The Hoop will be back in the 2nd week of August

UPDATE(31/07/2009) : Unfortunately this situation is out of my hands and due to the incompetence of the local telecommunications industry, it will be another 2 weeks probably until my internet connection is up and running. Apologies for this delay everyone.

Due to unforeseen circumstances the Hoop needs to take a 2 week break. It will be up and running again just after those 2 weeks and hopefully it will not take longer than that. Apologies to everyone and I hope to see you all back then. Take care.

Dikoudis close to signing with Aris

Demos Dikoudis(2.07-PF/C) is very close to signing with Aris Thessaloniki according to athlitikanea.gr. The greek forward/center was targeted by Aris now that they have more people involved in the administration of the team and it seems likely that the players' budget will be slightly higher than last season. Dikoudis and Hatzivrettas were teammates in Panathinaikos and the National Team of Greece so a possible reunion might seem favorable for Dikoudis.

Dikoudis is rumored to have an offer from a spanish team that is higher than the one that Aris has but he will be able to remain in Greece and have a starting five position in the team. Dikoudis played for Valencia, Panathinaikos, CSKA and AEK Athens in the past. This past season he averaged 10.7 points and 4.6 rebounds in 17 games for Panionios in the Greek A1 League.

Malaga extends Joseph Gomis

Unicaja reached a new agreement with combo guard Joseph Gomis, who will stay in Malaga next season. Unicaja keeps an option to extend the deal until the end of the 2010-11 season. Gomis (180, 31) averaged 6.7 points and 1.8 assists in 14 Euroleague games last season. He helped Unicaja to make it to the Spanish King's Cup final and the Spanish League semifinals. Gomis has previously played for Valladolid, with whom he ranked second in the Spanish League in scoring in the 2007-08 season with 18 points per game in additon to 2.9 assists per game.

Gomis has split his career between his native France and Spain. He first spent six seasons with Evreux and two with Sluc Nancy, helping the latter win the Korac Cup in 2002. Gomis then moved to Spain and played two years at Breogan Lugo and then three for Valladolid.

source : euroleague.net

Rumors about Robinson visiting Greece

According to the front page of greek sports newspaper "FOS" that is affiliated with the team of Olympiakos, Nate Robinson is considering to visit Greece for a couple of days in order to see how are things there and whether he would like the life in Greece if he were to play for the greek team. The offer that Nate Robinson has from Olympiakos comes up to 9 million dollars for 2 seasons and it's higher than the current 2.8 million dollar offer from the New York Knicks.

The newspaper says that this might also be a way to put pressure on the New York Knicks in order to improve their offer. The current consensus is that Robinson wants to stay in New York so he is using the offer from Olympiakos as leverage.

Hatzivrettas close to signing with Aris

According to the majority of the greek media, Nikos Hatzivrettas(1.95-SG) has agreed to continue his career in Aris Thessaloniki. Hatzivrettas, who is currently 32 years old will be moving back to his hometown, Thessaloniki, by the looks of things and he will be taking up a more important role than he did in Panathinaikos. Reports say that Hatzivrettas will be one of the basic players of Aris with greatly increased playing time than what he had in Panathinaikos, even though Aris cannot offer him as much money as his former team. According to metrosport.gr the deal will be for 2 seasons and it will probably be announced until Tuesday.

It is rumored that the deal went sour when Panathinaikos offered him a 1+1 contract with a 400,000 euros salary but instead Hatzivrettas wanted a closed 2 season contract for a 1 million euros. Hatzivrettas averaged 5.2 points and 1.4 rebounds in 29 games in the greek A1 league playing for Panathinaikos. It seems that he had offers from Roma and a possible interest from other european teams but he preferred to stay in Greece.

Prokom renewed Woods and Ewing

Asseco Prokom made its first moves for the upcoming 2009-10 season by extending point guard Daniel Ewing and small forward Qyntel Woods to respective one-year deals with the perennial Polish League champions.

Woods (203, 28) joined Prokom in February and averaged 12.2 points on 57.1% three-pointers and 3 rebounds in 5 Euroleague Top 16 games last season. He helped Prokom to win the Polish League title, earning MVP honors in the title series against PGE Turow. Woods arrived from Fortitudo Bologna, where he averaged 14.3 points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.3 assists over 23 minutes in four Eurocup games this season. Prior to arriving in Italy last season, Woods played five seasons with Portland, Miami and New York of the NBA. He also played for Olympiacos in Greece, helping the team to reach the Euroleague Quarterfinal playoffs and the Greek League finals.

Meanwhile, Ewing (191, 26) averaged 13 points and 2.7 assists in 15 Euroleague games last season. His best game came against Sluc Nancy, as he scored 28 of his 32 points in the second half to lead Prokom to a 91-62 home win. Ewing has also played for Khimki in Russia, where he was the team's second-best scorer in ULEB Cup play and helped the club to make it to the Russian League finals. Previous to Khimki, Ewing had averaged 3.4 points, 1.4 assists and 13.3 minutes in a total of 127 regular-season NBA games over two seasons with the Los Angeles Clippers. As a collegian at Duke University, Ewing was named the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament MVP during his sophomore year and was an All-ACC Tournament First Team selection the following two seasons. He was named team captain in his final two seasons and was a starter as the squad reached the NCAA Final Four in 2004.

source : euroleague.net

Le Mans announced Marc Salyers

Le Mans officially announced the imminent signing of Marc Salyers(2.05-PF) via their website. The american power forward will be a player of Le Mans for the next season in their effort to regain the top of the French League.

Salyers was the top scorer of the Euroleague regular season playing for Roanne during season 2007-2008 and this past season he started playing for Azovmash. The financial troubles of Azovmash have forced him out of the club like other players before him. As a player of Azovmash he averaged 11.8 points and 4.5 rebounds in 12 games for the Ukrainian Superleague.

Badalona adds Alain Koffi

DKV Joventut improved its frontcourt for the upcoming 2009-10 season by inking Alain Koffi to a one-year deal, the club confirmed Saturday. Koffi (207, 25) arrives from Le Mans Sarthe Basket, where he averaged 9.6 points, 7.7 rebounds and 1.1 blocks in 10 Euroleague games last season. He helped Le Mans to win the French Cup and the Semaine des As titles. Koffi has played his entire career in Le Mans, making his debut with its first team in the 2002-03 season.

He lifted the 2004 French Cup title, as well as helping the team to win a historical double - French League and Semaine des As - in 2006. Koffi, an accomplished defensive player with outstanding physical skills, is also a member of the French national team and arrives to Badalona with three seasons of Eurocup experience. His best Euroleague game came last season, when Koffi had 15 points and 13 rebounds in his team's regular season road win against Olympiacos.

source : eurocupbasketball.com

Hatzivrettas will not renew with Panathinaikos

Nikos Hatzivrettas(1.95-SG) will not be renewing his contract with Panathinaikos. The greek veteran has been playing for Panathinaikos for the last 6 seasons but as of late the backcourt of Panathinaikos has become crowded and Hatzivrettas will not be getting anywhere near the playing that he used to get. He has been a long standing member of the National Team of Greece and has also played for CSKA Moscow under coach Dusan Ivkovic.

He released a statement in the press thanking everyone in Panathinaikos for 6 seasons full of great memories and titles. It is rumored that the deal went sour when Panathinaikos offered him a 1+1 contract with a 400,000 euros salary but instead Hatzivrettas wanted a closed 2 season contract for a 1 million euros. Hatzivrettas averaged 5.2 points and 1.4 rebounds in 29 games in the greek A1 league playing for Panathinaikos. The next stop in the career of Hatzivrettas is rumored to be either Aris Thessaloniki or Virtus Roma who appeared to have made him offers.

Marc Salyers confirms signing with Le Mans

Marc Salyers(2.05-PF) confirmed on his facebook page that he will be playing for Le Mans in the next season. Salyers was bit taken aback by Roanne's decision to sign Dylan Page over himself and he warned previously that he would sign with Le Mans. And he did!

Salyers' own words: "In the 3yrs I've played in France, I've made it to the Finals with my team all 3yrs and won the Championship of France twice. Now, I'm pround to anounce that I'm going to play for Le Mans next year to win the Championship of France for the 3rd time!"

Salyers was the top scorer of the Euroleague regular season playing for Roanne during season 2007-2008 and this past season he started playing for Azovmash. The financial troubles of Azovmash have forced him out of the club like other players before him. As a player of Azovmash he averaged 11.8 points and 4.5 rebounds in 12 games for the Ukrainian Superleague.

Olympiakos announced Thomas Kelati

Olympiakos announced the signing of american guard/forward Thomas Kelati(1.95-SG/SF) via their official website. This might come as a surprising move from the greek team as Kelati(of Eritrean origin) is not the player people had in mind when the names of McIntyre or Robinson were parading throughout the media. On the other hand Kelati can cover both 2 and 3 positions, can play defense and can also shoot very effectively behind the arc, averaging 39.4% in his last Euroleague season playing for Malaga. The contract with Kelati is for 2 seasons.

Kelati, who was replaced by Taquan Dean in Malaga, graduated in 2005 from Washington State and then moved on to Belgium to play for Dexia Mons as his first pro contract. He then had 2 great seasons with Turow in Poland that got him noticed and signed with Malaga that he played for in this past season. He averaged 11.8 points 1.9 rebounds 1.3 assists and 1.3 steals in 16 games with Malaga. Kelati's fiance is polish and when they are married he can apply for the polish nationality. That will give him Bosman status in Europe and will also allow him to play for the National Team of Poland.

Tau signed Walter Hermann

Tau Ceramica agreed to terms of a contract with small forward Walter Herrmann, who inked a two-year deal with the Euroleague powerhouse on Friday. Herrmann (206, 30) arrives from the Detroit Pistons, where he averaged 3.9 points and 1.8 rebounds in 60 NBA games last season.

He has previously played three Euroleague seasons with Unicaja, averaging 7.3 points and 1.6 rebounds in 15 games in the 2005-06 season. Herrmann has also played for the Charlotte Bobcats in the NBA, Fuenlabrada in Madrid, as well as for Atenas Cordoba and Olimpia Venado Tuerto in his native Argentina. He helped Unicaja to win a Spanish League title in 2006 and also lifted the Spanish King's Cup trophy in 2005. Herrmann is a regular member of the Argentinian national team. He helped Argentina to win the gold medal at the 2004 Olympic games in Athens, Greece, playing a crucial role in the semifinals against the United States. Herrmann also led Atenas to win the 2002 Argentinian League title, earning finals MVP honors.

source : euroleague.net

Fuenlabrada announced Chris Thomas

Fuenlabrada announced american point guard Chris Thomas(1.86-PG) for the next 3 seasons via their official website. Thomas is no stranger to the ACB as he was playing for Murcia the last 2 seasons. Thomas also owns a polish passport so he doesn't occupy the position of a foreign player.

Thomas graduated from Notre Dame in 2005 and then moved on to Fabriano in the LegaDue in Italy. After that he played in Greece for Maroussi and later he played for Anwil before moving to Murcia that he spent in, the last 2 seasons. This past season he averaged 10.8 points 3.3 rebounds and 5 assists in 31 games in the ACB.

Ilyasova agreed with Milwaukee for 3 seasons

Forward Ersan Ilyasova is returning to the Milwaukee Bucks after playing the past two seasons for Regal FC Barcelona in Spain. Basketball sources confirmed Thursday that Ilyasova and the Bucks have agreed on a three-year deal estimated at nearly $7 million, with a first-year salary of $2.1 million.

An unspecified buyout of Ilyasova’s contract with the Spanish club is required. The 6-foot-9 Ilyasova will add to Milwaukee's depth at the power forward position, following the departure of free agent Charlie Villanueva, who signed with the Detroit Pistons.

