In NBA circles, Jan Vesely is considered a bust. The Wizards took the athletic Czech power forward with the sixth pick in the 2011 NBA draft to catch lobs from John Wall and become part of a young core with tons of potential. It did not go according to plan. He would notoriously airball his first NBA free throw attempt, and that set the tone for a rocky rookie year. He averaged 4.7 points and 4.4 rebounds in 19 minutes per
An NBA fan’s guide to the 2015 Euroleague Final Four
On Friday, four of Europe’s top teams head to Madrid to compete in Europe’s premier basketball competition, the Euroleague Final Four. Several NBA scouts and GMs will get a live look at the action to see if they can find some new international talent. Which future NBA players will make their name known this weekend? Which former NBA players will shine with the pressure on? Here is a guide for the casual NBA fan on what to watch for in NBATV’s broadcast of the
Eurohoops: Teodosic sets assists record, Eurostash prospects shine
The Euroleague, European basketball’s top level of competition, just finished the first half of the 4th round of the Top 16 round. With some of Europe’s top teams taking the floor, we take a look at some of the top performers around the league through Thursday night in this week’s Eurohoops update. [Read more…]
Mitnick: Bogdanovic The Answer To The Nets’ Future?
Not to be confused with the Serbian guard Bogdan Bogdanovic The Nets may have traded away most of their future cap space and draft picks to obtain KG and “The Truth”, but they sneakily held on to one of their aces, Bojan Bogdanovic, a Croatian star who may just be the answer to how the Nets will transition into the post-KG era. After a horrid 11-20 start, the Nets have managed to turn things around since New Year’s,
Bernucca: What the preseason has shown us so far
Even for hoops addicts, watching NBA preseason games presents a challenge. The baseball playoffs are under way, the college football and NFL seasons are in full swing, and there is this small matter of a presidential election. There is no subscription package for the preseason. League Pass takes a pass until the regular season starts later this month. So the only way you can watch games right now is on NBA TV, which isn’t part of the basic package of a number
Mitnick Column: Ranking American Players In European Cups
While NBA training camps may be getting under way, players such as Jordan Farmar, Sonny Bo McCalebb (shown here playing for Macedonia) scored 21 points as Fenerbahce of Turkey defeated the Boston Celtics on Friday in Istanbul. Weems, Shelden Williams, Craig Smith and Bo McCalebb are getting ready to start their seasons in Europe. McCalebb has begun with a bang, as his team, Fenerbahce Ulker Istanbul, managed to beat the Boston Celtics during their European tour, showing that European
Mitnick Column: Ranking American Players In European Cups, Part 2
11. Patrick Beverley, G, Spartak St. Peteresburg (Russia), College: Arkansas This former second-round pick was one of the most effective guards at the Eurocup level this past season. With a very versatile game, Beverley rebounds very well for a ballhandling guard, can defend both backcourt positions and is able to get a high rate of steals without cheating defensively. A Chicago native, Beverley played for the Bulls in the Las Vegas Summer League and drew some interest as a possible training camp