By Dimitris Minaretzis and Stefan Djordjevic/ info@eurohoops.net
Of course, it’s not easy for an NBAer to abandon his career in the USA. A big name could not play in the EuroLeague if he had good offers in the NBA.
This year, however, players with considerable careers and plenty of experience in the best league in the world have come to the EuroLeague, many of them, in fact, for the first time in their basketball lives.
Eurohoops picked out ten of them in no particular order. Those were the ones who created more buzz, plus one coach, Ettore Messina, who has made also a big return.
Jimmer Fredette (Panathinaikos)
The NBA definitely didn’t work for him. He was an amazing scorer in college, he worked wonders in China, but in the NBA he couldn’t settle anywhere. Panathinaikos took the opportunity and closed one of their biggest signings in terms of foreign players.
– Last season, Fredette played in six games with the Suns, averaging 3.7 points.
– His career average in the NBA is 6.0 points in 241 games in six seasons.
Wesley Johnson (Panathinaikos)
Panathinaikos didn’t stop at Fredette. They managed to lure Wesley Johnson too, who, at 32 years of age, decided to play in the EuroLeague for the first time, just like his new teammate.
He was selected with the 4th pick in the 2010 NBA draft, which means he becomes the player with the second-highest pick to play in the Greek league after 1982’s 3rd overall pick Dominique Wilkins (Panathinaikos 1995 – 1996). The Greens added to their squad an athletic player, with a presence on both sides of the court.
– Last season, Johnson played 38 games with the Pelicans and the Wizards, averaging 3.4 points.
– His career average in the NBA is 7.0 points in 609 games (334 as a starter) in nine seasons.
Kostas Koufos (CSKA)
At 30 years of age and after 11 years in the NBA, Kosta Koufos decided the time has come to play in the EuroLeague – and in Europe, more generally – for the first time in his career.
The Greek international center accepted the offer that came from Dimitrios Itoudis and the European champions, CSKA, and left the NBA, where he had been playing since 2008. He was selected with the 23rd overall pick in the 2008 draft and he was always a reliable solution in the center position, without ever having a key role even when he was a starter.
– Last season, Koufos played 42 games with the Kings, averaging 3.7 points and 4.2 rebounds.
– His career averages in the NBA are 5.7 points and 5.0 rebounds in 686 games (228 as a starter) in 11 seasons.
Nikola Mirotic (Barcelona)
Here, we’re talking about a very unique case. “Threekola” had offers from the NBA and, in fact, he was expecting a good contract. He wasn’t in a slump but Barcelona pulled off the big steal. They gave him a huge sum for four years (close to 25-26 million euros) and the chance to return to Spain after Real and lead his new team to the top.
He’s just 28, but Barcelona managed to bring back an NBAer with an average playing time of 24 minutes. There were seasons where it reached 30 minutes…
– Last season, Mirotic played in 46 games with the Pelicans and the Bucks, plus another 14 in the playoffs, averaging 16.7 points with the former and 10.5 with Giannis’s team.
– His career averages in the NBA are 12.3 points and 5.9 rebounds in 319 games (95 as a starter) in five seasons.