Ilyasova was a second-round pick for Milwaukee in the 2005 draft, selected 36th overall in the same draft that brought the Bucks the top overall pick, Andrew Bogut. Ilyasova did not play for the Bucks in his first year, instead spending time with Tulsa in the National Basketball Development League. He appeared in 66 games, including 14 starts, with the Bucks during the 2006-’07 season and averaged 6.1 points and 2.9 rebounds while playing 14.8 minutes per game. He was pressed into service in part due to injuries to a number of key players.

In his two years with Barcelona, particularly last season, Ilyasova grew stronger and became a solid rebounder and legitimate three-point shooting threat. He shot over 40% from three-point range in the ACB (Spanish) League during the past season and averaged 10.7 points and 7.6 rebounds. Ilyasova also helped his Barcelona team reach the final four of the Euroleague, although it lost in the semifinals.

source : jsonline.com

Malaga announced Taquan Dean

Malaga announced the signing of american shooting guard Taquan Dean(1.90-SG) via their official website. Taquan Dean will be replacing Thomas Kelati and he is a prolific scorer with experience in the european courts.

Last season he played in Murcia averaging 16.7 points 2.8 rebounds and 1.8 assists in 31 games in the ACB. He has also played for Casale in the LegaDue in Italy, in Dynamo Moscow as a replacement for Travis Hansen and in Biella in Italy, that was his first pro contract after graduating from Louisville.

Villeurbanne announced Lukauskis

ASVEL Villeurbanne announced the signing of lithuanian guard/forward Mindaugas Lukauskis(1.98-SG/SF) via their official website. Lukauskis will join Villeurbanne for the next 2 seasons.

He helped Lietuvos Rytas conquer the Lithuanian League, the Eurocup and the Baltic League. He also played for Sakalai and BC Alta in Lithuania but spent the most part of his career playing for Rytas. In the Eurocup he averaged 9.9 points 3.4 rebounds and 2.2 assists in 15 games whereas in the Baltic League he averaged 10.8 points 3.9 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 19 games. In the Lithuanian League 9.9 points 3.7 rebounds and 2.4 assists in 28 games.

Szczerbiak turns down Real Madrid

Szczerbiak turns down Spain: A Spanish Web site reported that Cavs free-agent wing Wally Szczerbiak has turned down a contract offer from Real Madrid of the Euroleague.

Szczerbiak, who averaged 7.0 points, 3.1 rebounds and shot 45 percent in 74 games for the Cavs last year, spent several years in Spain as a child and speaks Spanish. His father played professionally in Spain and currently works as a scout for Spanish teams in the U.S.

The Cavs have been in contact with Szczerbiak during the free-agent period but have not offered him a contract.

source : cleveland.com

Olympiakos lent Vouyoukas to Panellinios

Olympiakos today announced the lending of greek center Ian Vouyoukas(2.11-C) to the team of Panellinios for the next season. A few days ago the deal went sour because Olympiacos and Panellinios would not agree as to how will the player's salary will be paid.

Today the deal was finalised and Vouyoukas will be spending the last season of his contract with Olympiakos as a player of Panellinios. Vouyoukas who is a St. Louis graduate, and he didn't get much playing time this season. He averaged 5.5 points and 2.7 rebounds in 16 games.

Real Madrid announced Travis Hansen

Travis Hansen is Real Madrid basketball’s third signing for the 2009/10 season. The American small forward is a solid defender and has good range from beyond the arc. After one season playing for the Hawks in the NBA, Hansen packed his bags for Europe, where he spent two seasons with TAU Ceramica and the last three with Dynamo Moscow, where he coincided with new Real Madrid head coach, Ettore Messina.

After graduating from Mountain View High School, Hansen first played college basketball near his hometown of Orem, Utah at Utah Valley State College, where he averaged 11.2 ppg and 3.6 rpg. Following a two-year mission in Chile, Hansen played basketball for Brigham Young University. He averaged only 5.5 ppg and 3 rpg in his first year, but went on to become an all-star in his second with 15.6 ppg and 6.2 rpg.

In 2003 the Atlanta Hawks drafted Hansen in the second round. He only spent one season in the NBA, during which he averaged 12.4 mpg, 3 ppg and 1.7 rpg. In 2004/05 he crossed the Atlantic to sign for TAU Ceramica, who went on to win the 2005 Super Cup and the 2006 Copa del Rey. He averaged 10.5 ppg and 3.3 rpg in his last year in Vitoria before heading to Dynamo Moscow, who he played for during the last three seasons. In his final season prior to making the switch to Real Madrid, Hansen led the team in scoring in the Eurocup with 16.4 ppg, was second in performance points with 17.3 ppg and third in rebounding (4.6 rpg) and assists (3.1 apg).

source : realmadrid.com

David Kahn to help Rubio

The Minnesota Timberwolves cannot do much financially to help Ricky Rubio with a multimillion-dollar buyout of his contract with DKV Joventut in Spain. So team president David Kahn will head across the Atlantic next week to meet with the team personally in hopes of lowering the $6.6 million price tag that has threatened to keep the wunderkind point guard in Europe for at least next season.

Kahn confirmed his plans to travel to Spain in a text message to The Associated Press on Thursday, but declined further comment, including when the trip will take place. It was first reported by YahooSports.com.

The one thing holding him back appears to be money. Rubio made less than $100,000 playing for Joventut last season, so it is no surprise that the prospect of being on the hook for millions of dollars before he even plays a game in the United States would give him pause. Further complicating the matter is a rule in the NBA's collective bargaining agreement that stipulates the Timberwolves can only pay $500,000 of that large sum to help offset the cost.

Before joining the NBA, Kahn was an attorney at the law firm Proskauer Rose, the same firm that produced NBA commissioner David Stern. That experience could help him as the Timberwolves try to navigate what he has called "a thorny" legal issue.

"We will be totally supportive of Ricky and his family and (agent Dan) Fegan in any way, shape or form," Kahn said the day after Rubio was drafted. "If there's anything we can do to be of assistance or of help, as long as it is within the rules, we will."

source : nba.com

Olympiakos made official offer to Robinson

According to greek portal redplanet.gr, that is affiliated to the team of Olympiakos, Nate Robinson seems to have an official offer from the greek team. The offer is for 4.5 million dollars per season and it's for 2 seasons. The article says that Robinson was planning on getting an offer in the region of 7-8 million dollars but that appears to be very unlikely.

As a restricted free agent he will only get the 2.8 million dollars offer from the New York Knicks and by the looks of things the offer of Olympiakos is far better. Robinson, just like Chidlress can take advantage of his restricted free agent status and sign in Europe, although the Knicks would still retain his rights in the NBA.

Zalgiris interested in Kambala?

Lithuanian portal krepsinis.net says that Kaspars Kambala(2.06-C) is in negotiations with Zalgiris Kaunas. Krepsinis.net says that they have spoken to Alti Sport and Kambala's agent Obrad Fimic but his reply was that he is negotiations with a few teams so he cannot really say anything about the subject. GM of Zalgiris, Paulius Motiejunas denied any negotiations with Kambala.

This season Kambala played for Krasnoyarsk in Russia where he even managed to score 42 points in a game against Lokomotiv Rostov. In his return to pro basketball after 2 years of absence, Kambala averaged 14.9 points and 5.8 rebounds in 16 games for Krasnoyarsk in the Russian Superleague.

Salyers close to Le Mans?

According to basketsession.com, american power forward Marc Salyers(2.05-PF) is close to signing with Le Mans. Salyers wanted to return to Roanne, but instead they preferred Dylan Page. Salyers seems to have been saddened by that and that is what he wrote down on his Facebook page: "Sad Roanne could not wait for me to sign, I really wanted to go back, but understand it is a business. Now they may have to face me in Le Mans. "

Salyers was the top scorer of the Euroleague regular season playing for Roanne during season 2007-2008 and this past season he started playing for Azovmash. The financial troubles of Azovmash have forced him out of the club like other players before him. As a player of Azovmash he averaged 11.8 points and 4.5 rebounds in 12 games for the Ukrainian Superleague.

Maccabi announced Andrew Wisniewski

Maccabi Electra has come to terms with point guard Andrew Wisniewski on a two-year deal. Wisniewski (191, 27) arrives from Spartak St. Petersburg, where he averaged 12.9 points, 3.5 rebounds and 4 assists in 37 Russian League games last season, helping his team advance to the playoff semifinals. Wisniewski also reached the Russian League semifinals with Ural Great the previous season.

Maccabi will be Wisniewski's second Euroleague stop after playing seven games for Cibona in the 2006-07 campaign. He has also played for Snaidero Udine in Italy, Telekom Baskets Bonn in Germany and Crvena Zvezda in Serbia in recent years following a college basketball career at Centenary College. Wisniewski helped Cibona win the Croatian League title in 2007.

source : euroleague.net

Bilbao announced Gerome Moiso

Bilbao announced french center Gerome Moiso(2.10-C) via their official website. The team of Bilbao add another quality transfer to their roster. Moiso adds considerable size and strength to the front-line of Bilbao as he is known for his physical game.

The experienced french center had a long career. Moiso was selected 11th overall in the 2000 NBA Draft by the Celtics in 2000. He played for 5 seasons in the NBA for Boston, New Orleans, Toronto, New Jersey and Cleveland. After that he went back to Europe where he played for Virtus Roma, Fortitudo and Badalona. Last season he started in Khimki but due to reduced playing time he returned to Badalona. He averaged 9 points 5 rebounds in 22 games in the ACB.

Lietuvos Rytas announced Bojan Popovic

Eurocup champ Lietuvos Rytas has chosen Bojan Popovic to fill its point guard slot, signing the playmaker to a one-year deal. Popovic (191, 26) arrives from Spanish side Bruesa where he averaged 6.6 points and 2 assists per game last season. He has two years of Euroleague experience under his belt as well, including the 2006-07 campaign with Dynamo Moscow, when he started all 22 games, averaged 10.7 points and led the team to the Quarterfinal Playoffs.

Popovic grew up at FMP Zeleznik, where he made his professional debut and helped the club win the Serbian Cup twice and in 2004 reach the ULEB Cup semifinals and win the Adriatic League. He joined Dynamo in 2005 and helped the team win the ULEB Cup that season. After two years in Moscow, Popovic signed for Unicaja and later for Bruesa.

source : euroleague.net

Lary Ayuso offered to Ilisiakos

Prolific scorer Larry Ayuso(1.92-SG) was offered to greek team Ilisiakos according to superbasket.gr. Ilisiakos won their promotion by conquering the A2 league last season and the puerto-rican scorer was offered to them although his salary might be a bit "steep" for them. Ilisiakos belongs to one of the biggest players' agent in Greece, Tasos Delimpaltadakis so it might seem not so improbable for Ayuso to sign with them.

Ayuso has played for Zalgiris and Cibona in the Euroleague in the past and he is also a member of the National Team of Puerto Rico. This past season he started playing for Iowa in the NBDL and then moved on to Cangrejeros de Santurce averaging 21.4 points 2.9 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 32 games.

Tau signed scorer Carl English

Tau Ceramica added more fire power for the upcoming 2009-10 season by inking shooting guard Carl English. Both parts reached an agreement to a one-year deal, with an option to extend it until the end of the 2010-11 season. English (192, 28) arrives from Kalise Gran Canaria, where he averaged 15.6 points and 2.8 assists in 6 Eurocup games last season, in which he helped his club to make it to the Spanish League playoffs.

English has also played for Zadar in Croatia, VidiVici Bologna in Italy, the Florida Flame, as well as for the North Charleston Lowgators in the D-league. English was the 2006-07 Adriatic League top scorer at 20.3 points per game playing for Zadar, to which he led to make it to the Croatian League finals. English is also a member of the Canadian national team.

source : euroleague.net

Cajasol and Aris are after Dowdell

According to diariodesevilla.es, Cajasol Sevilla and Aris Thessaloniki are very interested in signing combo guard Zabian Dowdell(1.91-PG/SG) that played last season for Casale Monferrato in LegaDue in Italy. Dowdell is the alternative target for Cajasol Sevilla in the case that Earl Calloway(1.91-PG) does not sign with them.

