The Top Five Free Agents In Europe

The following article was guest authored by a friend of mine who goes by HoopsGrind.  He writes his own blog (www.hoopsgrind.com), and I strongly suggest that you check it out.  He’s a knowledgeable fan of all different kinds of professional basketball, which is why I asked if he’d like to whip me somethin’ up about some noteworthy international players that we Americans may not know much about.  He was kind enough to oblige, and here is his list of the top five free agents ballin’ across the Atlantic…

Almost every year, a player most have never heard of comes into the NBA by way of Europe and becomes a valuable rotation player. Look no further than Gary Neal on the Spurs last season. There are undoubtedly several players playing around the world as we speak that can make a similar impact if put in the right situation.

Only undrafted players who haven’t played in more than 5 NBA games are eligible for this list.   All players are also under the age of 30.

1. Lester “Bo” McCalebb – Macedonia – Montepaschi Siena (Point guard): The blazing quick, diminutive “Macedonian” point guard has been one of the best players in Europe the past two seasons. McCalebb enjoyed a spectacular college career at the little known University of New Orleans in which he became the Sun Belt Conference player of the year and averaged 25 points a game his junior season. Concerns over his size, shooting ability, and position lead McCalebb to go undrafted in 2008. Fast forward three years later and you have an incredibly efficient point guard with blinding speed that impacts the game on both ends of the floor and wins games. McCalebb rose to prominence after leading the Macedonian national team to fourth place finish in the 2011 European Basketball championships. Bo averaged 21 points, 4 assists, 3 rebounds, and 2 steals a game to become the leading scorer of the tournament and earn a spot on the all-tournament team alongside Tony Parker, Juan Carlos Navarro, Andrei Kirilenko, and Pau Gasol.

McCalebb is currently averaging 19 points, 3 assists, and 2 rebounds on 71% from the field and 61% from 3 in just 28 minutes per game for Montepaschi Siena (the premier team in Italy) of the Euroleague. He utilizes his elite athleticism and strong frame to convert tough finishes around the basket, punish opponents in transition, and pester opposing guards by picking them up full court. Slag off him and he’ll make you pay by draining a long jumper. During Eurobasket, he showed the ability to finish in traffic over the length and size of NBA bigs against the Spanish front line which consisted of the Gasol brothers and Serge Ibaka. His game is very similar to Ty Lawson of the Denver Nuggets and it’s not a stretch to say that he could be a better player in the right situation. Securing McCalebb’s services will prove to be difficult, however, as he’s made it clear he won’t play for the minimum salary and won’t come over to the NBA to sit on the end of the bench. It’ll probably take a deal in the vicinity of 3 years/$15 million for him to cross the Atlantic. Is he worth that much? When guys like Chris Duhon are making that kind of money, McCalebb is a steal at that price.

2. Alexey Shved – Russia – CSKA Moscow (Point Guard/Shooting Guard): Going surprisingly undrafted in the 2010 draft may have worked to Shved’s benefit. Should the lanky Russian combo decide to come over to the NBA, he won’t be tied down to one team and end up in an unfavorable situation. Shved enjoys good height for both guard spots at around 6’6″ and has the kind of elite athleticism that’s not often found in European guards. Possessing a quick first step, great handles, and a good jumper, Shved’s game is reminiscent of Jamal Crawford. Despite his lack of strength, he’s not afraid to take it into the paint and finish among the trees or throw in a nice floater in the lane. While generally looking for his shot first, Shved has good court vision and consistently makes the right pass. Defense is the most glaring weakness in Shved’s game, where his lack of strength makes him vulnerable to being posted up and hurts him when he tries to fight through screens.

At the age of 23, Shved is a already major player for the best team in Europe. He’s the most dynamic scorer on a team that features Andrei Kirilenko, Nenad Krstic, and Viktor Khryapa. Shved’s game is very American and he should have no problem adapting to the more open and guard-oriented NBA.

