2009 Reebok Eurocamp: Day 1By:

Reebok’s annual Eurocamp in Treviso, Italy got underway Saturday with all 30 teams
represented. A number of GMs are here including New York’s Donnie Walsh, Dallas’
Donnie Nelson, Phoenix’s Steve Kerr, and Houston’s Darryl Moray. A few coaches
made the trip over too including Mike D’Antoni and Toronto’s Jay Triano.

The Knicks have four representatives (Walsh and D’Antoni, plus Int scouts Kevin
Wilson and Misha) over here and word is they’re here to see Ricky Rubio. A meeting
could be set up to see him in Barcelona. Rubio is currently in the Canary Islands
for a basketball camp.

While a number of players pulled out from the original list, the competition on
day one was strong. Brandon Jennings not
being here was a disappointment considering he was originally scheduled to be
here. Obviously all the GMs knew well ahead of time he would not be here, but
that doesn’t mean they’re not going to complain about it. Considering there probably
aren’t any first rounders here (Mills has an outside shot), it would have been
difficult for someone like Jennings to improve his draft stock even with a great
performance.

Possible second rounder Jonas Jerebko is
expected to come into camp on Sunday.

Day 1 Results:

Game 1

Red 67 – Carolina Blue 64

The first game had all of the symptoms that are evident in most of the opening
matches in these types of settings; a lot of miscommunication, missed shots,
and just overall sloppy play. After being down in the early going, the Red
team was able to get ahead where they stayed at for the remainder of the game.
It did get close down the stretch, but Carolina Blue was unable to convert
on their free throws which took away all of their chances.

Alexey Shved (16 PTS, 6-9FG, 5STLS)

Shved played on the wing for most of the game and was able to show a nice
scoring touch from the outside. He converted on a variety of pullup and spotup
shots from midrange and deep, even while being closely defended. His body
looks like it has developed somewhat, but his overall game did not show much
improvement. Off the dribble, he has some nice moves, but his quickness is
only decent and it limits his ability to get into the lane. He has good size
and length, but the explosiveness and speed are two attributes that he is
lacking to make him a serious prospect for the next level. At this point it
seems as if sitting on the bench of a great team has seriously stunted Shved’s
growth, but he still has two more days to prove otherwise.

Patrick Beverly (14 PTS, 6 REBS, 5
STLS, 4 ASTS)

Beverly came ready to go from the early stages and he continued to play with
a lot of energy throughout. He was not shy about being aggressive and he seemed
to play at a higher pace than everyone else. With that said, in terms of potential
for the next level, he is lacking the point guard mentality and the court
vision that would allow him to be a lead guard. He has nice handles and decent
quickness, but he doesn’t really punish the defense with either his
playmaking or his scoring once he gets into the lane. He was able to make
some plays in transition and he also hit a couple midrange shots, but overall
he just looked more focused on getting his own shot rather than creating for
teammates.

Game 2

Black 62 – Grey 52

Thanks to a strong 2nd quarter, the Black team was able to get a small cushion
and even though they never blew the game open, they were able to make the
key plays when it counted.

Rodrique Beaubois (10 PTS, 4-13FG,
0-3 3PT, 5 REBS, 2 BLKS)

In terms of speed, quickness, leaping ability and length, Beaubois has the
ultimate combination. Whether in the open court, or when turning the corner
and getting to the hoop, he shows great athleticism and explosiveness. However,
the physical aspect was never an issue with the French point guard; he was
always a guy who needed more time to learn how to run a team and to fix his
jump shot. Based on his performance today, he was not able to show that either
of those has really improved. He certainly has confidence in his outside shot,
but a hitch in his release seems to throw his accuracy off, which in return
makes him very ineffective from deep. In terms of his playmaking ability,
he failed to show much of it, as he likes to hang on to the ball as long as
possible only looking to pass when it becomes his last option. With all that
said, he is still a guy who has some intrigue and because of his age, he still
has upside where he could potentially become a player down the road.

