nbadraft.net Andriuskevicius Deal?

[George O'Brien]

nbadraft.net Andriuskevicius Deal?

Andriuskevicius Deal?

We have heard a solid "rumor" that Martinas Andriuskevicius has a deal with the Phoenix Suns. The Suns pick seventh in this draft and have a recent history of targeting and locking up players early with promises. Leandro Barbosa and Zarko Carbakapa both agreed to deals months before the draft.

Andriuskevicius recently signed a long term deal with Italian team Rimini, so there will be a substantial buyout. The original idea was to wait a year and enter Martynas into the 2005 draft. However it appears someone (Phoenix) made them an offer they couldn't refuse.

If he is under contract in Europe, does that mean he would not count against the cap space if they leave him there?

 

[Chaplin]

nbadraft.net Andriuskevicius Deal?



If he is under contract in Europe, does that mean he would not count against the cap space if they leave him there?

What if by some miracle, we actually win the #1 pick? For that reason alone, this is only a rumor, and most likely, completely untrue.

 

[F-Dog]

What if by some miracle, we actually win the #1 pick? For that reason alone, this is only a rumor, and most likely, completely untrue.

Isn't there still time for Andriuskevicius to pull out of the draft again if that happens, though? Theoretically, the Suns (or the Clippers or whoever) could have made him a conditional promise.

If he stays in after the deadline, you would have to think that some team with a top-10 pick is backing him.

 

[sunsfn]

-----------------------------------------
Leandro Barbosa and Zarko Carbakapa both agreed to deals months before the draft.
-------------------------------------
Not sure I agree with that. Barbosa was hurt and the suns tried him out just before the draft.

If the suns do make a promise and draft Andriuskevicius on our pick, they would probably leave him in Europe for a year, and he would not be under contract, so he would not count against the salary cap.

 

[elindholm]

If he is under contract in Europe, does that mean he would not count against the cap space if they leave him there?

Larry Coon's CBA FAQ appears to address this in question #40: "Players are not included in the (NBA) team's team salary while the player is under contract with a non-NBA team."

 

[George O'Brien]

If he is under contract in Europe, does that mean he would not count against the cap space if they leave him there?

Larry Coon's CBA FAQ appears to address this in question #40: "Players are not included in the (NBA) team's team salary while the player is under contract with a non-NBA team."

If that's the case, then this might make sense. It leaves an extra $2 million available for free agents without tying up a roster spot with who would not get much playing time. If Andriuskevicius doesn't think he is ready for the NBA, I'm inclined to agree with him and let him mature physically for a year or two. It is the same as trading for a future lottery pick.

I'm still skeptical that any such deal has been made, but it is not out of the question.

 

[Joe Mama]

-----------------------------------------
Leandro Barbosa and Zarko Carbakapa both agreed to deals months before the draft.
-------------------------------------
Not sure I agree with that. Barbosa was hurt and the suns tried him out just before the draft.

If the suns do make a promise and draft Andriuskevicius on our pick, they would probably leave him in Europe for a year, and he would not be under contract, so he would not count against the salary cap.

You are right. There is no way the Phoenix Suns agreed to a deal with Barbosa. According to Rex Chapman, he was very high on Barbosa and The suns to look at him a day or two before the draft. It would also appear that no one else made a deal with Barbosa since he was taken with the last pick in the first round.

Joe Mama

 

[slinslin]

I thought the last pick was Josh Howard.

 

[JCSunsfan]

You are right. There is no way the Phoenix Suns agreed to a deal with Barbosa. According to Rex Chapman, he was very high on Barbosa and The suns to look at him a day or two before the draft. It would also appear that no one else made a deal with Barbosa since he was taken with the last pick in the first round.

Joe Mama

No way we had a deal worked out for Barbs. We didn't even pick him. SA did it for us with their pick, and I've never heard of any discussion with SA about their pick prior to draft day.

We did have deals worked out with C-Jake and Amare though. Maybe he was thinking Casey.

 

[Errntknght]

The quote from Draftcity below is about Andriuskevicius. This guy sounds terribly frail besides being rather injury prone. Assuming he stays healthy, in three or four years he might muscle up enough to be another Zarko - a little taller but less athletic. Good grief!

Does anyone know how old he is... I guess if he's sixteen or seventeen there's a chance he'll develope into something... at best, very high risk for a #7 pick.

Let's hope the Suns are floating the rumors about a guarantee to him to trick someone else into taking him ahead of us... maybe Biedrins then falls to us.


Quote:
While the potential is there, he is not much of a defensive presence yet despite his size. Very foul prone, bites for too many fakes and gets caught out of position on rotations. He does change the occasional shot because of his height, but nothing consistently yet. Might lack the timing and the vertical leap to become an imposing defender in the NBA, but he has plenty of time to work on that. He is very very skinny, almost rail thin, and unlike a lot of skinny Europeans his age, he is also very weak. This is probably his the #1 thing holding him back right now. He has trouble not being pushed aside in the paint, even against players his age who are 6 inches shorter then him. His rebounding and effectiveness around the basket on offense and defense suffers because of this. He just gets pushed out which often makes him drift towards the perimeter. He seems to have trouble being defended by smaller defenders, especially when he is being bumped around. This is a big one on the NBA level, he has to work on this.

