EuroLeague star Vasilije Micic appears to be getting serious about finally making the move stateside.
Christos Tsaltas of Sportal.gr (Google Translate of Greek report) reports that Micic is “determined” to play in the NBA next season, while Anadolu Efes general manager Alper Yilmaz said that Micic – the star of the Turkish team – “really wants to go to the NBA” (story via Eurohoops).
Micic, 29, was selected by Philadelphia with the 52nd overall pick in the 2014 draft. The Sixers traded his draft rights in 2020 to the Thunder, who have held them for the last three years.
The 6’5″ guard has been playing in Europe since 2010 and has been a member of Anadolu Efes since 2018. He won a pair of EuroLeague championships with the club in 2021 and 2022 and was named the EuroLeague’s Most Valuable Player in 2021. He and Anadolu Efes have also claimed Turkish League titles in 2019, 2021, and 2023, with Micic earning Finals MVP honors this year.
Although Micic has reportedly mulled the idea of making the move to the NBA in the past, he seems more serious this time around, having recently traveled to Oklahoma City to meet with the Thunder.
According to Tsaltas, Micic also seems to have softened on some of his past demands — a year ago, a report suggested he was seeking a salary in the neighborhood of the full mid-level exception and wanted to join a legitimate contender and play a regular rotation role. Tsaltas suggests the Serbian is more flexible on all three of those points now, though he still isn’t expected to settle for a two-way deal or minimum-salary contract.
It remains to be seen whether there will be a spot for Micic on a Thunder roster that is already loaded with young, up-and-coming players and will be adding another lottery pick (Cason Wallace) to that group this summer.
Asked about Micic’s visit to OKC, head of basketball operations Sam Presti said it was good to touch base with the 29-year-old, but was noncommittal about the club’s plans for him (Twitter video link via Clemente Almanza of The Thunder Wire).
The Thunder could trade Micic’s rights in order to get him to an NBA team willing to sign him this offseason, but would presumably be looking to extract an asset or two in any deal.
Id love to see the Hawks trade Bruno Fernando to OKC for this guy. Thunder could use a cheap, active big with real size. And we could let Micic & Kobe Bufkin battle it out in training camp, preseason & throughout the season for that 4th guard spot in the rotation. Trae, Dejounte, Bogdan & Micic would be an extremely potent guard rotation
Presti will likely move him for a couple 2nds and maybe a 1st round pick swap.
He’s not a bad addition for a playoff team.gives you depth and experience. Can’t see him on OKC. Definitely would trade him
Would like to see this guy on the warriors. Not sure what they could offer OKC, but he’s exactly the kind of player they need. He’s old enough the rest of the roster might actually accept him, and he could have an impact. The team also likes its (serbian?) guys. They invested in and spent years trying to make Smiley an NBA player.
Why would the Warriors get him, pay him the MLE ( when they’re already cash strapped) and he would be a 3rd string point guard at best?
Come to San Antonio.
Not a bad idea, Vasa is a creative passer, I see him getting along well with Wemby
He is a Serb. Trade him to Denver.
How could he negotiate a contract, wouldn’t he have to sign to the rookie scale? I thought that applied to draft and stash players too.
If he were a 1st round pick then yes. A 2nd round pick, however, has far more negotiation power since his intial contract would have carried no guarantee.
In this case, he’s a Euroleague MVP and has made a good name for himself. 2nd round players can negotiate any contract value they want as long as the team is willing to pay. This guy could find a team to pay him a mid level exception.