Dowdell played the season before for Nancy in France leading his team all the way to the title of the ProA and that was his first pro season after graduating from Virginia Tech in 2007. Before the NBA Draft, Dowdell played with the Tidewater Sealants in the Portsmouth Invitational Tournament, which is oldest amateur basketball tournament and the only postseason camp conducted for the top NCAA seniors only.

Dowdell then went undrafted in the 2007 NBA Draft. He was widely considered the best player to go unselected in draft . He is currently playing with Phoenix Suns team in Las Vegas trying to secure an NBA contract. Last season in Italy he averaged 19.5 points 3.9 rebounds and 2.7 assists in 37 games in total in LegaDue for Casale.

Mario Boni returns to Aris as a scouter

One of the best scorers of italian basketball and a basketball player until the age of 45, Mario Boni has returned to the team that loved him unlike any other. Mario Boni was announced today by the official website of Aris BC as part of the scouting team and in August he will be officially presented by the administration of Aris in a press conference.

Boni is one of the favorite players ever to wear the jersey of Aris by the fans of the greek team. He is known for his fiery personality and joining the fans of the team in their celebration. Boni has been loved like the fans like any other player, only second to the living legend of greek basketball, Nick Galis. This is prestigious addition to the administration of Aris.

Oldenburg renewed 3 more players

Euroleague newcomer EWE Baskets Oldenburg continued its efforts to keep the core of last season's squad by re-signing big man Milan Majstorovic for two more seasons. Majstorovic (207, 26) was a key player last season as the club became German League champion for the first time. He averaged 7.4 points and 4 rebounds in 18 minutes per game in the regular season and increased his output to 9.5 points and 5.8 rebounds per game in the playoffs. Last season was his second at Oldenburg, which he joined from Bilbao Basket in Spain. Majstorovic previously played for FMP Zeleznik, with whom he reached the ULEB Cup semifinals and won the Adriatic League in 2004. He began his career at Spartak Subotica in his native Serbia.

Oldenburg also announced Wednesday that center Marko Scekic and shooting guard Marco Buljevic had exercised options to remain another season with the club. Scekic (205, 28) contributed 7.1 points and 3.4 rebounds in a reserve role off the bench last season, his first with the club. He previously played for PGE Turow in Poland, Vojvodina Novi Sad in Serbia, Banjalucka Pivara in Bosnia and A Plus ZS Brno BC in the Czech Republic. Buljevic (196, 22) saw limited action in his first season with the club last year. Oldenburg now has nine players from last season’s squad under contract.

source : euroleague.net

Olympiakos to release Milosevic

According to redplanet.gr, Olympiakos are going to release greek/serbian point guard Igor Milosevic(1.93-PG). Coach Giannakis was not impressed with the performance of Milosevic and instead of him the world silver medallist youngster Kostas Sloukas(1.90-PG) will be promoted to the men's team of Olympiakos.

Milosevic began his professional career in 2003 with the Greek League club Iraklis Thessaloniki. After spending 3 seasons with Iraklis he moved to Red Star Belgrade in 2005. After spending 3 seasons with Red Star he moved to Olympiakos last summer. Milosevic has also been a member of the junior National Teams of Greece. He only managed to play 15 games in the A1 league this season, scoring 39 points, gathering 12 rebounds and dishing out 10 assists.

Maroussi announced Marios Batis

Maroussi BC announced via their official website the signing of greek point guard Marios Batis(1.88-PG) for the next season. Batis comes from the team of Olympia Larissa that is rumored to declare bankruptcy and in Maroussi he will find his former head coach from Olympia, Giorgos Bartzokas.

Batis started his career in Panionios and then played in Near East, Hlysiakos and finally in Olympia that he has been playing for the last few years. Last season he averaged 9 points 3.3 rebounds and 3 assists in 25 games in the Greek A1 League for Olympia.

Childress has unfinished business

Josh Childress, confirmed via the official website of Olympiakos, that he will be playing with the greek team in the next season. He confirmed that he has unfinished business as he stated in a newspaper of Atlanta and he reaffirmed that everything will be different in the next season.

He said that he is quite happy in Greece and that everyone ranging from the administration of Olympiakos, to the fans of the team have treated him very well and that he loved the time he spent in Greece. Things are expected to be different in the next season. The administration of Olympiakos and coach Giannakis are going to be more prudent selecting players for the roster of Olympiakos. The upcoming change in the number of foreign players in the Greek League also gives them something else to work with.

$5 million offer for Robinson

LAS VEGAS -- Eric Goodwin, agent for Nate Robinson, said the Knicks' 5-foot-7½ guard is considering an offer to play for the Greek team Olympiacos. Robinson's preference, however, is to stay in New York and the NBA, but he hasn't come close to signing an offer sheet anywhere. The Greek team may be willing to pay Robinson $5 million a year. Oddly, Knick president Donnie Walsh said yesterday he spoke to Robinson's agents, and that they never mentioned the Greek offer, which is telling.

"We will consider any team interested in Nate's services," Goodwin told The Post. "We have heard from the Greek team. They are very interested." The Knicks had been hoping that Robinson, a restricted free agent, would re-sign for the one-year qualifying offer of $2.8M, but they can offer him a one-year deal at any amount. The Knicks prefer not to sign Robinson to a long-term deal to protect their 2010 cap.

Coach Mike D'Antoni said earlier this week the Knicks are interested in Andre Miller only for the one-year, $5.8M midlevel exception, but that the Sixers PG is not yet interested in such a deal. Knicks continue to monitor the Carlos Boozer situation in Utah after the Jazz decided to trade the All-Star power forward who has one year left on his pact.

source : nypost.com

David Andersen headed to Houston

The Houston Rockets began the process of bolstering their frontline today, acquiring the rights to 6-11 center David Andersen in a trade with the Atlanta Hawks. In return for the Australian big man, Houston is sending cash and future considerations to Atlanta.

Andersen, 29, was originally selected by Atlanta in the second round (37th overall) in the 2002 NBA Draft. He joins the Rockets after spending the 2008-09 season with Regal FC Barcelona.

“David has been a winner with every team he has played for in Europe,” says Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey. “He is a very well-rounded player who possesses good offensive skills and a very good shooting touch for a big man. David is a versatile post player who should fit well in Coach (Rick) Adelman’s system.”

A native of Carlton, Victoria in Australia, Andersen averaged 11.1 points and 4.1 in helping FC Barcelona to the Euroleague Final Four this past season. He was also a member of Australia's men's basketball team during the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. Andersen averaged 6.5 points and 3.5 rebounds for the tournament.

source : nba.com

Javtokas signed a 2 season deal with Khimki

Today Khimki announced the signing of lithuanian center, Robertas Javtokas(2.11-C) via their official website. There were rumors about the transfer a week ago and there were also rumors about Javtokas talking to CSKA. He will be a player of Khimki for next 2 seasons and replacing Macej Lampe that went to Maccabi and will be completing the front line along with Jorge Garbajosa.

Javtokas played for Dynamo Moscow last season but due to financial problems of the russian team he will not be renewing with them. He has also played in the past for Lietuvos Rytas and Panathinaikos but they ended their contract mutually and he signed with Dynamo Moscow. Javtokas played with in the russian Superleague and the Eurocup. He averaged 8.2 points 6 rebounds and 1.1 blocks in 24 games in Russia, also he averaged 11.9 points and 6.3 rebounds in 13 games in the Eurocup.

Salenga renews with Zalgiris

Zalgiris Kaunas announced the renewal of the contract of small forward Dainius Salenga(1.97-SF) for another season. Salenga has played for Zalgiris Kaunas throughout his career with 2 seasons in between (2005-2007) that he played for Girona. He will have to fill the gap that the absence of Maciulis has created and they're not easy shoes to fill.

Salenga made statements on the official website of Zalgiris saying that he is quite happy to continue his career in Zalgiris as he is quite familiar with the environment of the team and the people in it. He also said that he is very happy to play in front of all the fans of Zalgiris. He averaged 11.4 points 3.1 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 10 games in the Euroleague.

Nate the Greek?

Apparently Olympiakos is targeting Nate Robinson with a boatload of cash. As they did a season ago with Josh Childress, the Greek team is hoping to sign Robinson as another ticket-seller, who would easily be a bigger star there.

According to the story Olympiakos may also consider a run at Ramon Sessions, who is a restricted free agent with the Bucks.

European teams can sign restricted free agents from the NBA with no compensation. But the NBA team does maintain the player's rights.

The Knicks might actually have no problem with Robinson taking the Greek offer, mainly because not have to pay him and still could use him as a trade asset. Coincidentally, Robinson has been in Europe making appearances at basketball camps. He is an immensely-popular NBA player who might be the type to strike it rich in Europe as a fan attraction. But he is also the type that would likely prefer to remain in the NBA.

Money, of course, does talk.

source : newsday.com

Deadline for Jasikevicius from Panathinaikos

According to prasinanea.gr, Panathinaikos gave a deadline to Sarunas Jasikevicius in order to answer to their offer. The deadline expires at the end of this week and this might mean that the greek team have found his replacement either as another bosman player or an import player.

It seems that Jasikevicius doesn't have a better offer than the one from Panathinaikos and that he is trying to gain either more money or a 2-season closed contract. The general consensus is that Jasikevicius would like to stay with Panathinaikos. The article says that there was also an offer from Malaga but it's nowhere near the offer that Panathinaikos have made.

Lietuvos Rytas close to signing Bojan Popovic

According to lrytas.lt, Bojan Popovic(1.91-PG) will be a player of Lietuvos Rytas for the next season. The article says that the management of the team and the serbian point-guard have to an agreement that will be announced soon.

Popovic signed a contract with Malaga in 2007 but he only played for them for one season. After that he was given to Bruesa on loan. He started his career in FMP Zelzenik and he has also played for Dynamo Moscow winning the Uleb Cup with them. This past season he averaged 6.6 points 1.9 rebounds and 2 assists in 30 games in the ACB.

Efes Pilsen announced Bostjan Nachbar

Efes Pilsen announced via their official website the signing of Bostjan Nachbar(2.06-SF/PF) the slovenian forward, previously of Dynamo Moscow. The deal is for one season. The general manager of Efes Pilsen, Engin Özerhun, said that that Nachbar is a great player and that his combined NBA and Europe experience will help Efes Pilsen greatly in the next season.

Nachbar started his career in KK Maribor and moved on to the young team of Olimpia Lubljana where he played until 2000. He also played for Benetton Treviso, Houston, New Orleans, New Jersey and his last team was that of Dynamo Moscow. As a player of Dynamo this season, he averaged 16.2 points 4.5 rebounds and 1.8 assists in 24 games of the Russian Superleague and 16.1 points 4.8 rebounds and 2.2 assists in 16 games of the EuroCup.

Badalona brings back Antonio Bueno

DKV Joventut reached an agreement with center Antonio Bueno, who inked a two-year deal with the club. Bueno (209, 28) arrives from Alta Gestion Fuenlabrada, where he averaged 11.6 points and 4.1 rebounds in 32 Spanish League games last season. Bueno already played for Joventut from 2001 to 2003. He averaged 12.5 points, 6.9 rebounds and 1.6 blocks in 10 ULEB Cup games in the 2002-03 season, in which Joventut made it to the semifinals.