3. Keith Langford – USA – Maccabi Tel Aviv (Shooting Guard): Langford is an undersized but explosive shooting guard who’s always in attack mode and is a tough defensive player. The former Jayhawk is a decent playmaker and can play some point guard, but the off guard is where he’s clearly most comfortable. The athletic lefty is an excellent slasher, but his critics often point to his poor shooting as a major weakness. While it’s true that his jumper is inconsistent, he’s still managed to consistently hover around 50% in the congested lanes of Europe and has shot around 35-38% from three-point range for the past few years. Langford is one of the most NBA-ready players in Europe and has the ability to come in and contribute for almost any team as a combo guard off the bench.

There are some drawbacks, however. Langford is already 28 years old, makes a lot of money in Europe, and is in a desirable situation on of the most prestigious teams on the continent. He’ll likely need to be guaranteed playing time and at least $3-4 million per year to come over to the NBA.

4. Rafael Hettsheimeir – Brazil – CAI Zaragoza (Center): The burly Brazilian big (unintentional alliteration, I assure you) looks the part of an NBA post player and his game is starting to come around as well. Standing 6’10″ and weighing in at 260 pounds, Hettsheimeir uses his size well to establish deep post position for an easy finish around the basket. This was apparent in the FIBA Americas where he pushed Luis Scola and other members of the Argentine front line around as he put on an impressive performance. Not strictly an under the basket player, the Brazilian also has nice touch on his jumper and can hit from mid-range… he even shoots free throws at a solid 77% clip. He has soft hands and can finish around longer defenders well. Hettsheimeir won’t block a ton of shots, but he can play some physical defense in the post. His defense is still a bit of weakness as he’s not the most agile guy around and he’ll be vulnerable to pick and rolls in the NBA.

Seeing the success of guys like Luis Scola, Marc Gasol, and Tiago Splitter, it’s pretty apparent that success in the Spanish league translates well to the NBA. Hettsheimeir has established himself as one of the better big men in Spain and with most playoff teams always readily in need of a 3rd or 4th big that can put up points off the bench and Hettsheimeir fits the bill.

5. Mirza Teletovic – Bosnia – Caja Laboral (Power Forward): Teletovic is a strong, athletic 6’9″ face up forward that can score in bunches and is deadly from beyond the arc. He was the leading scorer in the first stage of the Euroleague and is top 3 in rebounding and scoring in the Spanish league, the best domestic competition outside the NBA. So what’s keeping him out of the NBA you ask? Critics say it’s his defense, but you see guys like Brian Cardinal and Troy Murphy getting rotation minutes on good playoff teams and it becomes painfully obvious that Teletovic belongs in the NBA. He’d be a great asset for any playoff team looking for a big time scoring combo forward off the bench similar to Al Harrington or Tim Thomas.

There’s no reason Teletovic can’t be an effective double-digit scorer in the NBA if given 15-20 minutes a night. At just 26 years of age with plenty of high-level European pedigree under his belt, the mercurial Bosnian would make for a great signing.

HoopsGrind is a full time medical school student and a part time basketball junkie…or maybe it’s the other way around. He enjoys all things related to and all levels of basketball.  Check him out at HoopsGrind.com and follow him on Twitter @hoopsgrind.

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13 Responses to The Top Five Free Agents In Europe

  1. Pingback: Top 5 Overseas Free Agents « HoopsGrind

  2. Chico says:

    I like Hettsheimeir, but he is nowhere near top 5 FAs in Euroleague. Putting Mirza Teletovic, who is every bit as good as Ryan Anderson, behind him is travesty. There are also some players like Krstic, Begic, Dor Fischer that are far better option at C.

    • HoopsGrind says:

      I set a criteria that the players over the age of 30, drafted players, and players that played in the NBA for more than 5 games wouldn’t be included and it’s right at the top of the article.

      That eliminates Krstic and Fischer. Mirza Begic is too soft and couldn’t be more than an end of the bench big at the moment.

  3. Pingback: Euroleague Top 16: Week 5 « HoopsGrind

  4. Pingback: Euroleague Top 16: Week 5 « HoopsGrind

  5. Michael says:

    Not a single player on this is a free agent. How can they be listed as “free agents”, when they are all under contract?

    • Stephen Coston says:

      Maybe I titled it poorly. I guess what I was getting at is that no NBA team has their rights. As far as the NBA is concerned they are kinda sorta free agents.

