By Aris Barkas/ barkas@eurohoops.net
Europe is the land of big men, or at least this is the perception that currently NBA has on European prospects. Talent can be found everywhere, but it’s obvious that skilled big men from the old continent are a commodity.
Maybe you can blame it on the Porzingis effect, but it’s true that out of 15 Europeans, from which at least 14 are expecting to hear their name in the draft, only three players are playing in the backcourt.
Those three are Turk Furkan Korkmaz, French swingman Timothe Luwawu, who are expected to be picked in the first round, and French Isaia Cordinier, a possible second round pick.
Of course, even if he has slipped to number 7 according to the latest mock drafts and to Euro-friendly Denver, this is going to be the draft of Dragan Bender. The next Croatian wonder kid is expected to be the European flag bearer and without questions he has the biggest upside that anyone else. Austrian center Jakob Poeltl from the University of Utah, Lithuanian Domantas Sabonis from Gonzaga are next in the line, followed by Luwawu, Korkmaz, and two more big men, Croatian Ivica Zubac and Spaniard Juan Hernangomez.
The second wave
The next four players are projected to be picked late in the first round or early in the second. Those are two centers, Croatian Ante Zizic – who is the most possible of the four to be picked in the first round – and Greek Giorgos Papagiannis and two forwards, Frenchman Guerson Yabusele and German Paul Zipser, the one of just wo players of the list who are automatically eligible due to their 22 years of age.
It will interesting to see if Zizic gets to be picked in the first round and also where Papagiannis will end up, since his stock after his work outs in the States exploded. After all his mobility and his height (2m.19) are tantalizing. Two more forwards, Serb Rade Zagoraz and French Petr Cornelie, alongside Cordinier and possibly Russian giant Andrey Desyatnikov. After all, seeing the world from 2.22 meters of height can even open you the door to the NBA,.