Bueno has also played for Real Madrid, Estudiantes and Cajasol, as well as being a member of the Spanish national team. He helped Real Madrid to win the 2005 Spanish League title and make it to the 2004 ULEB Cup final, that the Whites lost against Hapoel Migdal Jerusalem. Bueno also helped Spain to win the 1999 World Junior Championships and reach the 2003 EuroBasket final.

source : eurocupbasketball.com

Cantu announced Maarty Leunen

Cantu Basket announced via their official website the signing of american power forward Maarty Leunen(2.06-PF). Maarty Leunen is currently playing with the Houston Rockets' team in the Las Vegas Summer League averaging 8.7 points 5 rebounds and 2 assists in the first 3 games.

Maarty Leunen graduated from the University of Oregon and in his last season with them he averaged 15.2 points 9.2 rebounds and 2.8 assists in 32 games. He also took part in the Las Vegas Summer League where he averaged 16 points 4.8 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 5 games for the Houston Rockets. Leunen can possibly acquire a dutch passport as both his parents have dutch roots. This past season he played in Darussafaka and he averaged 12.1 points 6.2 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 32 games.

Vule Avdalovic signed with Alicante

Vule Avdalovic(1.91-PG) will be continuing his career in Alicante according to his agency's website. Avdalovic left Valencia this summer as he was not anymore in Neven Spahija's plans and there were rumors about him initially about signing with Lietuvos Rytas. Alicante will be the next stop in his career.

Avdalovic played for Partizan for the most part of his career before moving to Valencia. He has been playing for the spanish team for the last 4 seasons and he will be the starting point guard for Alicante in the next season. He averaged 8.3 points 1.8 rebounds and 1.4 assists in 12 games in the Eurocup for Valencia and also 6.2 points and 1.3 assists in 33 games for Valencia in the ACB for Valencia.

Kavala BC signed Dragan Ceranic

Kavala BC have booked serbian center Dragan Ceranic(2.12-C) according to his agency's website, beobasket.net. Ceranic will move to northern Greece after having a successful season with Kolossos BC in Rhodes.

He has also played in AEL and Panionios in Greece, whereas he played for Villeurbanne, Oostende and Varese in the rest of Europe. Ceranic brings experience and size to the table for Kavala that lost Kavaliauskas, who was their starting center. He averaged 7.3 points and 5.1 rebounds in 24 games this past season in the A1 league in Greece.

Nate Robinson offered to Olympiakos

According to contra.gr and journalist Tasos Magoulas, Nate Robinson(1.75-PG) has been offered to Olympiakos despite his existing contract with the New York Knicks. Being a restricted free agent he could forego the last season of his contract that should get him 2.2 million dollars for a possibly larger contract if he were to sign with Olympiakos.

The Knicks have expressed their wish to renew his contract but at this stage it's anyone's game to say whether Robinson will stay in New York or move to Athens. Robinson had a great season with the Knicks averaging 17.2 points 3.9 rebounds and 4.2 assists in 74 games with the Knicks this past season.

Childress to stay with Olympiakos?

According to most of the greek media, Josh Childress is going to stay for another season with Olympiakos. The american small forward decided not to take up the offer of the Milwaukee Bucks for 5.5 million dollars per season and decided to stay with Olympiakos and the 6.5 million dollars contract of his for next season.

Childress didn't want to Atlanta and since he couldn't get what he wanted in Milwaukee he decided to stay with Olympiakos. The greek team will now be changing their transfer targets and probably acquire an american point guard and power forward now that they can sign one more non-european player.

Olimpia Milano announced Maciulis

Armani Jeans Milano took another step forward in building its roster for the 2009-10 season with the signing of Jonas Maciulis, who agreed to a two-year deal. Maciulis (198, 24), nicknamed "The Bull" for his intensity and fighting spirit, was born in Kaunas and raised at Zalgiris, where he played the better part of his career to date. He averaged 14 points and 5 rebounds in 10 Euroleague games for that club last season.

In his four seasons as a full member of the Zalgiris first team roster, Maciulis helped the club to back back-to-back Lithuanian League titles in 2007 and 2008. Maciulis also lifted the Lithuanian Cup and the Baltic League titles in 2008. Maciulis led Zalgiris to victory at the first-ever edition of the Euroleague International Junior Tournament at the 2003 Final Four in Barcelona. He has also played for Nevezis Kedainiai. Maciulis is a regular member of the Lithuanian national team and has won a bronze medal at EuroBasket 2007 and reached the 2008 Olympic semifinals.

source : euroleague.net

AEK Athens interested in Sanikidze

Viktor Sanikidze (203-F-86) is the first target of AEK for the PF position. The Georgian forward got drafted (2rd, N.42) in 2004 from Atlanta Hawks but his rights got traded to the San Antonio Spurs. He started his career from Academy Tbilisi and next year moved in the stronger France Pro-A league to play for Dijon Bourgogne. After playing two years in Dijon he got the big transfer to play in the Spanish ACB league for Estudiantes Madrid.

The things did not go well for the Georgian player in Spain, he was not playing a lot but the second year was worst, he had a serious injury which caused him to sit out the entire season. He started practising months later in Dinamo Tbilisi but he realized in Germany, when he went for a tryout, that his career was on great danger. Viktor said to Eurobasket.com one year ago: I went in Germany for try out and on one practice I didn't feel good on my knee. So, I checked my knee with German doctors and they told me to stop playing, otherwise I would risk my career.

This season Tartu from Estonia gave him the opportunity to be back in courts and had great games. He played 20 games in the Baltic league having 9.3ppg and 6.3rpg. Already teams from France are showing interest for him.

source : eurobasket.com

Siena announced Ksistof Lavrinovic

Montepaschi Siena has announced a new deal with center Ksistof Lavrinovic, who extended his contract until the end of the 2011-12 season. Lavrinovic was an All-Euroleague second team selection in the 2007-08 season, in which he helped Montepaschi to make it to the Final Four. In his two seasons with Montepaschi, Lavrinovic has helped his team to win back-to-back Italian League titles and also lifted the Italian Cup trophy this year. Lavrinovic has also played for Unics Kazan, Dynamo Moscow and Ural Great in Perm, as well as for Alita Alytus in his native Lithuania.

Lavrinovic won the 2004 Russian Cup title with Ural Great and reached the Russian League finals with Dynamo in 2005 and with Unics in 2007. His twin brother Darjus Lavrinovic joined Real Madrid two weeks ago.

source : euroleague.net

Demos Dikoudis is a target of Aris

According to basketblog.gr, Demos Dikoudis(2.07-PF) is a target of Aris Thessaloniki. The greek power forward played last season for Panionios that were defeated by Aris in the play offs. Dikoudis is a very experienced player with a rich career and would be a great addition for Aris but he might be a tad expensive for the greek team.

Head coach Andrea Mazzon is interested in signing Dikoudis for the position of the starting power forward, according to the article. Dikoudis played for Valencia, Panathinaikos, CSKA and AEK Athens in the past. This past season he averaged 10.7 points and 4.6 rebounds in 17 games for Panionios.

Maccabi announced Chuck Eidson

Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv is proud to announce the signing of American star Chuck Eidson (28, 2.01 meters) to a two year contract. Eidson, a guard-forward who can play at any position from 1 through 4, is known as an intelligent team player who brings out the best in those who play next to him. Eidson has a great personality both on and off the court and that, together with his professional ability, make him the dream of every basketball club.

In the 2008/09 season of the Eurocup, Eidson’s numbers were 15.9 points per game (fifth place), 5.7 rebounds, 5.1 assists (first in the league), and 2.0 steals (third in the league). He finished first in the index of outstanding players with an average index of 21.9. He was the only player in the Eurocup to finish the season among the top ten for points, rebounds and assists.

His top game of last season came in the finals of the Baltic championship, when Lietuvos Rytas destroyed their biggest rival, Zalgiris Kaunas 97 – 74. Eidson scored a career-high 41 points (16 for 20 from the field!), pulled down 8 rebounds and dished out 8 assists.

source : maccabi.co.il

Levance Fields signed with Spartak St. Petersburg

BC Spartak St. Petersburg started to get ready for its upcoming Eurocup debut in the 2009-10 season by inking playmaker Levance Fields to a two-year deal. Spartak keeps a team option to extend the contract until the end of the 2011-12 season. Fields (178, 22) just finished his college career at the University of Pittsburg (NCAA).

He averaged 10.7 points, 2.5 rebounds and 7.5 assists in 36 NCAA games last season, in which Fields made it to the All-Big East 3rd Team. Fields helped the Panthers to win the Big East Tournament in 2008 and make it to the NCAA Tournament eighthfinals in 2007. He finished his college career with 645 assists, ranking third in the Panthers' all-time list behind Brandin Knight (785) and Sean Miller (744). Fields is now ready to start his professional career in St. Petersburg.

source : eurocupbasketball.com

Nesterovic returns to Toronto?

After a franchise-altering move left him with money to spend and backup roles to fill, Raptors boss Bryan Colangelo will be looking for a few good men. There's an old friend in Slovenia who'd love to be considered.

Rasho Nesterovic, a veteran centre very much on the mind of the Raptors now, would like nothing more than to rejoin the team he reluctantly left a year ago. "I never wanted to leave, it was just a matter of numbers and business, I understand that," Nesterovic said in a telephone interview from his native Slovenia yesterday. "To come back would be great, I'd love to. Toronto is always and will always be my favourite city."

Colangelo has spoken glowingly about Nesterovic's presence – on the court in a backup role and as a leader in the locker room – and there is interest in bringing him back as long as the financial terms can be worked out.

Nesterovic, 33, spent last season with the Indiana Pacers (averaging 6.8 points and 3.4 rebounds per game) after being dealt from Toronto in the Jermaine O'Neal-T.J. Ford deal. He knows a role here would be as a backup and he's fine with that; he also knows there will be no rush to get things done. "I know the first week (of free agency) is to get the stars done and the big names," he said. "I can wait."

source : thestar.com

John Hammond talks about Bucks' targets

I caught up with John Hammond this afternoon and he was fairly tight-lipped on the progress of negotiations with restricted free agents Ersan Ilyasova and Ramon Sessions. Contrary to reports we've been regularly seeing in Spain, an Ilyasova signing hasn't been finalized--but that's not to say it won't get done at some point in the near future. Meanwhile, the Bucks had a conference call with Sessions on Thursday.

"Ersan might be in a little different position than Ramon. We're probably a little further along in our discussions with Ersan. But the discussions with Ramon have been positive and on-going."

The Bucks are also still interested in Josh Childress, though his situation is complicated by both his lucrative deal with Olympiacos and the Hawks' ability to match any NBA offer sheet he receives.

"We had a good visit and we enjoyed having him spend time with us. We've talked about some kind of range that he could be comfortable with, but he has a lot of variables that he has to work through, not just with us but potentially with Atlanta. That is more of a wait and see situation."

source : brewhoop.com

Barcelona announced Terrence Morris

Barcelona announced the signing of american power forward Terrence Morris(2.07-PF) via their official website. Morris left CSKA Moscow although he had 2 more seasons in his contract and it was rumored that Efes Pilsen was interested in the player among other teams. The deal between Terrence Morris and Barcelona is for 2 seasons and he will be replacing Ersan Ilyasova who is most likely to try his luck again in the NBA with Minnesotta.

Terrence Morris impressed the crowds as a player of Maccabi Tel Aviv and he managed to play in 2 Euroleague Final Four's in a row with Maccabi and CSKA. The russian team decided to release him as his contract was too costly although he had initially signed a 3-season contract. He averaged 6.7 points, 4.9 rebounds, 1.1 assists, 0.5 steals, 1.0 blocked shots in 21 Euroleague games with CSKA.

Rumors about Travis Hansen and Olympiakos

Another potential target has been implicated with Olympiakos and this time its american guard/forward Travis Hansen(1.98-SG/SF) who also owns a russian passport from his days in Dynamo Moscow. Hansen started the season in Dynamo Moscow but left the team back in May as they couldn't pay his salary any more. The article from redplanet.gr says that Hansen is in the list of candidates to play in Olympiakos.

