Each year, the draft brings questions about which foreign players are ready for the NBA immediately and which ones will remain overseas for a year or more. A few answers were provided tonight:
- Greek center Georgios Papagiannis, drafted 13th overall by the Kings, has a buyout cost with his Panathinaikos club, tweets Sean Cunningham of ABC10 in Sacramento. However, GM Vlade Divac says the price is manageable and promises Papagiannis will be with the Kings next season.
- French swingman Timothe Luwawu, whom the Sixers drafted at No. 24, plans to join the team next season, tweets Jessica Camerato of CSNPhilly.
- Furkan Korkmaz, the Sixers‘ pick at No. 26, will not be in Philadelphia for 2016/17, according to international journalist David Pick (Twitter link). The Turkish forward will be stashed overseas for at least a year.
- The Lakers plan to have Croatian center Ivica Zubac on their roster next season, tweets Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress. L.A. took Zubac with the second choice in the second round. He had received a “soft promise” from the Lakers if he fell to the 32nd pick, according to Eric Pincus of The Los Angeles Times (Twitter link).
- German small forward Paul Zipser will play for the Bulls during the 2016/17 season, tweets Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress. Givony believes the 22-year-old can find a role in Chicago right away.
- Egyptian forward Abdel Nader of Iowa State, the Celtics‘ pick at No 58, has agreed to spend next season in the D-League, according to Givony (Twitter link). Players who agree in advance to be stashed in the D-League don’t count against the salary cap.
The kings are the worst run organization in the league!!
As of now. Hopefully they can get it straight