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International Notes: Fernandez, Canada, Paris, Almansa, More

June 28th, 2023 at 10:10am CST by Luke Adams

Kings associate head coach Jordi Fernandez will replace Nick Nurse of the Sixers as the head coach of the Canadian national team, sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.

Canada Basketball has officially confirmed the news, indicating in a press release that the leadership change will take place immediately. Nurse, who coached the Raptors – Canada’s only NBA team – for five seasons before being dismissed this spring, subsequently stepped down from his position with the national team. Fernandez will take the reins for the 2023 World Cup, which begins in less than two months.

Fernandez, who was born in Spain, was an assistant coach on the Nuggets’ staff from 2016-22 before joining the Kings under Mike Brown last year. He’s considered a rising head coaching candidate, having interviewed for the coaching vacancies in Phoenix and Toronto earlier in the offseason.

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

  • After playing a regular season game in France in 2020 and again in 2023, the NBA is on track to return to Paris in 2024, according to a report from L’Equipe, which states that the Nets and Cavaliers are the teams expected to compete in that game. There’s hope that French phenom Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs will play a game in Paris as soon as 2025, per L’Equipe.
  • Izan Almansa, a 6’10” Spanish big man who spent the last two years with Overtime Elite and projects to be a first-round pick in 2024, has signed with the G League Ignite, reports Jonathan Givony of ESPN. Almansa, the last prospect to join the Ignite for 2023/24, will be part of a star-studded group that includes potential top-five picks Ron Holland and Matas Buzelis.
  • Gianni Petrucci, the president of the Italian Basketball Federation, wasn’t thrilled by Paolo Banchero‘s decision to play for the United States instead of Italy at the upcoming World Cup, telling La Gazzetta dello Sport that the Magic forward “fooled us.” However, Petrucci clarified that he was more upset about a lack of communication from Banchero rather than the decision itself. “It was a legitimate decision, but he could have made a call to communicate that to us,” Petrucci said, per BasketNews.com. “Instead, we learned about his decision from the newspapers.”
  • German forward Louis Olinde, who has spent the past three seasons with Alba Berlin, is hoping to make the move to the NBA this offseason, writes Donatas Urbonas of BasketNews.com. According to Urbonas, Olinde has worked out for the Warriors and Thunder and has a session lined up with the Trail Blazers too. The 25-year-old is also expected to play for the Suns at the Las Vegas Summer League.
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Draft Notes: Zoosman, Obiesie, Eboua, Holman, Herro

June 10th, 2019 at 7:06pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Israeli Yovel Zoosman, a 6’6” small forward, will keep his name in the draft, Jonathan Givony of ESPN tweets. Zoosman plays for Maccabi Tel Aviv, which just advanced to the Israeli league playoff finals. Zoosman is ranked No. 53 on Givony’s Top 100 prospects list.

We have more draft decisions and workouts:

  • German point guard Josh Obiesie will stay in the draft, according to another Givony tweet. Givony has Obiesie ranked No. 64 overall and No. 10 among point guard prospects.
  • Forward Paul Eboua, Cameroon native, has withdrawn his name from the draft, according to Givony (Twitter link). He joins 11 other international players — Gytis Masiulis, Abdoulaye N’Doye, Digue Diawara, Aleksandr Balcerowski, Aleix Font, Zoran Paunovic, Dalibor Ilic, Louis Olinde, Jonas Matisseck, Tadas Sedekerskis and Vrenz Bleijenbergh — who have also decided to pull out of the draft. Matas Jogela, a Lithuanian forward, and William McDowell-White, an Australian guard, will remain in the draft, according to Givony (Twitter links).
  • Mississippi State forward Aric Holman worked out for the Raptors on Monday, according to Ian Begley of SNY TV (Twitter link). He visited the Knicks last week and will work out for the Kings, Lakers and Cavaliers this week, Begley adds.
  • First round prospect Tyler Herro (Kentucky) has worked out for the Spurs and will also visit the Pacers and Timberwolves, Josh Robbins of The Athletic tweets. Herro is ranked No. 18 overall and No. 4 among shooting guards by Givony.
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Draft Notes: Bassey, Ward, Winston, Olinde

April 19th, 2019 at 9:55pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Western Kentucky freshman center Charles Bassey will declare for the draft without signing with an agent, the school’s media relations department tweets. The 6’11” Bassey averaged 14.6 PPG, 10.0 RPG and 2.4 BPG in 34 games for the Hilltoppers. He is currently ranked No. 53 on ESPN draft expert Jonathan Givony’s Top 100 list.