He was drafted by the Hawks in the second round of the 2003 NBA Draft, 37th overall, and played 41 games for them, starting four, averaging 3.0 points per game. He then played for Tau for 2 seasons and for the last 3 seasons he has been playing for Dynamo being the top scorer team. Hansen averaged 14.7 points 4.8 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 21 games of the russian Superleague.

David Holston signed with Karsiyaka

CHICAGO – Former Chicago State men’s basketball player David Holston (Pontiac, Mich.) has recently signed a professional contract to compete for Pinar Karsiyaka, a member of the Turkish Basketball League located in the town of Izmir, Turkey, for the 2009-10 season. The 5-8, 160-pound point guard joins a Pinar Karsiyaka squad that also features fellow American standouts Gerald Brown and Leon Williams. Pinar Karsiyaka posted a 13-17 record during the 2008-09 season.

Holston finished his collegiate campaign averaging 25.9 points, 6.4 assists, 3.7 rebounds and three steals per game per game in leading CSU to record its first winning season in the school’s Division I-era with a 19-13 record last season. Holston also led the nation for the second straight season with an average of 4.6 made three-point shots per game in addition to ranking fourth nationally in scoring and steals. He twice captured HSRN D-I and Great West Conference Player of the Week accolades during the season.

In addition to his weekly accolades, Holston earned the NCAA D-I Independent Player of the Year award and captured First Team All-Independent accolades two weeks ago. He also gained Independent Player of the Year accolades from CollegeInsider.com and earned National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) All-District 13 Second Team honors.

source : gocsucougars.com

Nikos Hatzivrettas is a target of Aris?

Nikos Hatzivrettas(1.95-SG) might not be continuing his career in Panathinaikos after all. The greek veteran was rumored to sign another contract for one more season with Panathinaikos but that might not go through. The many arrivals in the backcourt of Panathinaikos and the recent change in the foreign players regulation in Greece might force Hatzivrettas who knows that his playing time will be even more reduced.

Greek portal athlitikanea.gr says that Aris Thessaloniki are interested in signing Hatzivrettas as they are trying to get the best possible roster in order to qualify for next season's Euroleague, initially against Maroussi and after that against the winner between Alba Berlin and Le Mans. Head coach Andrea Mazzon is currently in Las Vegas for the Summer League monitoring possible transfer targets for Aris and Hatzivrettas is also one of them. Hatzivrettas averaged 5.2 points and 1.4 rebounds in 29 games in the greek A1 league playing for Panathinaikos.

Nenad Markovic returns to Panionios

Nenad Markovic returns to Panionios after season 2007-2008. The bosnian veteran sat at the bench of Panionios leading the team to the Euroleague and now he seems to be returning to the greek team according to sportdog.gr.

The deal is rumored to be for 2 seasons and it is rumored to be announced very soon. This might be a necessary development for Panionios now that the president of the team, Ilias Lianos stepped down from presidency but offered to help the team financially to the best of his ability. The budget of Panionios this season is going to be reduced more than 50% dropping it to 1 million euros for all the players' salaries.

Rumors about Wright and Fuenlabrada

According to elpunto.cat, Fuenlabrada are interesting in american combo guard Bracey Wright(1.91-PG/SG) who played for Aris Thessaloniki and Badalona last season. Wright started the season in Badalona but was later on released and finished the season as a player of Aris.

The former player of the Minnesotta Timberwolves of 2 seasons, first came to Europe in season 2007-2008 to play for Aris in the Euroleague.He averaged 14 points 2.6 rebounds and 2.6 assists in 14 games as a player of DKV Juventut and 10.3 points 1.2 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 12 games for Aris in the A1 league in Greece.

Mancinelli a target of Efes Pilsen?

Stefano Mancinelli(2.03-SF/PF) is a target of Efes Pilsen according to basketdergisi.com. The italian forward was one of the best players of Fortitudo Bologna that was sadly relegated to the LegaA2 at the end of the season. Mancinelli though is still highly sought after as he is not expected to stay with Fortitudo.

Mancinelli has been playing for Fortitudo Bologna since 2000 and he is also a member of the National Team of Italy. This past season he averaged 13.8 points 4.3 rebounds 1.9 assists and 2.2 steals in 30 games in the LegaA1 in Italy.<

Bilbao interested in Mario Delas

According to kosarka.hr, Bilbao Basket are interested in croatian prodigy Mario Delas(2.08-C) who is currently playing with the U-19 National Team of Croatia in the U-19 Fiba World Cup in New Zealand. Delas is one of the best players of the tournament and he has attracted the interest of many teams and according to the article Bilbao are seriously interested in signing the young player.

The president of KK Split, croatian veteran Dino Radja said that it is quite sad that the financial problems of the team are forcing them to sell their players and that there are a few teams interested in the case of Delas. He has averaged 19 points 7.2 rebounds and 2.4 assists in the Fiba World Cup so far and he also averaged 7.6 points and 4 rebounds in 26 games in the Adriatic League with KK Split.

Lukauskis heading to Villeurbanne?

According to basketnews.net, Mindaugas Lukauskis(1.98-SG/SF) is very close to an agreement with ASVEL Villeurbanne and that the deal will be announced very soon. The french champion want to secure a quality player of Euroleague level and Lukauskis perhaps wants to find a better contract than he would find in Lietuvos Rytas. He helped Lietuvos Rytas conquer the Lithuanian League, the Eurocup and the Baltic League.

He also played for Sakalai and BC Alta in Lithuania but spent the most part of his career playing for Rytas. In the Eurocup he averaged 9.9 points 3.4 rebounds and 2.2 assists in 15 games whereas in the Baltic League he averaged 10.8 points 3.9 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 19 games. In the Lithuanian League 9.9 points 3.7 rebounds and 2.4 assists in 28 games.

Peristeri interested in Arturas Milaknis

According to superbasket.gr, the team of Peristeri are interested in lithuanian shooting guard Arturas Milaknis(1.95-SG) who played for Zalgiris Kaunas this past season. Milaknis got more playing time this season during the financial problems of Zalgiris showing off some his skills that got other teams interested.

Head coach of Peristeri, Thanassis Skourtopoulos knows of the player and his style of playing and he is very much interested to see if his team could sign him. He averaged 6.2 points and 1.2 rebounds in 5 games in the Euroleague and also 9 points and 2 rebounds in 18 games in the Lithuanian League.

Panathinaikos interested in Jerebko

Jonas Jerebko(2.04-SF/PF) seems to be a target of Panathinaikos according to greek portal prasinanea.gr. The assistant coach of Panathinaikos, Dimitris Itoudis, is currently in Las Vegas as part of the Detroit Pistons coaching staff. The article says that Itoudis is going to be watching the swedish prodigy closely and monitor his performance during the Las Vegas Summer League.

Originally an early entry candidate for the 2008 NBA Draft before withdrawing his name from consideration. Jerebko was selected in the 2009 Draft by the Detroit Pistons in the 2nd round with number 39 pick overall. He began his pro career playing with the Swedish League club Borås Basket in the 2005-06 season and in the 2006-07 season he moved to the reigning Swedish champion team Plannja Basket, where he also won a Swedish championship. He then moved to the Italy and Angelico Biella in 2007. As a player of Biella last season he averaged 9.1 points 5.5 rebounds and 1.6 steals in 34 games in the LegaA1.

Dusan Sakota to sign with Scavolini

According to his agency's website, beobasket.net, Dusan Sakota(2.09-SF/PF) will be moving to Scavolini for the next season. Dusan Sakota was rumored for Badalona and Montegranaro previously but his final destination was actually Scavolini. As a plaer of the italian team he will be able to have a lot more playing time than he would have in Panathinaikos.

For a number of years he has been part of the roster of Panathinaikos while he also played for Panionios for one season on loan. Sakota doesn't seem to get much playing time in Panathinaikos and it might be the same case in the next season. This season he averaged 5 points and 1.5 rebounds in 25 games in the greek A1 league, shooting at 45% (25/55) behind the arc.

Siena signed David Moss

Montepaschi Siena reached an agreement with forward David Moss, who inked a three-year deal with the Euroleague powerhouse, the club confirmed Friday. Moss (196, 25) arrives from Banca Tercas Teramo, where he averaged 12.9 points and 6.1 rebounds in 34 Italian League games last season. He helped Teramo to rank third at the end of the Italian League regular season, helping his team to reach the playoffs and the Italian Cup semifinals and had a season-high 22 points against Montepaschi on February 8.

He also led the Italian League in minutes per game at more (35.1) and was chosen as the best small forward in the competition. Moss has also played for Fileni Bpa Jesi in Italy and Polpak Swiecie in Poland since finishing his four-year career at Indiana State University (NCAA). He helped Jesi to win the Italian second division Cup and reach the Italian second division title series in 2008. Moss is now ready to take a major step forwards in his short, promising career it what will be his Euroleague debut season.

source : euroleague.net

Poitiers signed Pape Badiane

Poitiers Basket 86 signed french center Pape Badianne(2.08-C) and they announced it via their official website. Badiane after playing for many years for Roanne decided to take a leap over to Le Mans but there he didn't get as much playing time having to share the center position with Alain Koffi.

Now Badiane has signed with Poitiers Basket to add strength and experience to their front-line. He is also a member of the National Team of France. As a player of Le Mans he averaged 4.3 points and 3.3 rebounds in 35 games in the ProA, while he averaged 4.3 points and 3.1 rebounds in 10 games in the Euroleague.

Roanne announced Dylan Page

Roanne announced the signing of Dylan Page(2.04-SF/PF) via their official website. Page played for Pau Orthez last season averaging great numbers and now he will be helping Roanne in their effort to qualify in the groups stage of the Eurocup.

He graduated from Wisconsin in 2004 and in his last season averaged the impressive figures of 20.9 points 6.6 rebounds and 1.2 assist per game in 31 games. From then on he tried his luck in the famous Portsmouth Invitational tournament and a few summer camps in the NBA but eventually signed his first pro contract in Greece playing for MENT. He then moved on to anothe greek team, Panellinios, and next season he played for Mallorca in LEB Silver. Last season he played for Granada in the ACB and averaged 13.6 points and 4.9 rebounds per game shooting at 45% behind the arc in 34 games. In France he averaged 17.7 points 7.1 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 19 games in the ProA.

Printezis officially in Malaga now

Unicaja made its first major move of the off-season by inking small forward Georgios Printezis to a three-year deal. Printezis (202, 24) arrives from Olympiacos, where he averaged 8.8 points and 3.3 rebounds in 20 Euroleague games last season. He scored a Euroleague career-high 22 points against Armani Jeans Milano in Olympiacos's Top 16 opener. He averaged 12 points on 92.3% shooting (12 for 13) in two games against Unicaja last season.

Printezis started his career with the Asteras Ag. Dimitriou youth team, moved to Olympiacos in the summer of 2000 and made his Euroleague debut in the 2002-03 season. After three years of limited playing time, Printezis was sent on loan to Olimpia GE Larisa, where he had a breakout 2006-07 season, averaging 11.5 points and 4 rebounds in 24 Greek League games. Last season, Printezis helped the Reds advance to the Euroleague Final Four and reach the Greek League and the Greek Cup finals. He is also a member of the Greek national team and played at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China.


source : euroleague.net

De Colo to play for France in Eurobasket 2009

France have quashed fears that exciting guard Nando De Colo may pull out of the EuroBasket Additional Qualifying Round because of NBA commitments. De Colo was selected by San Antonio in the second round of last month's NBA Draft and there was speculation that he may play with the Spurs in the NBA Summer League and not be in Europe when the French take on Italy and Finland in Group B of the AQR.

