The Raptors consider Printezis

Nobody's saying the Raptors are set to offer Printezis a contract, and there are those who find it hard to imagine the player will be pried loose from the deep-pocketed owners at Olympiacos. But there are a couple of factors that make the 6-foot-8 Athenian desirable and a possible candidate for a jump to Toronto's NBA franchise.

For one, the Raptors hold Printezis's NBA draft rights, acquired last year from San Antonio for a second-round pick, which means they're currently the player's only NBA option. For another, he's a European free agent at the end of this season, which theoretically means the Raptors wouldn't have to pay the typically pricey buyout to extricate him from his contract.

Printezis earned a net salary of about $500,000 (all figures U.S.) this season, but he'll be due a considerable raise. And while the Raptors' off-season spending limit hinges on the contractual fate of the likes of Shawn Marion and Anthony Parker, Olympiacos isn't bound by a salary cap and is said to be relatively unfazed by the global recession.

"Coming to the NBA is high on his list," said Alex Saratsis, Printezis's U.S. agent. "Obviously he'd have to give something up to come to the NBA, it's just a matter of how much are you willing to give up? Right now, it's impossible to say."

That's not to say the muscular Printezis is a star player, although he is the reigning Greek league slam-dunk champion. He has been compared to a more aggressive version of Joey Graham, Toronto's free-agent specimen; like Graham, Printezis has been deployed at both the small forward and power forward positions. And while the Greek's numbers aren't overwhelming – in 18 Euroleague games this season he has averaged about 9.1 points and 3.5

rebounds while playing an average of about 19 minutes a night – he is a late bloomer known for toughness.

source : thestar.com