handful of other topics. Here are a few highlights:

On what’s expected of him as Team USA’s elder statesman at age 28:

“Man, I just come in every day and be Bobby Portis. That’s all I know how to be, since day one, in my time in the league, man. I’ve never changed who I am, stay true to myself, work on my game each and every year and get better. And try to be a leader working on my leadership qualities over the last three, four years in the league, especially when I got to the Bucks being around great savvy vets like Giannis [Antetokounmpo], Brook Lopez, Jrue [Holiday], Khris [Middleton], all my guys. The core group of guys, those guys, let me kind of be myself. Let me have a voice. And it’s been cool, man. So, my role on this team is to be Bobby, man. It’s all I know how to be.”

On whether signing a four-year, $48.6MM contract in 2022 gave him a sense of validation:

“I mean, yeah, but every year is a prove-it year, man. Just because you got a deal doesn’t mean you got to stop working and keep building brick by brick. Keep chopping wood and carrying water, that’s the motto. Can’t get complacent, can’t get comfortable in the league.

“There are 40, 50, 60 guys that want to have a guaranteed spot every year on a new team. And there’s gonna be 40, 50, 60 guys that are going to get pushed out. So gotta keep getting better each and every year. Can’t be satisfied with whatever you need to be. Whether it is $20 million, $100 million, $200 million. Gotta keep going. Gotta keep chopping wood and getting better.”

On what he hopes new head coach Adrian Griffin brings to Milwaukee:

“I don’t like to compare the past and the future, but I just hope he lets us be us, and be the player-driven team. We have a lot of guys on our team that’s done this before, so we kind of know what it takes to get to that next level. Our biggest thing on the Bucks is just staying healthy. No matter who it is that’s coaching whatever it is, we got to be healthy.”

International Notes: Batum, Randle, Lithuania, Tubelis

August 15th, 2023 at 8:48am CST by Luke Adams

Clippers forward Nicolas Batum is playing for France at this year’s World Cup and intends to suit up for the national team at the 2024 Olympics in Paris. However, next year’s Olympics tournament is expected to be the last time Batum represents France in an international competition.

Batum’s wife, Lily Batum, indicated in a tweet that the veteran NBA wing will retire from France’s national team after the 2024 Olympics. Her tweet also suggested that Nicolas will retire as an NBA player following the final year of his contract with the Clippers, though she later clarified in a follow-up tweet that that decision hasn’t been made yet.

Batum, who entered the NBA in 2008 and has spent 15 seasons in the league, will turn 35 later this year. He has spent the last three seasons with the Clippers, but has seen his playing time dip a little in each season, from 27.4 minutes per game in 2020/21 to 24.8 MPG in ’21/22 and 21.9 MPG in ’22/23. He’ll be an unrestricted free agent in 2024.

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

AEK Athens and former NBA guard Chasson Randle have agreed to a one-year deal, according to Stavros Barbarousis of Eurohoops. Randle, who has played in a handful of professional leagues around the world, also has 119 NBA appearances on his résumé, having spent time with the Sixers, Knicks, Wizards, Warriors, and Magic between 2016-21.
After defeating Finland in an exhibition game on Monday – overcoming a 32-point outing from Lauri Markkanen – Lithuania has finalized its roster for the 2023 World Cup, per Eurohoops. The roster includes a handful of current or former NBA players, headlined by Pelicans center Jonas Valanciunas. However, NBA rookie Azuolas Tubelis, who signed a two-way contract with the Sixers last month, didn’t make the final cut.
In case you missed it, veteran NBA wing Sterling Brown completed a two-year deal with Germany’s Alba Berlin. We have the full story here.

Sterling Brown Signs With German Team

August 15th, 2023 at 8:07am CST by Dana Gauruder

AUGUST 15: Brown has officially signed with Alba Berlin, according to a press release from the team. Brown’s deal is for two years and will run through the 2024/25 season.

AUGUST 13: Veteran NBA swingman Sterling Brown is reportedly signing with a German team, Sportando relays.

According to European reporter Tolis Kotzias, Brown is close to signing with Alba Berlin. Another European basketball insider, Lucas D’Alessandro, writes that it’s a done deal (Twitter link).