Pablo Aguilar (14 PTS, 5-8 FG, 2-4
3PT, 5 REBS, 2BLKS)

(16 PTS, 7-9 FG, 2-3 3PT, 6 REBS)

He played in two games and was able to showcase his skill set on both occasions.
At 6-8 he has a fairly developed frame with good length. He runs the floor
extremely well and plays with a lot of energy, which mixed with his good agility
and athleticism allows him to get a lot of easy baskets in transition. In
the half court he proved that he is a very reliable outside shooter, especially
spotting up in the corners. He is undersized for a traditional 4 man and lacks
the perimeter game to play as a 3, but if he can continue to prove his worth
from range, he might have a shot down the road.

David Huertas (15 PTS, 6-8 FG, 5 REBS)

A bit of an unknown, Huertas shot the ball extremely well today and put together
an overall solid performance. His shot is obviously his go to weapon, and
he is able to get it off very quickly and convert even when closely contested.
In terms of the rest of his game, he does not seem to have the quickness or
the handles to be able to get into the lane. He is a long shot to get drafted,
but continuing to play well will definitely open doors for him on the international
scene.

Sergii Gladyr (7 PTS, 1-8 FG, 5 REBS)

(14 PTS, 4-8 FG, 2-4 3PT, 2 AST)

After struggling in the first game, Sergii was able to find his shooting
rhythm in the night session and the rest of his game benefited. He has a nice
stroke and all he needs is a little breathing room to get his shot off. Off
the dribble he is not the most explosive, but he knows how to use shot fakes
to set up moves and to create space. Listed at 6-5, he certainly looks smaller
and also lacks the physical package to become a serious prospect, but being
only 1989 he has some time to work on his game.

Tomas Satoransky (6 PTS, 3 REBS,
2 AST)

Not a very impressive stat line, but the 1991 born Czech proved that he can
play. He has good size on the wing and is a very deceptive leaper which makes
him dangerous when going to the hoop. He doesn’t seem comfortable handling
the ball in the open court and struggles getting by defenders off the dribble,
which is both a mix of a limited first step and a lack of ballhandling. He
definitely has some talent, but seems to play very passively and looks content
with just being there. If he is to become a real player, he will definitely
have to change his mindset and approach to the game.

Game 3

Green 64 – Royal Blue 46

From the very beginning, this game was out of reach. The Green team won the
first quarter 17-9 and never looked back.

	Patrick Mills

Patrick Mills (16 PTS, 6-13 FG, 2-3
3PT, 1 AST)

Even though Mills scored the ball fairly well, he was not really able to
show anything new in order to dispel the concerns surrounding his game. Obviously
his quickness and speed are top notch, and his size or lack thereof will never
change, but he had a chance to prove that he can run a team and that he can
be a contain type defender. His shot is smooth and he was able to knock down
a couple from beyond the arc, but he did not show many instances of being
a facilitator or distributor. He looked to create his own opportunities and
did so with good success, but what will get him to the next level is not his
scoring… rather his ability to make plays for others. Defensively, his
frame is so light that he has a hard time keeping aggressive guards from getting
into the lane simply because he cannot cut off their lanes. Overall, his performance
did very little to slow the dropping of his stock and he will need to show
more in the next two days if anything is to change.

Nando De Colo (13 PTS, 5-7 FG, 4 AST,
4 STL)

(12 PTS, 5-8 FG, 3 AST, 3 STL)

De Colo played the point in both games and he proved that his playmaking
ability along with his outside shot make him a very dangerous player. However,
in terms of NBA potential he is limited because he lacks the quickness and
speed of a true PG and doesn’t have the size or explosiveness to become
an off guard. He is a very smart and crafty player, but his game is more catered
for the European competition.

Kostas Papanikolau (3 PTS, 2 STL,
1 BLOCK)

The stat line was definitely not impressive, but the 1990 born Kostas, shows
a nice physical package with good athleticism and the ability to hit the outside
shot. His touches offensively were limited so it was hard to gauge how much
offensive polish he has, but he is definitely a player the will get a closer
look over the next few days.

