International Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Jock Landale Exploring Move To NBA

July 14th, 2020 at 5:30pm CST by Luke Adams

Former Saint Mary’s big man Jock Landale is actively exploring the possibility of landing an NBA job for the 2020/21 season, according to Lithuanian journalist Donatas Urbonas (Twitter link).

Landale, who turned down NBA training camp invitations after going undrafted in 2018, joined KK Partizan in Serbia for the 2018/19 season, then spent this past year in Lithuania with Zalgiris Kaunas. In 25 EuroLeague games in ’19/20, the forward/center averaged 11.0 PPG and 4.4 RPG on .532/.302/.821 shooting in 20.6 minutes per contest.

Although Landale has yet to sign an NBA contract, he has been a fixture in the Summer Leagues over the last two years, playing for the Hawks in 2018 and the Bucks in 2019. In four games in Las Vegas last summer, he averaged 18.3 PPG and 7.0 RPG for Milwaukee. The 24-year-old was also part of the Australian squad that made the semifinals of the 2019 World Cup, earning a spot in the Tokyo Olympics.

With three months to go until the NBA’s free agency period begins, it remains to be seen if this is the right time for Landale to try to come stateside. But Urbonas suggests that Zalgiris is preparing for the possibility that the big man will opt out of his contract, which has one more year on it.

International Notes: Monroe, Poythress, Brown, Lauvergne

July 14th, 2020 at 9:42am CST by Luke Adams

Russian club Zenit St. Petersburg is interested in signing former NBA big man Greg Monroe for the 2020/21 season, according to Nikos Varlas of Eurohoops, who tweets that there are “ongoing talks” between the two sides.

Varlas suggests that Monroe is still considering both NBA and international options, with Zenit looking like one of the strongest contenders to sign him if he continues his career overseas. Monroe, the seventh overall pick in the 2010 draft, spent the 2019/20 campaign with Bayern Munich in Germany after nine years in the NBA.

Players like Monroe, who may prefer to seek an NBA deal, are in a tough spot, since European clubs are filling their rosters now while the NBA’s free agency period won’t begin for another three months. Some players with NBA aspirations may decide it’s not worth the risk to wait until the fall.

Here are a few more international updates on players with NBA experience:

If Monroe ends up joining Zenit St. Petersburg, he’ll join another former NBA big man in the frontcourt — Zenit announced on Monday (via Twitter) that Alex Poythress has reached a one-year deal with the team. Poythress previously appeared in 52 NBA games for Philadelphia, Indiana, and Atlanta from 2017-19.
Turkish team Fenerbache has agreed to a one-year contract with veteran point guard Lorenzo Brown, according to a press release. Brown has played in a total of 103 NBA regular season games since making his debut in 2013, making 26 appearances in 2018/19 for the eventual-champion Raptors before being waived last January.
Veteran big man Joffrey Lauvergne, who suited up for the Nuggets, Thunder, Bulls, and Spurs from 2014-18, has signed a one-year deal with Lithuania’s Zalgiris Kaunas, the team announced in a press release (hat tip to Sportando). The Frenchman returned to Europe after his contract with San Antonio expired in 2018, spending the last two seasons with Fenerbahce.

Ante Zizic Eyeing Move To Real Madrid?

July 10th, 2020 at 1:05pm CST by Luke Adams

Cavaliers center Ante Zizic is entering free agency this fall on an expiring contract that technically won’t expire until mid-October. However, it sounds as if Zizic may already be in the process of lining up his next contract.

According to a pair of reports – one from Chema de Lucas (Twitter link) and another from Nikos Varlas of Eurohoops – Zizic is expected to sign with Real Madrid in Spain. Varlas writes that Zizic has received a verbal commitment from the Spanish club and will sign a multiyear deal once his contract with the Cavs formally expires.

It’ll be some time before Zizic can officially sign with Real Madrid or any other team, but it won’t be a major surprise if he does head back overseas. His contributions in 113 games for Cleveland were modest, as he averaged 6.0 PPG and 3.9 RPG in 13.4 minutes per contest. The Croatian native played just 10.0 MPG in 22 contests in 2019/20 for the Cavs, and would be unlikely to generate significant NBA interest in free agency.