The French Basketball Federation left no doubt about De Colo in a statement on their website which said: "De Colo has made it clear to his agent that his participation in the 2009 campaign of Les Bleus is a priority and that he is anxious to join his teammates to prepare for the qualification round of the European Championship." If France top Group B, they will face the winners of Group A (Belgium, Portugal or Bosnia and Herzegovina) in a home-and-away tie for the last spot still on offer for the EuroBasket in Poland.

source : eurobasket2009.org

Kristaps Valters signs with Badalona

DKV Joventut has agreed to terms of a contract with playmaker Kristaps Valters, who inked a two-year deal with his new team, the club confirmed Friday. Valters (188, 27) arrives from Alta Gestion Fuenlabrada, where he averaged 11.1 points on 48% three-pointers, 3.2 rebounds and 4.8 assists in 32 Spanish League games last season. He boosted his numbers up to 14.5 points and 6 assists in 2 games against Joventut.

Valters has also played for Triumph Lyubertsy in Russia, Snaidero Udine in Italy, EWE Baskets Oldenburg in Germany, Panionios Athens in Greece, Muratpasa Antalya in Turkey, as well as for Skonto Riga and ASK Broceni-LMT in his native Latvia. Valters has a brother, Sandis, playing professional basketball and his father, Valdis, was one of the best Latvian players ever, becoming the Soviet Union national team's starting point guard for several years. Valters is also a regular member of the Latvian national team. He helped Broceni to win the Latvian League and reach the NEBL final in 1999.

source : eurocupbasketball.com

Rumors about Javtokas and Khimki

Robertas Javtokas(2.11-C) is rumored to play for Khimki BC according lithuanian portal lrytas.lt. The article says that Khimki are interested in signing the lithuanian center but the details of the contract have not been made known yet. Javtokas' name was heard in rumors about CSKA Moscow as well but now he seems to be very close to a deal with Dynamo, that might complete even this weekend.

Javtokas played for Dynamo Moscow last season but due to financial problems of the russian team he will not be renewing with them. He has also played in the past for Lietuvos Rytas and Panathinaikos but they ended their contract mutually and he signed with Dynamo Moscow. Javtokas played with in the russian Superleague and the Eurocup. He averaged 8.2 points 6 rebounds and 1.1 blocks in 24 games in Russia, also he averaged 11.9 points and 6.3 rebounds in 13 games in the Eurocup.

Malaga made offer for Ricky Rubio

Malaga seems to be in the game for Ricky Rubio according to spanish portal diariosur.es. The offer that Malaga made is for a 3 seasons contract offering 1.1 million euros per season to Rubio. On the other hand Real Madrid are offering a 2 season contract but the player would be free to play in the NBA at the end of the contract.

The proceedings are stuck at the moment because Rubio and his lawyers are suing Badalona for the high buy-out clause in Rubio's contract that is not proportionate to the salary. Hence all negotiations have come to a standstill. It is uncertain what would Rubio do. In Malaga he gets to play again for Aito Reneses, the man who promoted him to the first team of Badalona but Real are offering a smaller contract which would help if he wanted to leave for the NBA. Marcelinho Huertas is rumored to be Malaga's alternative.

Olympiakos announced Andreas Glyniadakis

Andreas Glyniadakis(2.16-C) was finally announced today by the official website of Olympiakos and is the first actual transfer of the greek team after the renewal of Bourousis. The center from Crete will be another addition to the front-line of Olympiakos which seems to be getting crowded with centers. Bourousis, Vujcic, Vouyoukas, Mavrokefalides and now Glyaniadakis. The deal is for 2 seasons.

Glyniadakis who has played briefly for Panathinaikos in the beginning of his career sought the NBA dream but it was short lived and spent most of his time in the States playing in the NBDL. He returned to Greece and has been playing for Maroussi for the last two and a half seasons. He averaged 7.3 points and 3.8 rebounds and he accrued 32 blocks in 36 games in the greek A1 league for Maroussi.

Kambala might stay in Krasnoyarsk

Kaspars Kambala(2.06-C) might stay in Russia after all. The agent of the latvian giant, Obrads Fimics spoke to latvian portal esports.lv and said that he(Kambala) might stay with Krasnoyarsk for the next season. Kambala recently returned from a 2 year ban from pro basketball, during which he trained to become a boxer.

This season he played for Krasnoyarsk in Russia where he even managed to score 42 points in a game against Lokomotiv Rostov. Kambala's agent said that because of the current economic crisis good offers are hard to come by and it's likely that he will not change teams. Fimics said that the decision will be made clearer within the next 10 days or so. In his return to pro basketball Kambala averaged 14.9 points and 5.8 rebounds in 16 games for Krasnoyarsk in the Russian Superleague.

Barcelona made offer for N'Dong

Barcelona made an offer to senegalese center Boniface N'Dong(2.13-C) this morning according to spanish media and it's now up to Malaga to match the offer according to the rules of ACB. N'Dong has decided to accept the offer so now it is up to Malaga. They have 10 days to match the offer of Barcelona that is rumored to be 3.2 million euros for 2 seasons.

N'Dong who owns a german passport, has been with Malaga for 2 seasons now and before that he has played for Spartak St' Petersburg, Bamberg, Dijon and he has also played for the LA Clippers for one season. He averaged 10.2 points 5.3 rebounds and 1.1 blocks in 38 games in the ACB. He has also averaged 10.8 points 5.3 rebounds and 1.3 blocks in 15 games in the Euroleague.

Double strike from Bilbao

Bilbao announced Alex Mumbru(2.01-SF/PF) and Javi Rodriguez(1.89-PG) via their official website. These are 2 great transfers for Bilbao who get 2 very experienced players in their roster. Mumbru played for Real last season but he was released as he wasn't part of the Ettore Messina restructuring. Mumbru is also a member of the National Team of Spain and has also played for Badalona in the past. He averaged 7.6 points 2.6 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 19 games in the Euroleague and also 8.4 points 3.1 rebounds and 1.4 assists in the ACB with Real.

Rodriguez started his career in the Tau Baskonia academies and later on graduated from Boston College before returning to Spain. He has also played in Alava, Tau, Gijon, Breogan, Fuenlabrada and most recently Manresa, where he had one of best seasons in the ACB. The 30-year old veteran was the 2nd best in assists in the regular season behind Ricky Rubio(6.2) with 6.1 assists and leaving Pablo Prigioni in third place with 5 assists per game. He averaged 6.8 points 3.3 rebounds and 6.1 assists in 28 games in the regular season in the ACB. He has also been a member of the Spanish National Team.

Olympiakos is not lending Milosevic

According to krepsinis.net, Olympiakos refused to lend greek/serbian combo guard Igor Milosevic(1.93-PG/SG) to Lietuvos Rytas. There was a previous report regarding this possible transfer and it seemed back then that Milosevic would play on-loan for Lietuvos Rytas.

His recent performance in the Mediterranean Games in Pescara with the National Team of Greece have boosted his profile. Milosevic was the starting point guard for Greece leading the team to the final but lost against Croatia. He averaged 14.8 points 2 rebounds and 3.2 assists in 6 games. The GM of Lietuvos Rytas, Jonas Vainuskas said that Olympiakos decided to keep Milosevic as they would need greek players to complete the roster. Their next target would be Bojan Popovic(1.91-PG) but he said that Popovic might not accept the money they have to offer.

Ignerski signs with Bruesa

Poland International Michal Ignerski (205-F-80, college: Mississippi St.) hasn't had to wait long until finding out where he will embark on a new stage of his career. Having come to an agreement with former club Cajasol to mutually terminate his contract after two years in Seville, he will remain in the ACB after inking a deal with San Sebastian side Bruesa GBC.

Ignerski had a mixed year in 2008/09 and will be hoping he can make the 3 spot his own for Bruesa who will be looking to again survive and maybe even push further into mid-table in search of a surprise play-off spot.

source : eurobasket.com

Lonny Baxter to sign with Besiktas?

According to turkbasket.com, Besiktas have set their sights on american forward/center Lonny Baxter(2.03-PF/C). Baxter is a very athletic forward that can cover both positions in the frontcourt and is known for his physical game.

Last season he played for Panionios in Greece and the Euroleague, and before that he played for Badalona, Siena, Houston, Charlotte, Panathinaikos among other teams. He has averaged 12.4 points and 5.8 rebounds in 22 games of the greek A1 league and also 11 points and 5.2 rebounds in 10 games in the Euroleague.

Foreign players number changes in Greece

Today the association of the A1 greek teams(ESAKE) convened and the main subject that was set for voting was the change of the number of foreign players allowed in greek teams. Before today the rule was that all greek teams were allowed a total of 6 non-greek players, out of which there could have been a maximum 2 of non-european players.

Today that was changed to a maximum of 3 non-european players. All the greek teams to participate in the next season voted positive to that change. The matter has now been passed to approval to the chairman of the greek basketball federation, Georgios Vasilakopoulos. It is considered to be a done deal and by some it is considered to be a necessary measure given the current economic climate where most greek teams will have to reduce their players' budget. This development changes the planning of all teams and gives them the opportunity to sign another player from the american(mainly) market.

Stephon Marbury is considering playing overseas

Marbury, 32, has been talking to teams in three different European countries, including Italy, the past few weeks and is growing more intrigued if a strong NBA offer does not come along soon. The Celtics have told Marbury they are not going to re-sign him after netting Rasheed Wallace. Marbury has been using Players Association attorney Hal Biagas as his agent.

"If I have to give it overseas, I'll give it overseas," Marbury said. "I like the Europe option to bring the Starbury [sneaker] brand there and sponsor soccer players." As far as his NBA future, Marbury said he realizes he's not in solid bargaining position because of how little he's played recently. He joined Boston in late February after sitting out the entire season in a dispute with the Knicks.

"The Knicks put me in a really bad situation, a really bad spot, so I'm still waiting," Marbury said. "Teams are still shopping."

source : nypost.com

Stoudamire praises Childress

* The Bucks recently played host to restricted free agent Josh Childress, the former Atlanta Hawks small forward who played in Greece last season. Childress is exploring the possibility of returning to the NBA, although the Hawks still retain his playing rights.

Childress and Stoudamire are good friends, having spent three seasons together in Atlanta. Stoudamire said he'd love having his buddy as a teammate again.

"Not only is he a great player who is willing to do all the little things to help a team win, but he's a good guy, too,'' Stoudamire said. "He's a very honest and caring person. It would be a blessing if he came here.''

source : journaltimes.com

Galatasaray announced Darius Washington

Galatasaray announced, via their official website, the signing of american combo guard Darius Washington(1.88-PG/SG) for the next season. Washington has a bosman passport and was going to play in the Orlando Summer League coming off a good season with Ural Great.

He has played for Paok in Greece, Nymburk in the Czech Republic(won the czech league) and played for Aris Thessaloniki in the Euroleague after he was waived by the San Antonio Spurs that he played for briefly in 2007. Washington averaged 10.2 points 2.8 rebounds and 3.1 assists in 9 games in the Euroleague and also averaged 10 points 2.1 assists and 3 rebounds in 17 games in the greek A1 league. Last season he played for Ural Great averaging 13.1 points 2.9 rebounds and 3.1 assists in 18 games for the Russian Superleague.

Langford signs 2 season deal with Khimki

Shortly after the completion of the draw for the 2009-10 Euroleague regular season, BC Khimki Moscow Region announced the signing of shooting guard Keith Langford to a two-year deal. Langford (193, 25) arrives from Virtus Bologna, where he averaged 12.9 points and 4.5 rebounds in 29 Italian League regular season games last season. He boosted his scoring average to 16.8 points in the playoffs and also helped Virtus to win the EuroChallenge title, scoring 21 points in the final against Cholet Basket.