The 2017 second-round pick has appeared in 268 regular season NBA games. He has averaged 5.3 points and 3.3 rebounds in 16.6 minutes per game during his NBA career.

Brown played three seasons in Milwaukee and saw action in 51 games with Houston in 2020/21, including 14 starts. He played 49 games, including three starts, with the Mavericks in 2021/22. He also saw action in nine playoff games with Dallas.

Last season, Brown made four brief appearances off the bench for the Lakers after signing a 10-day contract in early January. He spent most of the season with the Raptors’ G League affiliate, appearing in 24 games (22 starts) and averaging 15.7 points, 7.2 rebounds and 4.8 assists.

Brown was traded twice last offseason, first by the Mavericks to the Rockets. He was later dealt to the Thunder, who waived him in early October.

And-Ones: Rivers, Myers, ESPN, Flowers, Tillman

August 14th, 2023 at 4:00pm CST by Rory Maher

ESPN has officially hired former Sixers head coach Doc Rivers to join its top broadcast team, the network announced in a press release written by Ronce Rajan. Rivers, who signed a multiyear contract to be an analyst, will work alongside fellow analyst Doris Burke and play-by-play announcer Mike Breen.

ESPN decided to shake up its top broadcasting group after releasing former analysts Mark Jackson and Jeff Van Gundy.

In addition to Rivers, ESPN has also signed longtime Warriors executive Bob Myers, who left his post a couple months ago. Myers will serve as analyst on NBA countdown and will also call games during the season, per Rajan.

The signings of Rivers and Myers were previously reported by The New York Post.

ESPN also announced a new secondary broadcast team comprised of play-by-play voice Ryan Ruocco alongside analysts — and former NBA players — JJ Redick and Richard Jefferson. Jefferson received a multiyear extension, Rajan adds.

Here’s more from around the basketball world:

Forward Trentyn Flowers, who had committed to Louisville, has decided against playing for the Cardinals and will instead head overseas in an effort to make the NBA. Flowers announced on Twitter that he’ll be joining the NBL’s Next Stars program and will play for the Adelaide 36ers. The NBL features nine Australian teams and one based in New Zealand. As Jonathan Wasserman of Bleacher Report tweets, Flowers is one of a handful of potential 2024 first-round picks who have decided to play in the NBL.
Greece’s AEK Athens has officially signed big man Justin Tillman, according to Eurohoops.net. Tillman never actually got in an NBA game, but he signed a 10-day hardship deal with the Hawks a couple years ago and has been a highly productive player in the G League. The former VCU star has had several other international stops during the course of his professional career.
In case you missed it, we passed along several World Cup notes this morning.

Tacko Fall To Sign With Another Team In China

August 14th, 2023 at 9:15am CST by Arthur Hill

Free agent center Tacko Fall will spend another year in China, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). Charania reports that Fall will sign with the Nanjing Monkey Kings after playing last season for the Xinjiang Flying Tigers.

Despite his towering 7’6″ frame, Fall hasn’t been able to establish himself in the NBA. He played 26 combined games in two years with the Celtics, then 11 games for the Cavaliers, but he’s been out of the league since Cleveland waived him in January of 2022. He finished that season in the G League before heading overseas.

Fall joined the Bucks’ Summer League team this year in the hopes of getting another NBA opportunity. In five games in Las Vegas, he averaged 6.4 points, 4.4 rebounds and 1.6 blocks in 13.1 minutes per contest.

In an interview with Charania, Fall talks about how basketball is played in China compared to the NBA.

“They play very physical, especially when you’re an import,” he said. “Everything is focused on you. So I used to joke, I used to be on the phone with some of my friends like, ‘I’m getting guarded here like I’m Steph Curry.’ Because they’d literally be with you from one sideline to the other.”

And-Ones: Cunningham, Jones, Flagg, Macura, Wade

August 13th, 2023 at 8:45pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Pistons guard Cade Cunningham tops the list of potential breakout candidates for the upcoming season, Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times writes. Cunningham, who missed most of last season with a shin injury, dazzled while playing this month for the USA Select Team.

