Yannick Nzosa

Pistons’ Procida, Cavs’ Diop Among Draftees Expected To Be Stashed Overseas

Italian wing Gabriele Procida, who was drafted 36th overall on Thursday night after spending last season with Fortitudo Bologna, is expected to be stashed overseas by the Pistons, reports James L. Edwards III of The Athletic (Twitter link).

While Procida is the highest of this year’s draft picks reported to be a likely draft-and-stash prospect, he’s hardly the only one. Here are a few more updates on 2022’s draft-and-stash candidates:

  • After using the No. 39 pick to draft him on Thursday, the Cavaliers intend to keep 20-year-old center Khalifa Diop overseas for the 2022/23 season, writes Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. The Senegalese big man won the EuroCup Rising Star award playing for Gran Canaria in Spain this past season.
  • The Nuggets plan to stash center Ismael Kamagate in Europe next season, a source tells Harrison Wind of DNVR Sports (Twitter link). The No. 46 pick on Thursday, Kamagate had an All-Star season playing for Paris in 2021/22.
  • Italian shooting guard Matteo Spagnolo, drafted at No. 50 by the Timberwolves, will likely remain overseas next season, per president of basketball operations Tim Connelly (Twitter link via Dane Moore). Spagnolo is still just 19 years old.
  • Crotian forward/center Karlo Matkovic, selected 52nd overall by the Pelicans, is expected to join New Orleans’ Summer League roster but will continue playing in Europe for another year or two, general manager Trajan Langdon told reporters, including Andrew Lopez of ESPN (Twitter link).
  • Wizards president of basketball operations Tommy Sheppard said after the draft that No. 54 pick Yannick Nzosa will be a “stash guy” in the Spanish League next season, according to Ava Wallace of The Washington Post (Twitter link).

Draft Workout Notes: Kings, Wizards, Wolves, Jazz, More

The Kings hosted several prospects for pre-draft workouts on Tuesday and Wednesday, the team announced (Twitter links).

The Tuesday group featured Trey McGowens, Ziga Samar, Ron Harper Jr., Brady Manek and Dallas Walton. Wednesday’s group was Jacob Gilyard, Fatts Russell, Yoan Makoundou, Karlo Matkovic, Yannick Nzosa and Kai Sotto.

The Kings control the fourth, 37th and 49th picks in the 2022 draft, and a handful of those players could be targets with one of those second-round picks. Nzosa, Samar, Harper and Matkovic are ranked between 53rd and 58th on ESPN’s big board.

Here are more workout-related notes from around the NBA:

Draft Decisions: Diop, Spagnolo, Savkov, Nzosa, Matkovic

The early entry deadline to withdraw from the draft was 5 p.m. on Monday. It’s mostly relevant for international prospects, since the deadline to withdraw while retaining NCAA eligibility was June 1.

Several more international prospects have decided to stay in the draft, according to ESPN’s Jonathan Givony (Twitter links available right here). Here is that list:

  • Big man Khalifa Diop, is ranked No. 39 on ESPN’s Best Available list and the fourth-highest at the center spot. The 7-footer had a solid season in the ACB with Gran Canaria, winning the EuroCup’s Rising Star award.
  • Italian guard Matteo Spagnolo is another potential second-rounder, rated No. 59 overall and No. 11 among point guards. He shot 44% for 3 this season for Cremona in the first division.
  • Russian wing Pavel Savkov isn’t listed among ESPN’s top 100 prospects. The 6’7” Savkov shot 40% on 3-pointers in Spain the past two seasons.
  • Congolese big man Yannick Nzosa is the youngest player in the draft class. He’s played for Unicaja Malaga in Spain. Ranked No. 54, Nzosa is an extremely mobile big man with an excellent motor and strong defensive versatility, according to Givony.
  • Croatian power forward Karlo Matkovic is also staying in the draft after a last-minute change of heart. He’s slotted at No. 60 on ESPN’s list.

You can check out all early entrant decisions here.

Southeast Notes: Hornets, Workouts, Wizards, Russell, Magic

The Hornets hold three picks in the 2022 NBA draft (Nos. 13, 15, and 45) and are keeping busy in the weeks leading up to June 23, bringing in a handful of prospects on a daily basis for a closer look.

On Tuesday, the Hornets worked out Tyson Etienne (Wichita State), Jordan Goldwire (Oklahoma), John Meeks (College of Charleston), Orlando Robinson (Fresno State), D’Shawn Schwartz (George Mason), and Bryson Williams (Texas Tech), according to the team (Twitter link). All six of those players rank outside of the top 75 on ESPN’s big board, so they figure to receive consideration as possible second-round or UDFA targets.

On Wednesday, Hugo Besson (New Zealand Breakers), Khalifa Diop (Gran Canaria), Hyunjung Lee (Davidson), Javante McCoy (Boston University), Andrew Nembhard (Gonzaga), and Yannick Nzosa (Unicaja) make up the Hornets’ workout group (Twitter link). Several of those prospects are more highly regarded by draft experts — ESPN ranks Nembhard, Besson, and Diop 35th, 38th, and 39th respectively.

Here’s more from around the Southeast:

  • The Wizards will be in the market for a starting point guard this offseason, but don’t expect them to pursue D’Angelo Russell. Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News said on his podcast (The Scoop w/ Doogie) that he has heard Washington has no interest in the Timberwolves guard (hat tip to HoopsHype).
  • The Wizards‘ pre-draft workout on Wednesday will feature Kenny Baptiste (France), Garrison Brooks (Mississippi State), Kyle Foster (Howard), Justin Kier (Arizona), Aminu Mohammed (Georgetown), and Gabe Osabuohien (West Virginia), as Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington relays (via Twitter).
  • Murray State guard Tevin Brown was in Orlando on Tuesday, presumably to work out for the Magic, tweets Khobi Price of The Orlando Sentinel. The Murray State guard is the No. 74 on ESPN’s big board, so the Magic could consider him in the second round or as an undrafted free agent.

AJ Griffin, Yannick Nzosa Enter 2022 NBA Draft

Duke forward AJ Griffin officially announced on Sunday that he’ll be entering the 2022 NBA draft (Twitter link). Based on the wording of the announcement from the school, it sounds as if Griffin will forgo his remaining college eligibility and go pro.

Griffin’s decision comes as no surprise, as he’s considered a potential lottery pick, ranking No. 8 overall on ESPN’s big board. As a freshman, he averaged 10.4 PPG and 3.9 RPG with an impressive .447 3PT% in 39 games (24.0 MPG).

In his scouting report on Griffin, Mike Schmitz of ESPN refers to the 18-year-old as one of college basketball’s best shooters and says he has the type of physical frame NBA scouts love (6’6″ with a seven-foot wingspan). While Griffin looked like a potential top-five pick at times, there were other games where he looked like a “one-dimensional gunner,” according to Schmitz, who says the former Blue Devil will have to prove he can be a “willing, engaged” defender.

Griffin joins his Duke teammates Paolo Banchero, Mark Williams, Trevor Keels, and Wendell Moore in the 2022 draft pool.

Meanwhile, 18-year-old Congolese center Yannick Nzosa has also declared for the draft, a source tells Jonathan Givony of ESPN (Twitter link). Nzosa, who has spent the last couple seasons playing for Unicaja in Spain, is the No. 46 prospect on ESPN’s board and projects as a second-round pick, according to Givony.

Sunday night was the deadline for early entrants to declare for the 2022 NBA draft, so we should get an official preliminary early entry list from the league at some point this week. We’ve been tracking this year’s early entrants right here, but our list is unofficial and could grow significantly when the NBA puts out the full list of names.