NEW YORK (United States) - While it would’ve been hard to top last year’s historic night for both French and European basketball as a whole that was last year’s draft, this year’s edition also had a distinct European flavor, with 16 players from 10 different countries hearing their names called over the two days. Some of the highlights include Israeli standouts Ben Saraf and Danny Wolf being drafted by the same team, Great Britain seeing its first player drafted since 2010, and France — once again — surpassing its previous best mark, with six different players selected.
As the attention of the draft community turns into undrafted free agent signings and summer league rosters, we recap where all the European players landed, and what can be expected from them at their new destinations.
#8 Egor Demin - Brooklyn Nets
GUARD
Birth Date: March 3, 2006 (19 years old) Height: 2.04m (6ft 8in) Club: BYU Cougars (USA - NCAA)
The Nets are in the early stages of rebuilding under coach Jordi Fernandez and they certainly need a lot of offensive firepower, as they ranked second-to-last in points per game last season. Enter Egor Demin, whose combination of size, passing vision and feel for the game makes him an absolute threat with the ball in his hands. While some polish is still needed (he’ll need to cut down on turnovers and be more consistent as a shooter), Demin's pass-first approach to the game could be valuable for the Nets, as it seems to be a perfect fit alongside Cam Thomas' aggressive scoring mentality.
#12 Noa Essengue (FRA) - Chicago Bulls
POWER FORWARD
Birth Date: December 18, 2006 (18 years old) Height: 2.08m (6ft 10in) Club: Ratiopharm Ulm (GER)
After trading their veteran All-Star wings, DeMar DeRozan and Zach LaVine, in back-to-back years, the Bulls are entering a rebuild, and in Essengue they get someone who fits their timeline. One of the youngest players in the draft, Essengue made an impact for Ulm with his combination of 2.08m size, athleticism, and ability to finish plays at the rim. The Bulls found one of the gems of last year's draft in Matas Buzelis and in Essengue they get someone who can provide a level of rim pressure currently missing from their roster.
#17 Joan Beringer (FRA) - Minnesota Timberwolves
CENTER
Birth Date: November 11, 2006 (18 years old) Height: 2.11m (6ft 11in) Club: Cedevita Olimpija (SLO)
The Timberwolves are coming off back-to-back Western Conference Finals appearances and will be looking to take the next step by reaching the team's first-ever finals. While the selection of one of the youngest players in the draft, Joan Beringer, could be seen as a move focused more on the future than the present, the French center is expected to make an impact from day one with his size, athleticism, and rim protection, which is key for a team that lacks a primary shot blocker behind Rudy Gobert.
#19 Nolan Traore (FRA) - Brooklyn Nets
POINT GUARD
Birth Date: May 28, 2006 (19 years old) Height: 1.91m (6ft 3in) Club: Saint Quentin (FRA)
Brooklyn takes another international player in Nolan Traore, who started the year as a projected top-five pick, but whose lack of efficiency as a scorer and inconsistency as a shooter raised concerns among draft scouts. Traore is, however, one of the best passers in the draft, and if there's a team that can afford to give him the reins and allow him to learn and play through the growing pains it's a Nets squad in the early stages of its rebuild.
#20 Kasparas Jakucionis (LTU) - Miami Heat
FORWARD
Birth Date: May 29, 2006 (19 years old) Height: 1.95m (6ft 5in) Club: Illinois Fighting Illini (USA - NCAA)
The Heat have historically bolstered their rosters by letting other teams make mistakes in the draft and capitalizing on players who unexpectedly fall to them. That could be the case with Jakucionis, who was projected by multiple outlets to be selected around the 10th pick. Jakucionis was impressive as a shotmaker and pick-and-roll playmaker during his lone season at Illinois and, despite some issues with turnovers and a lack of elite athleticism, could play an important role for the Heat as they enter a new era after trading away Jimmy Butler last season.
#26 Ben Saraf (ISR) - Brooklyn Nets
GUARD
Birth Date: April 14, 2006 (19 years old) Height: 1.98m (6ft 6in) Club: Ratiopharm Ulm (GER)
The Nets are clearly more focused on acquiring talent than drafting for fit at this early stage of their rebuild, and they take Saraf here who, despite some overlap with Cam Thomas skill set as a shot making wing, is one of the most electric players we've ever seen at the FIBA youth level. With his combination of 1.98m size and versatile shot making ability, Saraf has upside as a future first offensive option for an NBA team, but has enough connective skills with his secondary passing and defensive playmaking to develop into a reliable role player if the star path doesn’t pan out.
#27 Danny Wolf (ISR) - Brooklyn Nets
CENTER
Birth Date: May 5, 2004 (21 years old) Height: 2.10m (6ft 11in) Club: Michigan Wolverines (USA - NCAA)
Brooklyn went full international and Wolf was their fourth selection coming out of Europe in this first round. Wolf has been one of the most interesting players to watch in the college game with his unique blend of 2.10m size, playmaking for others, and ball-handling ability.
The Israeli center can certainly dribble like a guard and has outstanding passing vision, which allows him to consistently create open shots for teammates. Wolf's rare combination of center size and guard skills should be a great fit for a Nets team that is still putting the pieces together and building for the future.
#28 Hugo Gonzalez (ESP) - Boston Celtics
FORWARD
Birth Date: February 5, 2006 (19 years old) Height: 1.99m (6ft 6in) Club: Real Madrid (ESP)
The Celtics' quest to repeat as champions ended on a sour note with a second-round exit and, worst of all, with star forward Jayson Tatum tearing his left Achilles, an injury that will sideline him for the entirety of next season. Now in the midst of a roster overhaul, the Celtics select Gonzalez who — despite not seeing many minutes at Real Madrid last year — still made an impact with his versatile defense and connective offense. Gonzalez fits the profile of off-ball perimeter players the Celtics have rostered in recent years and could develop into a Derrick White replacement when the time comes.
#30 Yanic Konan Niederhauser (SUI) - Los Angeles Clippers
CENTER
Birth Date: March 14, 2003 (22 years old) Height: 2.11m (6ft 11in) Club: Penn State Nittany Lions (USA - NCAA)
The Clippers had a massive need for size, as they have yet to find a reliable backup to center Ivica Zubac. Enter Niederhauser, one of the risers of the pre-draft process, who impressed teams at the NBA Draft Combine with his elite size, length, and vertical athleticism.
Despite his young age, Niederhauser is likely to step into an important role as a backup center for a Clippers team that, despite being loaded with veteran talent, hasn't made a deep playoff run since 2021.
Seven more European prospects were selected in the second round, with all of them having the potential to become impactful players for their franchises. Those players were:
#32 Noah Penda (FRA) - Orlando Magic
#42 Maxime Raynaud (FRA) - Sacramento Kings
#46 Amari Williams (GBR) - Boston Celtics
#47 Bogoljub Markovic (SRB) - Milwaukee Bucks
#51 Mohamed Diawara (FRA) - New York Knicks
#57 Max Shulga (UKR) - Boston Celtics
#58 Saliou Niang (ITA) - Cleveland Cavaliers
FIBA