Brazilian point guard George Lucas will enter this year’s draft, agent Alex Saratsis tells Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress (Twitter link). Lucas, aka George de Paula, is the 30th-best prospect in this year’s draft according to Givony, but he’s only 59th in Chad Ford’s ESPN.com rankings. Lucas joins two more prospects from overseas entering the draft — fellow Brazilian Lucas Dias, also known as Lucas Dias Silva, and German-born Paul Zipser, both combo forwards, as Givony also reports (Twitter links).
Lucas, who’ll turn 19 next month, has a decent chance to follow the footsteps of Bruno Caboclo from the Brazilian team Pinheiros/Sky to the first round of the draft. The 6’6″ Lucas has size, but he’s played only a total of 26 minutes across six games for Pinheiros/Sky this season, scoring 15 points. He put up three points in nearly 13 minutes of action at the recent Nike Hoops Summit.
Zipser is an athletic small forward who can shoot and defend well, according to Givony, who lists power forward as another NBA positional fit. At 6’8″ and 21 years old, he’s the No. 73 prospect on Givony’s list, while Ford ranks him 99th.
Dias, another Pinheiros/Sky player, saw more action for the team, averaging 4.1 points and 2.5 rebounds in 11.3 minutes per game. The 6’9″ 19-year-old is this year’s 75th-best prospect, according to Givony, while Ford doesn’t have him within his top 100.
International prospects have until June 15th to withdraw from the draft, as our list of draft-related deadlines shows. It wouldn’t be surprising if one or more of these three entrants decide to pull out after taking part in workouts and showcases, though that’s just my speculation. Lucas and Dias intend to participate in the NBA combine and the Adidas EuroCamp if invited, Givony tweets.