Khimki will be Langford's first Euroleague club. He has previously played for Angelico Biella and Vanoli Soresina in Italy as well as the Austin and Fort Worth in the NBDL, Kansas in the USBL and San Antonio in the NBA. Langford first made a name for himself in the basketball world at the University of Kansas, where he played four seasons, reaching the NCAA final four in 2002 and making it to the title game in 2003.

"The procedure to bring Langford to our club was very long," Khimki general manager Victor Bychkov said. "There was a time when all of us were waiting for the official announcement. But it was necessary to settle all the details. Today we can say that the player signed a two-year contract. Langford is a good shooter and passer and I am sure he will help our team meet its goals."

source : euroleague.net

Biella signed Soragna for 3 seasons

Angelico Biella announced Tuesday that former captain Matteo Soragna signed a three-year agreement with the club. Soragna (199, 33) returns to Biella after five seasons at Benetton Treviso. He played for Biella between 200 and 2004. Soragna has been one of Benetton's most consistent players in recent seasons and gives Biella much-needed European experience ahead of the Eurocup campaign.

Last season Soragna averaged 6.8 points on 51.4% three-point shooting in 24 minutes over 13 Eurocup games, helping the club reach the Eurocup Final Eight.

"I'm pleased that I was wanted here," Soragna said. "Biella is growing and has big plans and I am happy to be able to take part. I am delighted that after five years away I found the interest and enthusiasm towards me from the club and I return with great enthusiasm."

source : eurocupbasketball.com

Pachulia to stay with the Hawks

Free agent center Zaza Pachulia has agreed to terms with the Hawks on a long-term deal, according to two sources familiar with the situation.

Pachulia, 25, spent the last four years with the Hawks on a $16 million deal. His new deal is believed to be for the same amount of years but with a significant raise, according to one of the sources familiar with the situation.

Today is the first day free agents can sign contracts and trades can be completed. Veteran point guard Mike Bibby agreed to terms on a new three-year, $18 million deal with the Hawks Tuesday.

source : ajc.com

Telekom Bonn inks Chris Ensminger

Telekom Baskets Bonn added size for its Eurocup return in the 2009-10 season by inking veteran center Chris Ensminger to a two-year deal, the club confirmed Tuesday. Ensminger (209, 35) arrives from Paderborn Baskets, where he averaged 11.4 points and 9.5 rebounds in 33 German League games last season. He registered 10 double-doubles and helped Paderborn to make it to the playoffs.

Ensminger has previously played for Brose Baskets Bamberg for seven consecutive seasons, winning two German League titles in 2005 and 2007, as well as making it to the finals in 2003 and 2004. He has also played for Mitteldeutscher BC and Weissenfels in Germany, North Harbour in New Zealand, Porto in Portugal and Tours in France since finishing his college career at Valparaiso University (NCAA). "There is nothing I need to say about Telekom Baskets Bonn," Ensminger said. "It is a great club with fantastic fans, a top club not only in Germany."

source : eurocupbasketball.com

Rubio's lawyers want to settle with Badalona

According to El Mundo Deportivo, Ricky Rubio's lawyers have submitted a new offer to Badalona in order to release the player so he can join the Minnesotta Timberwolves. The legal team that is handling the case also made a bid for the freedom of the player from Badalona before the draft process for 4 million dollars that was rejected by Badalona.

They have also filed a lawsuit against Badalona deeming that the buy-out of 4.7 million euros for Ricky Rubio is too high in proportion to the size of his salary. Badalona at all times want Rubio to withdraw the lawsuit in order to enter negotiations with the legal team. More on this issue will probably follow tomorrow when the administration of Badalona will make a decision on t

McIntyre wants to play in Greece

Terrell McIntyre(1.78-PG) wants to leave Siena and play in Greece according to greek portal sport24.gr, that spoke to his agent Craig Spitzer. Spitzer said that he is in talks with both Olympiakos and Panathinaikos about signing McIntyre.

The american point guard has one more season left in his contract with Siena but the problem is that he doesn't want to stay in Siena. The other problem for any team might want to sign him is that there is not a buy-out clause in his contract. That means that the GM of Siena, Ferdinando Minucci can ask for any amount that he wants in order to release McIntyre. Spitzer also said that he cannot comment on the negotiations as there are matters that have not been yet resolved.

Both Olympiakos and Panathinaikos will have one more spot for an american player from Thursday onwards when the new regulation is going through in the greek league and both teams want to win the PR war on best impression.

Partizan lands Aleks Maric

Serbian champion Partizan Belgrade added some international flavor to its frontline by signing Australian center Aleks Maric to a multi-year deal on Tuesday. Maric (211, 25), last at Spanish side CB Granada, agreed to a two-year contract with an option for a third season.

He averaged 4.6 points and 3.5 rebounds in 32 Spanish League games last season. Maric was a member of the Australian national team that won the Under-19 World Championships in Greece 2003. He played college basketball at Nebraska University in the United States, where he averaged 15.7 points and 10.2 rebounds during the 2007-08 season. Though born in Sydney, Maric's parents are of Serbian origin and he is fluent in the language, a fact that should help him adapt at Partizan.

source : euroleague.net

Oldenburg renewed Strauch and Hain

German champion EWE Baskets Oldenburg moved to keep its bench strong ahead of its first season in the Euroleague by extending the contracts of reserves Daniel Strauch and Daniel Hain. Strauch (206, 28) is a power forward who has been at Oldenburg for the past six seasons. He signed a one-year contract.

Last year Strauch averaged 1.6 points and 1.1 rebounds over 5 minutes in 16 German League games and 2 points in 6 minutes over seven Eurochallenge games. Hain (195, 23) is a shooting guard who has been with Oldenburg for two seasons. He signed a two-year deal. Last season he averaged 0.6 points in 4 minutes over 25 German League games and 0.4 points in 2 minutes in five Eurochallenge appearances. Before joining Oldenburg, Hain played for Herten. The two join Jason Gardner, Jasmin Perkovic and Rickey Paulding as players from last season's squad that will remain at Oldenburg.

source : eurobasket.com

Maccabi announced Maciej Lampe

Maccabi Tel Aviv announced the signing of swedish/polish center Maciej Lampe(2.11-C) via their official website. Lampe signed a contract for the next season with the option for another season. He played for Real Madrid initially and then he was drafted at number 30 in 2003 by the New York Knicks but he was traded to Phoenix.

He spent a season in Phoenix and during the next season he was traded to New Orleans and also played a few games for Houston. In Europe he was signed initially by Dynamo St. Petersburg but the team went bust and so he moved to Khimki that he had played for the last 2 seasons. He averaged 10.9 points and 4.8 rebounds in 24 games in the Russian Superleague.

Oleson involved in a trade scenario

Brad Oleson(1.91-SG) seems to be stuck between the rock and the hard place according to marca.com. The native of Alaska who is getting a spanish passport in September seems to be stuck in a trade scenario that involves him and Pablo Prigioni of Tau. The article of La Marca says that the agent of the player was told to wait for a call from Tau. Oleson was not aware of what was happening. The arrival of Ettore Messina in Real Madrid has changed the plans for the roster of next season and Brad Oleson is not part of the plan that Messina has in mind.

Oleson declined offers from the likes of Maccabi, Tau and Malaga in order to play for Real and it would be understandable if he wasn't too happy about this prospect. On the other hand one might say that it's not that bad really as it sounds as he would be playing for Tau but the moral issue of the story is that it puts the player into an ackward situation. Oleson had signed a 5 season contract with Madrid coming from Fuenlabrada. Oleson averaged 18 points 2.2 rebounds 2.5 assists in 32 games for Fuenlabrada.

Lokomotiv Rostov announced Jakov Vladovic

Lokomotiv Rostov announced the signing of croatian combo guard Jakov Vladovic(1.87-PG/SG) via their official website. The croatian guard has spent his entire career so far as a player of KK Zadar. He started his career in the youth team of KK Zadar and moved his way upwards to the men's team.

He's been with KK Zadar since 2001 and he has been the starting-five point guard since 2003. This season he averaged 10.8 points 2.3 rebounds and 2 assists in 10 games in the Adriatic League, and also 7.3 points 1.4 rebounds and 1.4 assists in 16 games in the Croatian League.

Cajasol Sevilla released Ignerski

Michal Ignierski(2.05-SF/PF) and Cajasol Sevilla, decided to part ways with a mutual agreement that was announced via the Cajasol Sevilla official website. Ignierski came to Sevilla 3 seasons ago from Anwil and had 3 great seasons with Sevilla.

Before that he played for Slask Wroclaw and he is also a member of the National Team of Poland. The actual contract of Ignerski with Sevilla was for the next season too. He averaged 9.6 points 3.2 rebounds in 32 games in the ACB with Sevilla.

Efes Pilsen to sign Terrence Morris?

According to milliyet.com.tr, Terrence Morris(2.07-PF) will be the next signing of Efes Pilsen. The american power forward that was recently released by CSKA Moscow seems to have intrigued Efes Pilsen that want to sign an experienced player to complement their front line.

Terrence Morris impressed the crowds as a player of Maccabi Tel Aviv and he managed to play in 2 Euroleague Final Four's in a row with Maccabi and CSKA. The russian team decided to release him as his contract was too costly although he had initially signed a 3-season contract. He averaged 6.7 points, 4.9 rebounds, 1.1 assists, 0.5 steals, 1.0 blocked shots in 21 Euroleague games with CSKA.

Roma made offer for Tripkovic

Sani Becirovic(1.96-PG/SG) was too expensive for Roma, so instead they want to sign Uros Tripkovic(1.98-PG/SG) of Partizan according to mtsmondo.com. Tripkovic had a great season with Partizan reaching all the way to the Euroleague Play-offs only to lose against CSKA.

The player's agent Miodrag Raznatovic told the serbian portal that Roma made an offer to the player but he is not thrilled by it. He said that he will keep on looking for a team, quite possibly in Spain that might make a better offer. That doesn't mean of course that the offer from Roma will be ignored. Raznatovic also acknowledged that this summer is difficult for all teams because of the economic crisis. Tripkovic averaged 10.1 points and 1.7 rebounds in 19 games this season in the Euroleague with Partizan.

Serbian Federation changes players' rules

Big news from the recent meeting of Serbian basketball federation, when it's decided to limit the foreign players in Serbian teams to 4, and also Montenegrin and Bosnian players are since now being treated as foreign.

A pretty shocking and disturbing news, particularly for Partizan and Vujosevic who used to bring youngsters from Montenegro and develope them into world-class players in Belgrade.

From now on, Vranjes and Rakocevic become 'foreign', as well as Zvezda's Bakic, Kikanovic and Milosevic.

Yet to see if this decision is to remain, for it's loudly unpopular in Serbian public, because most of those 'foreign' players coming from the mentioned countries are Serbs in nationality.

source : eurobasket.com

Josh Childress in the sights of Cleveland?

The Cavaliers are on the move in NBA free agency. Team General Manager Danny Ferry and head coach Mike Brown flew to Los Angeles Sunday for a clandestine free-agent meeting. Team officials refused to confirm who they're hoping to sign, but the Cavs obviously are trying to land one of their free-agent targets as the market heats up again following the July 4 holiday.

Dan Fegan, the agent who represents both Cavs forward Anderson Varejao and Toronto forward Shawn Marion, is based in Los Angeles and often conducts in-person negotiating sessions there. Fegan did not return messages on Sunday. A league source said the Cavs did not meet with Marion in person on Sunday.

The Cavs have been in talks with Fegan about a new contract for Varejao, who opted out of his deal with the team last week.

It is also possible the Cavs were meeting with restricted free-agent wing Josh Childress, who lives in the Los Angeles area in the off-season. The 6-8 veteran who is known for being an intelligent player and good defender played last season in Greece after rejecting an offer from the Atlanta Hawks. He's averaged 11.1 points and 5.9 rebounds for his career.