Game 4

All Star Team 85 – FMP Junior Euroleague Champions 58

The young FMP squad got some help from older players like Milutinovic, but
they were simply outclassed by the bigger, stronger and overall better collection
of All Starts (although it was by no means a team of the top players from
the camp)

Dejan Musli (15 PTS, 5-14 FG, 6 REBS,
4 AST)

For most of the game Musli went up against the much bigger Boban Marjanovic
(7’4) or the more agile and aggressive Pablo Aguilar. He has a very
soft touch around the basket, but his slow footwork makes it hard for him
to make moves with his back to the basket against the better competition.
He was able to once again showcase his nice passing ability as he found cutters
in the lane on numerous occasions and he was even able to push the ball out
in transition with a couple dribbles. He will have another opportunity to
show that he can play against bigger and better opponents.

Andreja Milutinovic (0 PTS)

(18 PTS, 8-13 FG, 5 STLS, 3 REBS) with FMP

One game Milutinovic played with the camp team and the other one he played
with his FMP squad. While statistically it was night and day between the contests,
he did not show much in terms of NBA potential in either one. He has good size
for the perimeter, but he is extremely weak and lacks the explosiveness to get
by people or to create the necessary separation to get his shot off. Even though
he is a 1990 born player, Europe seems to be his ceiling.

Roster

1987
Luigi DaTome 6’8” SG/SF Italy
Nando DeColo 6’5” PG France
Harry Ezenibe 6’3” G Nigeria
Daniel Hackett 6’5” G Italy
David Huertas 6’4” G Puerto Rico
Joe Ingles 6’8” SG/SF Australia
Adam Lapeta 7’2” C Poland
Johannes Lischka 6’8” F Germany
Andrei Vorontsevich 6’10’ SF/PF Russia
Nemanja Aleksandrov 6’11” SF/PF
Serbia
Uros Nikolic 6’10’ PF/C Serbia
Henk Norel 7’0” PF/C Netherlands
Jaka Klobucar 6’6” SG/SF Slovenia
Jonas Jerebko 6’9” SF Sweden (*Not in
attendance)
Rudy Mbemba 5’11” G Sweden (*Not in attendance)
Vyacheslav Kravtsov 7’0” C Ukraine
Milenko Tepic 6’6” G Serbia (*Not in attendance)

1988
Aboubakar Amadou Zaki 7’1” C Nigeria
Rodrigue Beaubois 6’1” G France
Patrick Beverly 6’2” G USA
Vladimir Dasic 6’10” SF/PF Montenegro
Sergey Gladyr 6’5” SG/SF Ukraine
Nemanja Gordic 6’5” SG Bosnia/Herzegovina
Rudy Jomby 6’6” SG/SF France
Elmedin Kikanovic 6’11” C Bosnia/Herzegovina
Boban Marjanovic 7’4” C Serbia
Stefan Markovic 6’5” SG Serbia
Abdoulaye Mbaye 6’2” SG France
Patrick Mills 6’0” PG Australia
Terrence Oglesby 6’2” SG USA
Anton Ponomarev 6’10” SF/PF Russia
Alexey Shved 6’5” SG Russia
Alexandros Sigkounas 6’9” PF Greece
Ludovic Vaty 6’9” PF France
Artem Zabelin 7’1” PF Russia

1989
Pablo Aguilar 6’9” SF/PF Spain
Georgios Bogris 6’11” C Greece
Jayson Granger 6’3” SG Uruguay
Adam Hanga 6’7” SG Hungary
Edwin Jackson 6’4” SG France
Carl Ona Embo 6’1” PG France
Fernando Raposo 6’10” PF Portugal
Andrea Renzi 6’8” PF Italy
Evangelos Sakellariou 6’5” SG Greece
Sead Sehovic 6’7” SG/SF Bosnia & Herzegovina
Semen Shashkov 6’9” SF Russia

1990
Avramov Bozhidar 6’5” G Bulgaria
Andrea Milutinovic 6’7” SG Serbia
Ibrahima Niang Thierno G Senegal
Kostas Papanikolaou 6′ 8” SG/SF
Greece
Nikolaos Pappas 6’5” PG Greece

1991
Tomas Satoransky 6’7” SG Czech Republic
Tornike Shengelia 6’8” SF Georgia

No Shows
Nemanja Bjelica
Omri Casspi
Michele Diouf
Baris Hersek
Brandon Jennings
Marko Keselj
Milan Macvan
Tibor Pliess
Miroslav Raduljica
Jan Vessely