Wizards guard Tyus Jones, who has a chance to start after serving as a backup with the Timberwolves and Grizzlies, and Trail Blazers second-year wing Shaedon Sharpe, who put up big numbers late last season, are among the other players who make Cowley’s list.

We have more news from around the basketball world:

Cooper Flagg’s decision to reclassify makes a significant impact on the 2025 draft, according to Jonathan Givony of ESPN. The 2025 draft wasn’t considered particularly strong, so with Flagg eligible to be taken that season, that group now has more star power. Despite his unorthodox game built around defense and passing, rather than scoring prowess, Flagg is the early favorite to be the top pick of that draft.
J.P. Macura is signing with Happy Casa Brindisi of Italy, according to Emiliano Carchia of Sportando (Twitter link). Macura made three cameo appearances in the NBA — two games with the Hornets in 2018/19 and one with the Cavaliers the following season. Macura has played the last two seasons in Italy after a one-year stop in Turkey.
Dwyane Wade, who was inducted into the Naismith Hall of Fame on Saturday, wasn’t a slam dunk to be selected by the Heat in the lottery in 2003, Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel notes. Team president Pat Riley said the club was in need of a big but when Toronto took Chris Bosh, Wade slipped to Miami’s pick at No. 5 overall.

Mfiondu Kabengele Signs With AEK Athens

August 13th, 2023 at 9:00am CST by Arthur Hill

Mfiondu Kabengele, who was with the Celtics last season on a two-way contract, has signed with AEK Athens, the team announced in a press release. His new deal covers only the upcoming season and marks his first time playing in Europe.

The 25-year-old big man appeared in four games with Boston last season, but spent most of the year in the G League. In 27 regular season games with the Maine Celtics, he averaged 20.0 points and 10.8 rebounds while shooting 60.4% from the field. He was a second-team All-G League selection.

Kabengele has appeared in 55 career games with three NBA teams. He was selected by the Nets with the 27th pick in 2019 and was traded to the Clippers on draft night. L.A. sent him to the Kings in March of 2021, but Sacramento waived him three days later. He joined the Cavaliers on a pair of 10-day contracts and was signed for the rest of the season.

Kabengele is the latest notable signing for AEK Athens, which has been aggressive in adding former NBA talent. Ben McLemore joined the Greek team last week, and its roster also includes Jordan McRae, Chasson Randle and Mindaugas Kuzminskas.

PJ Dozier Signing With Partizan In Serbia

August 12th, 2023 at 8:31am CST by Earnest Marshall

Former Kings wing PJ Dozier is signing with KK Partizan in Serbia, according to Eurohoops. It’s a one-year deal for Dozier, who is heading out of the U.S. for the first time in his professional career.

Dozier spent part of last season with Sacramento, first inking a pair of 10-day deals with the team and then signing for the rest of the season. The 6’6″ wing played a modest role for the team, averaging 1.4 points in 4.9 minutes per game across 16 appearances. The Kings waived Dozier on July 8.

Before landing in Sacramento, Dozier had stops with the Thunder, Celtics and Nuggets. He went undrafted in the 2017 NBA draft out of South Carolina. Dozier played on two-way contracts with the Thunder and Celtics, appearing in just eight games from 2017 to 2019, his first two seasons in the league. He broke onto the scene with the Nuggets, where he spent the majority of his career. Dozier signed with the Nuggets for the 2019/20 season and impressed enough to stick around onto the ’20/21 roster.

In ’20/21, Dozier averaged 7.7 points for the Nuggets in 50 appearances in six starts. He was on track for another productive season in ’21/22 but his campaign was cut short due to a torn ACL. Later in the season, the Nuggets traded Dozier to the Celtics, where he was re-routed to the Magic and then waived. Dozier caught on with the Timberwolves for training camp last season and his stint with their G League team, the Iowa Wolves, impressed the Kings into signing him.

Now, Dozier takes over for a Partizan club that lost Dante Exum, who signed with the Mavericks earlier this offseason.

This deal has seemingly been in the works for several days. Before being confirmed by Eurohoops today, a report from Sportal.rs suggested Dozier and Partizan were close to an agreement, and Eurohoops cited an earlier report from Mozzart Sport.