While Zizic has never played in Spain, he’ll be returning to the EuroLeague if he finalizes a deal with Real Madrid. After being selected 23rd overall in the 2016 draft by the Celtics, Zizic spent the ’16/17 season with Darussafaka in Turkey before making the move stateside.

No Deal For Pau Gasol, Barcelona

July 10th, 2020 at 8:51am CST by Luke Adams

JULY 10: It appears Gasol won’t be joining his old team in Barcelona after all. Joan Bladé i Marsal, a member of the club’s board of directors, said there have been and will be no negotiations with Gasol, per Catràdio Esports (Twitter link; hat tip to Sportando).

JULY 8: Free agent big man Pau Gasol appears to be nearing a deal to rejoin FC Barcelona, his former team in Spain, according to multiple reports.

La Resistencia del Palau first tweeted of “advanced negotiations” between Gasol and Barcelona, with Nikos Varlas of Eurohoops reporting today that the two sides are close to a one-year agreement that’s expected to be finalized later in the summer.

Gasol, who turned 40 on Monday, has played in the NBA since 2001, most recently appearing in 30 total games for San Antonio and Milwaukee during the 2018/19 season. The veteran center was briefly on the Trail Blazers’ roster to start the ’19/20 campaign, but foot issues prevented him from playing at all for the club, and he was eventually released.

Gasol’s decorated NBA résumé includes averages of 17.0 PPG and 9.2 RPG in 1,226 total regular season games for the Grizzlies, Lakers, Bulls, Spurs, and Bucks. He earned six All-Star nods and won a pair of NBA championships with the Lakers in 2009 and 2010. Even before he arrived stateside though, he had some memorable years in Barcelona, winning Spanish League titles in 1999 and 2001 and earning Finals MVP honors in ’01.

Although he has sat out the 2019/20 season, Gasol has repeatedly talked about wanting to play one more year and then participate in the Tokyo Olympics, which were rescheduled to the summer of 2021. Last month, he told Spanish media that he was intrigued by the idea of returning to the team with which he started his professional career.

“My intention is to play another season if the foot is OK, either in the NBA or in Europe,” Gasol said at the time. “A final season with the Lakers is attractive, finishing at Barça (Barcelona) is attractive, but you have to see the real possibilities and see what situation would be best for the circumstances of the moment.”

While Gasol and Barcelona don’t have an agreement in place yet, it makes sense that he’d choose that opportunity if it’s available — the timeline for the ’20/21 NBA season remains up in the air and there’s no guarantee there would be contract offers waiting for him in the fall.

International Notes: D. Williams, Harrison, Singleton, L. Brown

July 8th, 2020 at 12:33pm CST by Luke Adams

While the NBA’s 2020 free agency period is still a few months away, teams in Europe are already making offseason roster moves in preparation for the 2020/21 season, and a number of former NBA players are in the news. One of those players is Pau Gasol, who is reportedly in serious talks with Barcelona about a potential one-year deal, as we relayed earlier today.

Here are a few more updates on former NBA players lining up new deals overseas:

Spanish team Valencia has reached an agreement to sign former No. 2 overall pick Derrick Williams for the coming season, the club announced in a press release. Still just 29 years old, Williams has appeared in over 400 NBA regular season games, but has spent the last couple seasons in international leagues, playing for Fenerbahce in Turkey in 2019/20.
Olympiacos BC in Greece has officially announced the signing of Aaron Harrison, the former Kentucky guard who played for the Hornets and Mavericks in the NBA from 2015-18. Harrison, who spent the last two seasons with Turkish team Galatasaray, signed a two-year contract with Olympiacos.
Former first-round pick Chris Singleton, who last appeared in the NBA in 2014 with the Wizards, has signed a multiyear contract extension with Turkish club Anadolu Efes, the team announced in a press release. It’s a two-year deal with a third-year option for the veteran forward, who joins Rodrigue Beaubois in agreeing to an extension with Anadolu Efes this week.
Turkish club Fenerbahce is eyeing veteran guard Lorenzo Brown, reports Emiliano Carchia of Sportando. Brown last played in the NBA during the 2018/19 season before being waived by Toronto.