The Hawks still have matching rights on Childress, but they have several of their own free agents they are in talks to retain and may not be willing to match an offer sheet. Childress still has two years left on his contract in Greece but has an opt-out clause and is considering returning to the NBA, having met with the Milwaukee Bucks last week.

source : cleveland.com

Holden renews with CSKA for 2 more seasons

Guard J R Holden (32 years, 185 cm) who played for CSKA for 7 seasons will stay in our team. The player signed a new 2-year contract today.

Andrey Vatutin, PBC CSKA CEO:

“It’s not a secret that signing a new contract with J was one of our midseason priorities. With Holden we have not only the first-class player, two-times Euroleague champion, Eurobasket champion but we guaranteed ourselves intergenerational continuity. I am sure that even with great experience and rich resume J still has a thirst to win, keeps novelty of feelings, highest professionalism and desire to stay in perfect shape. Besides, his desire to stay in CSKA after 7 seasons in red-and-blue makes me feel proud and respectful.”

J R Holden:

“First of all, I really just wanted to say thank you to the club’s management. CSKA is doing everything possible to make Moscow my second home. It feels like we go back to day one. I am really happy to be back and excited about the new team. It’s like a fresh start and I think we have the potential to do great things. There is always pressure to win but that is a good thing. We deserve to have a little pressure and I think this will be a fun, exciting new start to a new era at CSKA.”

source : cskabasket.com

David Andersen to play in the NBA?

El Mundo Deportivo reports that australian-danish center David Andersen(2.11-C) is seriously considering leaving Barcelona in order to play in the NBA. The Atlanta Hawks have his NBA rights but never made him an offer and Andersen has expressed his wish to play in the NBA before. There is also an NBA-out clause in his contract if he were to bring an offer from an NBA team until July 15th.

Many scouts gathered to see Andersen in the Euroleague Final Four and when his agent Kenny Grant was asked, all he said was that his client can bring an offer before July 15th from an NBA team and break the contract but he didn't have any other comment. Andersen averaged 11.1 points and 4.1 rebounds in 23 games in the Euroleague with Barcelona.

Panellinios interested in Markoivshvili and Blakney

According to basketblog.gr, Panellinios are interested in georgian shooting guard Manuchar Markoishvili(1.97-SG) and dominican point-guard Roderick Blakney(1.86-PG). Blakney has a bulgarian passport that allows him to play as an EU player.

Markoishvili played for BC Kyiv this past season and he is considered one of the best georgian players. He was initially signed by Benetton and was loaned to Mitteldeutcher BC in Germany and later on played for Olimpia Lubljana. This season he averaged 12.5 points and 3.2 rebounds and 2.7 assists in 35 games in the Ukrainian Superleague for BC Kyiv.

Blakney was initially playing in CBA for Sioux Falls and Dakota and then he was scouted by Iraklis and coach Pilafidis in Greece and later on he played for AEK Athens, Maroussi and Olympiakos in Greece. He also played for Dynamo Moscow Region in Russia and this season he played for Turk Telekomm. He averaged 6.7 points 1.8 rebounds and 2.4 assists in 30 games in the Turkish League.

Barac's future is uncertain

According to noticiasdealava.com, Stanko Barac's(2.18-C) future in Tau is uncertain. The croatian center played on loan to Valencia this past season but his progress wasn't as good as the administration of Tau would have wanted. Besides there are already enough people to fill in the front-line of Tau so Barac would probably have minimal playing time.

The spanish portal has spoken to the agent of Barac, that quoted : " I think that president Querejeta has more important issues to resolve now. Tau now has five forwards and centers currently with contracts and it is clear that Stanko would not have much playing time. It can be a benefit to all parties if the player were to play on loan to another team". He averaged 11.3 points and 3.1 rebounds in 23 games in the ACB.

Ante Tomic has 2 offers

KK Zagreb starlet -Ante Tomic (215-C-87) has two offers for next season with Spanish Team Pamesa Valencia and Israeli Champions -Maccabi Electra Tel-Aviv.Tomic himslef stated that he has the two offers in his hand and is considering both of them.

Altough Tomic stated that he would prefer to join Valencia, who is coached by Croatian Neven Spahija, reports today in Zagreb are saying that Maccabi are in pole position to capture the talnted center and Tel-Aviv will be his next destination as Valencia can't agree the fee with KK Zagreb while Maccabi has agreed terms with the team but yet with the player.

Tomic,who was drafted by the Utah Jazz in 2008 draft (44 place) stated that he wants to leave KK Zagreb and want to try and play in Europe top clubs after 6 years in the team.

source : eurobasket.com

Sege Ibaka to play for Oklahoma?

This summer we have the exact opposite of last season. More and more players moving to the NBA instead of the other way around. Another played rumored to leave for the best league in the world is Serge Ibaka(2.08-PF) of Manresa. The 20 year old congolese power forward was drafted by the Seattle SuperSonics (now the Oklahoma City Thunder) with the 24th pick in the 2008 NBA Draft.

According to solobasket.es, Ibaka will be moving to Oklahoma, that still own his NBA rights, this summer after a great season with Manresa. Ibaka averaged 7.1 points 4.5 rebounds and 1 blocks in 31 games in the ACB.

Haislip agreed with San Antonio

Marcus Haislip(2.07-PF) will be moving to the NBA and more specifically the team of San Antonio according to laopiniondemalaga.es. The spanish portal mentions an already existing agreement between the team of San Antonio and the starting power forward of Malaga. Haislip has been playing for Malaga the last 2 seasons. It says in the article that when Malaga spoke to Haislip's agent about an extension to his contract it was a definite no. Haislip wanted to return to the NBA for some time now and it seemed like a good time to do so.

Haislip was one of the best paid players in Europe having made 3.3 million euros in the last 2 seasons in Malaga. He has also played for Ulker and Efes Pilsen and before that for Indiana and Milwaukee in the NBA. He averaged 10.8 points and 4.8 rebounds in 12 games in the Euroleague and also 15.8 points and 5 rebounds in 35 games in the ACB.

Ilyasova moving to Milwaukee?

According to sport.es, Ersan Ilyasova(2.08-PF) will be moving to the NBA and the Milwaukee Bucks. The turkish power forward could be returning to the Milwaukee Bucks especially now that space in the salary cap has been created with the release of Charlie Villaneuva. This also means that Ilyasova could have increased playing time in the Bucks.

Barcelona want to retain him in their roster but there is an exit clause in his contract concerning the NBA and Ilyasova has expressed his opinion on numerous occasions that he wants to return to the NBA. Ilyasova averaged 10.5 points and 7 rebounds in 22 games in the Euroleague helping Barcelona to reach the Final Four and also to conquer the ACB league.

PJ Tucker signed a contract with Maccabi?

The GM of BC Donetsk, Valery Plekhanov gave an interview to the Evening Donetsk newspaper. Among other things he was asked about the best player of BC Donetsk last season, small forward P.J. Tucker (1.96-SF) and his response was that they cannot keep Tucker in the team and he has already signed a preliminary contract with Maccabi Tel Aviv.

The graduate of the University of Texas had his first pro contract in Europe playing for Hapoel Holon in season 2007-2008 while he unsuccessfully tried to get some playing time the season before with the Toronto Raptors and later got traded to Cleveland. P.J. Tucker had the best scoring average in the Ukrainian Superleague this past season averaging 19.4 points 5.9 rebounds and 2 assists in 17 games.

Rumors about Olympiakos and Panathinaikos

According to sportrevai.it, Olympiakos have started negotiations with lithuanian shooting Rimantas Kaukenas(1.94-SG) of Siena and Panathinaikos are trying to secure another player of Siena, Terrell McIntyre(1.78-PG). This coming week it is rumored that a new regulation will be voted into the greek A1 league that will allow all greek teams to sign 3 EU players and 3 non european players.

The current number is 4 EU players and 2 non european players and the Federation of the greek teams are thinking that this regulation will make all greek teams more competitive, both in Greece and in Europe in general. If this change of regulations goes through, then Panathinaikos have one more spot to fill with an american player and it could be Terrell McIntyre. Olympiakos are also interested in McIntyre as it seems that JR Holden will not be signing with them after all.

Shawn Huff close to signing with Kavala

The team of Kavala are close to signing american/finnish guard/forward Shawn Huff(1.98-SG/SF), who played in the last season for Maroussi. That was his first pro season after graduating from Valparaiso in 2008 but he didn't get much playing time playing only in 24 games throughout the regular season and the playoffs and accumulating 35 points in 8.8 minutes of playing time.

Huff has a finnish passport and is a member of the Finnish National Team. In the last 2 seasons in Valparaiso, he has been playing in the starting five in most of the games and in the last season he averaged 12.6 points 4.5 rebounds shooting at an impressive 47.9%(91/190) behind the arc.

Montegranaro interested in Dusan Sakota

Another team after Badalona seem to be interested in greek/serbian forward Dusan Sakota(2.09-SF/PF) and according to basketnet.it, this time it is the team of Montegranaro. Montegranaro will have a smaller budget this season and Sakota, (who is one the sons of coach Dragan Sakota) seems to be an affordable solution in case Panathinaikos decide to waive him.

For a number of years he has been part of the roster of Panathinaikos while he also played for Panionios for one season on loan. Sakota doesn't seem to get much playing time in Panathinaikos and it might be the same case in the next season. This season he averaged 5 points and 1.5 rebounds in 25 games in the greek A1 league, shooting at 45% (25/55) behind the arc.

Khimki announced Carlos Cabezas

Khimki BC announced their latest transfer via their official website, that is Carlos Cabezas(1.86-PG/SG), formerly of Malaga. Cabezas is a native of the city of Malaga and has always played for Malaga throughout his pro career in the ACB and the Euroleague. He has won a few titles with Malaga and also a few medals with the National Teams of Spain that he has been playing since he was a teenager.

Cabezas and the administration of Malaga didn't get along very well this last season and his reduced time and role in the team led to the breakup and Cabezas' transfer to Khimki. He brings considerable amounts of experience to the russian team. He averaged 7.7 points 1.7 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 12 games in the Euroleague, whereas he averaged 8.9 points 1.9 rebounds and 2 assits in 28 games in the ACB with Malaga.

Hutson to play for Roma for 2 more seasons

Virtus Roma announced the renewal of the contract of american power-forward Andre Hutson(2.06-PF/C) via their official website. Hutson's new contract with Roma will last for 2 more seasons and so the italian team secures a vital player in their front-line.

Hutson has had a long career in Europe mostly playing for greek teams. He has played for Panionios, Peristeri, Makedonikos and Maroussi in Greece, Ural Great in Russia and Napoli in Italy. He also played for Efes Pilsen in Turkey before signing with Roma last summer. Hutson averaged 13.1 points and 5.7 rebounds in 16 games in the Euroleague and 13.6 points and 5.7 rebounds in 34 games in the LegaA1.

K. Lavrinovic to renew with Siena

According to krepsinis.net, Ksystof Lavrinovic(2.10-PF/C) is going to renew his contrac with Siena for another 3 seasons. The deal has not been officially announced yet but Lavrinovic spoke to lithuanian media confirming the deal.

He said that him and his family have settled great in Siena and that his first child is already going to the nursery in Italy. K. Lavrinovic has been playing for Siena for the last 2 seasons now after leaving Unics Kazan and before that he played for Dynamo Moscow and Ural Great. There were rumors that he would play in Siena alongside his twin brother but that didn't come through. Lavrinovic is also a vital member of the National Team of Lithuania. He averaged 12 points and 7 rebounds in 14 games in the Euroleague and helped his team conquer the LegaA1 averaging 12.5 points and 5.4 rebounds in 35 games.

Turkoglu is heading to Toronto

Free agent forward Hedo Turkoglu changed his mind Friday and decided not to join the Portland Trail Blazers, opting instead to accept a five-