He seems to have trouble catching easy passes sometimes, that’s might be because of a lack of concentration. Footwork needs a lot of work, on both sides of the floor. Defensively, he is often slow to rotate laterally and provide help. Offensively, he doesn’t have any real post moves to go to in the paint just yet. If you consider the position he is expected to play in the pros, that needs to change and quickly. Playing with more composure and a consistent level of intensity is a must. Small, but recurring injuries hurt him somewhat this year. Should teams be concerned by that?

Lacks experience playing against the higher levels of competition. Has yet to dominate players in his own age group. Would probably struggle right now in a league like Spain or Italy or in the more physical ones like Greece of Turkey.

 

[Joe Mama]

Well, just after this rumor was floated originally is agent was quoted as saying that there was absolutely no truth to it. I don't believe that teams make promises to players at this early. They may tell them that there's the possibility of a promise before the deadline for backing out of the draft. I don't believe they promise their pick before they get a really good look at people though.

Joe Mama

 

[sunsfn]

After thinking about the 18 year olds from other countries that are getting drafted way too high because they have potential, I do not think the suns will draft one if they keep their pick. Of course we all know that if they get one of the top three picks they would not draft one either.
If they decide to trade down, then they may do something like that, but I think they feel they have enough young guys at this time and if they keep the pick they will take the bpa and that will probably not be an 18 year old from another country. (my guess?) It appears that the 18 year olds from the USA are far more ready to play pro ball than the foreign players.

And after watching the Detroit games, the suns are not going to offer Okur a contract even if they get a chance. I like what I have seen in Lampe, and he will get the minutes next year to see if he can play.

 

[George O'Brien]

After thinking about the 18 year olds from other countries that are getting drafted way too high because they have potential, I do not think the suns will draft one if they keep their pick. Of course we all know that if they get one of the top three picks they would not draft one either.
If they decide to trade down, then they may do something like that, but I think they feel they have enough young guys at this time and if they keep the pick they will take the bpa and that will probably not be an 18 year old from another country. (my guess?) It appears that the 18 year olds from the USA are far more ready to play pro ball than the foreign players.

And after watching the Detroit games, the suns are not going to offer Okur a contract even if they get a chance. I like what I have seen in Lampe, and he will get the minutes next year to see if he can play.

The case for and against Okur is the same as against most of the Euros - you are buy "potential" rather than proven performance.

The demand for Okur will be the highest on teams that do not have much offense from their centers. Okur can shoot. But as you say, Lampe can shoot too and is a lot bigger.

It makes more sense for the Suns to look for defense and rebounding guy than another soft Euro shooter. I'd rather look at Mark Blount, Foyle, and Etan Thomas than Okur, especially since Okur is likely to cost more.

Back on Andriuskevicius, I have never shared the enthusiasm some other people have for him. Most reviews have been "mixed" in that they like his potential but don't think he will contribute much for a while.

Strengths: Very athletic for his size. He has good offensive skills. He can pass, shoot, and handle the ball pretty well for a big guy. He runs the floor well and has very good court awareness for his age. He likes to dunk (which shows aggressiveness, which you want to see, especially in a post player).

Weaknesses: He only has 240lbs on his long frame and should add at least 10 to 20 lbs. more before he expects to bang with the physical post players of the NBA. He is also young, and lacks some game experience, but that will come with time. Needs to improve his post skills as well. Could use another year in Europe to get more comfortable to the post and "grow into his body."

Bottom line: Great prospect. Martynas is 7'3, athletic, skilled, and seems to be hungry. If he stays aggressive, bulks up to about 260, he could be a devasating player in the league one day. If he even comes close to Sabonis in his prime, he will be one hell of a player.

-Predrag Savatic

nbadraft.tk

The rumor came from nbadraft.net who gives a somewhat more favorable review, but it still says "project".

Has great size and athleticism but his skills must improve. He has good hands. And nice shot blocking ability. His passing ability is good for a center. He's not afraid of contact and fights under the basket, bangs his skinny frame into the bigger bodies. What stands out about him is his court awareness which is much better than most players his age. If he can fill into his body and become more composed he has potential.