We have more draft decisions:

  • Michigan State center Nick Ward has declared for the draft and hired an agent, he announced on his Instagram account. Ward averaged 12.9 PPG and 6.1 RPG as a junior, though he missed some late-season games due to a broken hand.
  • Michigan State point guard Cassius Winston will return for his senior season, according to a school press release. Winston was a consensus second-team All-American this past season, averaging a team-best 18.8 PPG and setting a Big Ten single-season record with 291 assists. He’s ranked No. 78 by Givony.
  • Louis Olinde, a 6’10” German forward, has declared for the draft, Givony tweets. The 21-year-old Olinde starts for Bamberg in Germany, where he’s shooting 38% from long range in the Basketball Bundesliga.
  • Aleksander Balcerowski, a 7’1” center from Poland, has also declared for the draft, according to another Givony tweet. The 18-year old has seen minutes with Gran Canaria in the EuroLeague and ACB Liga in Spain this season and would be one of the youngest players in the draft if he stays in.
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Doncic, Okobo, Others Remaining In NBA Draft

June 11th, 2018 at 11:28am CST by Luke Adams

With the NBA’s withdrawal deadline for early entrants right around the corner, top prospect Luka Doncic will keep his name in the 2018 NBA draft, a source tells Jonathan Givony of ESPN.com. While that doesn’t mean he’s obliged to come to the NBA next season, it makes Doncic draft-eligible next week, when he’s expected to come off the board within the first four or five picks.

According to Givony, a number of teams have inquired about the possibility of acquiring a top-three pick, with an eye toward nabbing Doncic. We heard previously that the Clippers had explored that possibility, but it sounds like they’re not the only team weighing that scenario.

Meanwhile, Givony has several more updates on international prospects who have decided to either keep their names in the draft or withdraw from the 2018 pool. Here’s the latest:

Staying in the draft:

Withdrawing:

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Draft Updates: Daum, Olinde, Echodas, Cate

April 21st, 2018 at 5:47pm CST by Arthur Hill

Mike Daum of South Dakota State has tweeted his intention to enter  the NBA draft. The junior forward averaged 23.9 points and 10.3 rebounds this year and has been an Associated Press honorable mention All-American the past two seasons.

“After speaking with my coaches and family I have decided to declare for the 2018 NBA Draft without an agent,” Daum wrote on Twitter. “I’m excited to pursue my dream and see where this process will take me!”

Daum is joined by a slew of international prospects who elected to test the draft waters as we move toward tomorrow night’s deadline. All the decisions relayed by ESPN’s Jonathan Givony:

  • Louis Olinde, 20, of Germany, a 6’10” combo forward who appeared in 32 games for Bamberg in the Euroleague and BBL. (Twitter link)
  • Lithuania’s Martynas Echodas, 20, a 6’10” center who plays for Lietuvos Rytas and is posting 9.5 points and 6.2 rebounds in 20 minutes per game (Twitter link).
  • Emanuel Cate, 20, of Romania, a 6’10 forward who plays in Spain and was named MVP of last year’s under-20 European Championship in Division B (Twitter link).
  • The Congo’s Romaric Belemene, 21, a 6’8″ combo forward who averages 9.5 points in 24 minutes for Oviedo in the Spanish second division. (Twitter link).
  • Yago Dos Santos, 19, of Brazil, a 5’10” point guard who recently participated in the Nike Hoop Summit (Twitter link).
  • Brazil’s Gabriel Galvanini, 19, a 6’9″ combo forward averaging 7.5 points and 4.6 rebounds for Bauru in the first division. He ranks 12th in ESPN’s 1998 international class ranking, according to Givony (Twitter link).
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