  6. Michael says:

    Well, you should clarify then that you mean guys that no NBA team has the rights to. Because they are actually not “free agents”. I mean for example, it would take an enormous buyout to get Teletovic out of his contract, and this makes it seem like he is available right now, or at season’s end.

    It also makes it seem like, from the European perspective, that they are all free agents after this season. When I think only Langford has a team option. I’m not sure about Hettsheimeir, but I think he might actually be a free agent, after this season.

    Regardless, the wording is wrong, because even if this is “from an NBA perspective” – it’s still wrong, because some of these players could not be gotten by NBA teams at all, due to their buyouts (Teletovic), or due to the fact that they will make way more in Europe than in the NBA – Shved will get whatever he wants to stay at CSKA, and Real Madrid is already working on a big contract to get McCalebb.

    For it to be from “an NBA perspective”, it should be players that actually have a reason or motivation to play in the NBA and it should also be guys that are indeed free agents.

    At least, in my opinion anyway.

    And if this is intended as the top 5 best players in Europe, as what they could do in the NBA, then I don’t even know where to begin. I mean,

    Spanoulis
    Navarro
    Teodosic
    Krstic
    Lorbek
    Kirilenko
    Bourousis

    etc., etc.

    • Stephen Coston says:

      You realize I didn’t write this, right? It was guest authored. I can’t respond to your comments about the players because I didn’t rank them. As for the title, like I said, probably worded it poorly.

    • HoopsGrind says:

      The title was intended to be top 5 overseas free agents. From an NBA perspective, they’re indeed free agents – no NBA team owns their rights and they can always negotiate a buyout of some sort similar to how the Hornets did with Gustavo Ayon this year. Look at Jeremy Pargo for Maccabi last season, he was locked in for another year and still managed to get out of his contract.

      If these guys express interest in going to the NBA, especially Americans like Langford, good teams will generally let them out of their contract or else they’ll get unmotivated and poor play on the court.

      Teletovic’s contract is till 2013-2014 and he’s “only” making 1.5 million euros net. If a team expressed enough interest and was willing to wait a year, they’d definitely have a good shot at signing him. McCalebb’s agent has made it clear they’re not interested in anything less than a multiyear deal totaling in the 10 million range. Shved’s contract is only till 2013 and Hettsheimeir is a free agent I believe.

      Don’t kid yourself that most of these guys aren’t interested in playing the NBA. Numerous players say that publicly and then explore their NBA options to find little interest – ex. Felipe Reyes, Theo Papaloukas, Sofo Schortsanitis, etc.

      I set a criteria that the players over the age of 30, drafted players, and players that played in the NBA for more than 5 games wouldn’t be included and it’s right at the top of the article.
      Navarro, Krstic, Lorbek, Kirilenko, Spanoulis – not eligible
      Bourousis – having a down year and not fit enough to endure the NBA schedule
      Teodosic – I considered having him on year, but with so many good point guards in the league already, his poor defense, and tons of teams not showing an inkling of interest in him caused me to leave him off.

      Thanks for reading.

  7. Niko says:

    FYI, Bourousis isn’t having an off year and unfit. He is playing the whole season with a knee injury. And Papaloukas recieved lots of interest from NBA teams, and several offers. He was actually never interested in the NBA.
    I am not sure where you heard that he wanted to play in the NBA and did not get any interest. The true story is he did not want to play in the NBA, despite several MLE offers, because he suffers from an extreme fear of flying.

    In the NBA he would have had to fly all the time, so he could not play there. He spent his early career in Greece, where he could travel by train, bus, car domestically, and then he could have an allowance to leave early and take the train for European matches. Only rarely did he have to fly.

    The same with the Greek national team. They only made him fly if it was necessary. In CSKA he had an actual part of his contract that he could take the train, car or bus in all domestic games, and the one flight that was required to go to Vladivostok – he had it in his contract that he did NOT have to play in that game and could skip the team flight. And as well he only had to fly in games for Euroleague if it was absolutely necessary.

    He did not play in the NBA, despite several offers, because he could not do so, due to his fear of flying. So, it’s not true at all that he wanted to play in the NBA and got no interest. That’s not even remotely near to being true.

  8. HoopsGrind says:

    Hey Stro, it looks like Euroleague/Lakas Fan Yo has finally found your blog, haha.

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