And-Ones: Gudaitis, Beaubois, Paul, Robinson, Curry, King

July 7th, 2020 at 7:10pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Lithuanian center Arturas Gudaitis is expected to leave Olimpia Milano and join Zenit St. Petersburg next season, according to Emiliano Carchia of Sportando. Gudaitis, who played 19 games last season with Olimpia Milano and averaged 7.3 PPG and 4.4 RPG, had been signed through next season with the Italian club. The Sixers used a 2015 second-round pick on Gudaitis but he has never appeared in an NBA regular-season game. The Cavaliers acquired his rights in 2018 via a three-way trade with the Kings and Jazz.

We have more from around the basketball world:

Former Mavericks guard Rodrigue Beaubois has reached a two-year contract extension with his Turkish club Anadolu Efes, Misko Raznatovic tweets. Beaubois, 32, hasn’t played in the NBA since the 2012/13 season. Last season, the French guard averaged 11.1 PPG over 43 games.
Chris Paul has made a strong impression as NBA Players Association president, as Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman details. Players Association executive director Michele Roberts indicates that not all superstar players like the Thunder point guard command the same respect. “I won’t name any names, but there have been other marquee players that have been on the executive committee,” Roberts said. “They haven’t come close, they haven’t come close to providing and demonstrating a level of commitment and time that Chris has. And he’s not only just there, he’s engaged, he understands the issues. … He does insist on hearing all sides, and he brings in the other players.”
Joe Johnson, Mario Chalmers, Nate Robinson and Eddy Curry are among the former NBA players slated to participate in 3-on-3 pay-per-view tournament later this month, Alex Kennedy of HoopsHype tweets. The “5 Tournament” is scheduled to take place July 19-29, just before the NBA’s planned restart.
Former Suns two-way player George King has signed with Bundesliga’s Chemnitz 99ers, Nicola Lupo of Sportando tweets. King, who appeared in one game with the Suns in 2018/19, played in Italy and Poland last season.

International Notes: Dekker, Kokoskov, Crawford, P. Jones

July 4th, 2020 at 5:15pm CST by Arthur Hill

Panathinaikos is targeting former NBA forward Sam Dekker for next season, according to Stavros Barbarousis of Eurohoops. The Greek club is under new management and is considering Dekker as a possible replacement for Deshaun Thomas.

Dekker, 26, played for Lokomotiv Kuban this year, averaging 13.1 points and 5.3 rebounds in the EuroCup and 11.4 PPG and 4.9 RPG in the VTB League. It was the first season outside the NBA for the former first-round pick after spending time with the Rockets, Clippers, Cavaliers and Wizards.

There’s more international news to pass along:

Kings assistant Igor Kokoskov was introduced today as the new head coach of Fenerbahce in the EuroLeague, according to EuroHoops. He reportedly received a three-year deal to take over the Turkish team. “I feel obligated to the Fenerbahce fans and the people who brought me here to give them the best of my abilities, experience and knowledge to help this club keep being successful as it is,” he said. “Fenerbahce fans love their basketball team, so we will give our best to keep them happy by winning lots of basketball games and trophies.” Kokoskov, who spent a season as head coach of the Suns, also coaches the Serbian National Team.
Jordan Crawford has signed a one-year deal with Lokomotiv Kuban, Barbarousis writes in a separate story. Crawford, 31, played for five teams in eight NBA seasons before moving overseas early last year. He played in Israel and China before spending part of this season with Brose Bamberg in Germany.
Former NBA first-round pick Perry Jones III will continue his career with Bursaspor in Turkey, tweets Nicola Lupo of Sportando. The 28-year-old spent three seasons with the Thunder.

Australian League Team Looking To Add Deng Adel

July 3rd, 2020 at 6:53pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Small forward Deng Adel is being pursued by the Illawarra Hawks of Australia’s NBL, according to Sportando’s Emiliano Carchinia.