Upon first sight, signs that he has been practicing with Sabonis can be identified. His exceptional athleticism, soft touch, court vision, reminds of young Sabonis. Andriuskevicius is demonstrating awesome athleticism, shooting touch, quickness and ball handling for someone standing at 7-2. Has great fundamentals, can dribble the ball with either hand. He is lean, yet lacks some pounds of muscle, but runs the floor exceptionaly well and likes spectacular thundering dunks. Has yet to add some inside moves. He is not playing back to the basket yet, and does most of scoring after put-backs, mid-range jumpers and turn-around jumpers. He has excellent mobility and great foot work for a player his size. Possess soft touch from mid-range and yet on warm-ups is making 3 pointers with great regularity! Besides that, he is a very creative offensive player and shows good court vision. His size, quickness and good timing makes him a great shot blocker and a defensive presence. He's able to block shoots of quick players running in the fast break! He is having problems defending stronger competitors, playing post up on offense, he is "growing into his body" and figuring out his abilities. Has great potential, he will be able to fulfill all his potential, when he adds some pounds of muscle and develops his back to the basket play.

-Mindaugas Veromejus 2/13/04

nbadraft.net

 

[Joe Mama]

Okur is a grizzled veteran compared to these young European players in the draft. For the most part he did prove himself well when he was getting decent time earlier in the season. I think Okur would definitely improve the team, but I don't think he's worth what he's likely to get as a free agent. That's especially true if you think Lampe is going to improve this summer.

If the Suns drafted this 7-3 European guy they would surely be doing it with the idea of keeping him over there for at least another year. I'm not sure at this point that he's the right guy. The way I figure it if the Suns take him I guarantee they scouted him more than any of these draft web sites really have. They'll have a better feel for his game and potential. And I trust the Phoenix Suns Scouts more than any of these self-anointed web site scouts.

Joe Mama

 

[PhxGametime]

Martynas Andriuskevicius should stay overseas atleast 2 years. Andris Biedrins was my first choice for a bigman and is expected to contribute early on - at the most though, I'd say he would get 15 minutes. I'd be happy with either choice for a big - a project down the line or a defensive monster. It depends on Expansion Draft and Free Agent signings...

 

[F-Dog]

Okur is a grizzled veteran compared to these young European players in the draft.

...And I trust the Phoenix Suns Scouts more than any of these self-anointed web site scouts.

Joe Mama

I couldn't agree more with both of these statements.


The idea that the 18-year-old Biedrins (sight unseen) is capable of translating his skills from Euro junior tournaments to the NBA in less than a year is not something I would want to rely on.

Since we've been comparing this year's Euros to Lampe, I'll remind you that Lampe got something like 60 minutes total of PT last year--for a last-place team, mind you. Is Biedrins so much better than Lampe that he could pull regular minutes on a playoff contender?

I'll wait for the Suns' scouts to deliver their verdict before drinking that Kool-Aid, thank you very much.

 

[F-Dog]

The quote from Draftcity below is about Andriuskevicius. This guy sounds terribly frail besides being rather injury prone. Assuming he stays healthy, in three or four years he might muscle up enough to be another Zarko - a little taller but less athletic. Good grief!

Way to write off Zarko there--and (of course) to write off an 18-year-old kid you've never seen and barely heard of at the same time.

What if Andriuskevicius packs on 40 pounds of solid muscle in the next two years? What are you going to say then? "Boy, the Suns scouts sure are idiots for not jumping all over this guy when they had the chance back in 2004?"

 

[elindholm]

Packing on 40 pounds of muscle isn't quite so easy as it sounds. I'm hard-pressed to come up with any example of one of these beanpoles who "needed to get much stronger," did, and became a legitimate NBA player because of it. There's probably a case or two, but the annals of those who never got strong enough far, far outnumber the success stories.

 

[PhxGametime]

Andriuskevicius just turned 18 though - if Suns could keep him overseas a few years, he could add some weight. I'm not a college basketball expert but a lot of freshman coming into college are thin and put on weight in college at that age - Andriuskevicius could potentially put on 25-40 pounds.

 

[Joe Mama]

I'm wondering when that Scouting report was written because I thought I read somewhere that his stock was skyrocketing because he had put on around 40 pounds.

Joe Mama

 

[hcsilla]

Aren't you mixing him with Omerhodzic who indeed had put up 20-30 pounds in Cleveland?

 

[Ryanwb]

So how do you pronounce the dude's name? Andriuskevicius

 

[PhxGametime]

On ESPN Insider - it did say Andriuskevicius added 25 pounds in last 6 months, most of these pictures of prospects are older pics.

 

[George O'Brien]

On ESPN Insider - it did say Andriuskevicius added 25 pounds in last 6 months, most of these pictures of prospects are older pics.

One of the reasons the combine and the team tryouts will have such a big impact on the mock drafts is that size will be less based on rumor. Out of date specs can make some guys sound like toothpicks while other guys will turn out to be smaller than originally thought.

 

[Errntknght]

Recently I read a quote by Martynas' agent to the effect that he will not come to the USA to work out in any way prior to the draft. I guess that means one of two things - either he has a guarantee from some team or the agent likes the hype surrounding his guy and doesn't want reality to intrude. I suppose it could be that the agent said that last year and whoever quoted him neglected to put his statement in context.