The Hawks are based in Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia. This would mark a return to Adel’s adopted home country. The swingman’s family fled from the war-ravaged South Sudan to Uganda before planting roots in Melbourne when he was eight.

The 6’7″ Adel went undrafted out of Louisville in 2018. Signed as a two-way player to the Cavaliers, Adel saw limited time in 19 games for Cleveland during the 2018/19 season. The Cavaliers did not retain him in the summer of 2019.

After being added and subsequently waived by the Nets prior to the start of the 2019/20 season, Adel latched on with Brooklyn’s G League affiliate, the Long Island Nets. Before the G League season was paused – and ultimately canceled – due to the coronavirus pandemic in March, Adel held averages of 11.1 PPG, 4.2 RPG and 2.6 APG.

Raymond Felton Will Look To Resume Playing Career

July 3rd, 2020 at 1:35pm CST by Luke Adams

After spending a second season with the Thunder in 2018/19, Raymond Felton hasn’t been on a roster – in the NBA or elsewhere – during the ’19/20 campaign. However, the 36-year-old point guard isn’t yet ready to call it a career, as he tells Alex Kennedy of HoopsHype.

Discussing his future, Felton said he thinks his agent has had conversations with NBA teams about the possibility of him being a substitute player in Orlando this summer. However, he’s not sure he’d feel comfortable playing at the NBA’s Walt Disney World campus if he received an offer. Still, Felton will aim to make a return to the court for the 2020/21 season.

“Oh, no question,” Felton told Kennedy. “It’d be like I was away for just one season and I would definitely be looking to try to get with somebody next season. I just want to play. I’m not retiring. I want to play. Even if I have to go across that water to play, I will. I just want to play basketball. I’m not ready to let the game go yet.”

Felton added that his “ultimate goal” has always been to play professional basketball for 16 seasons. He has spent 14 years in the NBA so far, so he’d like to play for at least two more seasons, or even three, if possible. The former UNC star stressed to Kennedy that he’s open to playing in an international league if no appealing NBA opportunities arise.

“This is the first time that I’ve actually been open to (playing overseas), just seeing the changes in the (NBA) and how they want to go younger and want to basically not even have veterans that much anymore,” Felton said. “It’s just one of those things where I’m like, ‘Okay, well, I still want to play…’ So even if I have to go play over there, that’s what I’m going to do.”

Felton appeared in all 82 games for Oklahoma City in 2017/18 as the team’s backup point guard, averaging 6.9 PPG and 2.5 APG on .406/.352/.818 shooting in 16.6 minutes per contest. However, he fell out of the Thunder’s regular rotation in ’18/19, averaging just 11.5 MPG in 33 appearances.

Kings Assistant Igor Kokoskov To Coach Fenerbahce

July 2nd, 2020 at 2:53pm CST by Luke Adams

Former Suns head coach and current Kings assistant Igor Kokoskov has agreed in principle to become the new head coach of EuroLeague team Fenerbahce, writes ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

Ismail Senol of beIN Sports, who first reported the agreement, tweets that the two sides agreed to a three-year deal. Kokoskov will replace longtime Fenerbahce coach Zeljko Obradovic, a three-time EuroLeague Coach of the Year who parted ways with the Turkish club last week.

Kokoskov became the NBA’s first European-born head coach when he was hired by Phoenix in 2018 to replace Jay Triano. However, he lasted just a single season with the Suns before being replaced by Monty Williams. After interviewing for the Grizzlies’ head coaching vacancy in 2019, Kokoskov ultimately landed in Sacramento as the top assistant on Luke Walton‘s staff.

A native of Serbia, Kokoskov is currently the head coach of the country’s national team and will look to lead Serbia to a spot in the Tokyo Olympics next summer. He previously coached the Slovenian National Team, leading that club to a 2017 EuroBasket victory, and was also the head coach of the Georgian National Team from 2008-15.

Despite his agreement with Fenerbahce, Kokoskov will join the Kings in Orlando this summer and finish out the season with the team, tweets Jason Jones of The Athletic.