2016 Draft Prospect: Ivica Zubac

[Drom John]

http://www.balkanbasket.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/ivica-zubac.jpg

Height: 7-1
Weight: 265 lbs
Date of Birth: 03/18/1997
Team: Mega Leks
Country: Croatia

DraftExpress (http://www.draftexpress.com/profile/Ivica-Zubac-73314/) #24 27 March 2016
NBADraft.net (http://www.nbadraft.net/players/ivica-zubac) #29 2 April 2016

[Drom John]

Fansided by Trevor Magnotti, 28? April 2016


29. San Antonio loves their international prospects, and with such a large international talent base this year, it’s hard to see them passing on taking a European player again. Unlike in past years, where the Spurs have let their international players develop overseas, San Antonio may want to grab someone who can bolster their frontcourt as soon as next year due to the potential retirement of Tim Duncan and David West.
Ivica Zubac may be a nice choice for them if they decide they want an immediate talent infusion. Zubac is a versatile offensive big man reminiscent of former Spur Tiago Splitter, and his well-developed post game and excellent passing ability could be a nice fit for the Spurs’ whirring motion offense. He has great hands and deceptive mobility in transition, and he’s excellent at recovering and rotating defensively, hinting at potential as a shot-blocker.

Zubac does need to work on his shooting touch, as he hit just 57.1 percent of his foul shots in Adriatic league play for KK Cibona and Mega Leks this year, and he has a very flat release on his jumper. He also doesn’t have great footwork or positioning on the defensive end, and can get beaten off the dribble out of the pick-and-roll or in isolation. He recovers well, but in the NBA, he may not fair as well if he does not learn to contain penetration off the bounce.

Zubac’s biggest flaw might be that we don’t have a ton of film on him – he missed parts of last season with a foot injury, and most of this year because of a contract dispute. He is now playing with Timothe Luwawu at Mega Leks in the Serbian SuperLeague, and it will be interesting to see how he fairs there as he will be one of the few players in this draft class actively playing during the next month. Zubac has stated that he wants to come to the NBA right away if possible, and he may be the rare case of an international prospect who gets development time in the D-League rather than overseas.

[SAGirl]

Thanks for sharing Drom. The lack of sufficient film on him may have prompted that trip by RC to see him in person. It was raybies who has been saying for months we are drafting another big and he might be right, specially if Milutinov and Jean-Charles don't look like they are ready to come over. Although we have Boban, it's questionable if he could be resigned if the Spurs make another expensive addition in FA and we need a blue collar big. Boban is also more impactful on the Offensive end.

At this point it's anyone's guess which way Spurs may be heading both in the draft and FA.

[raybies]

Thanks for sharing Drom. The lack of sufficient film on him may have prompted that trip by RC to see him in person. It was raybies (http://www.spurstalk.com/forums/member.php?u=42684) who has been saying for months we are drafting another big and he might be right, specially if Milutinov and Jean-Charles don't look like they are ready to come over. Although we have Boban, it's questionable if he could be resigned if the Spurs make another expensive addition in FA and we need a blue collar big. Boban is also more impactful on the Offensive end.

At this point it's anyone's guess which way Spurs may be heading both in the draft and FA.

Yeah, Imo Milutinov could work. He's an energy guy looking to bang for the boards or pnr. But if I'm the Spurs I want options. We won't be able to afford any young centers with upside, so that leaves us digging around the bargain bin. Centers like Plumlee, Hibbert, Mozgov, and Gasol. Our best scenario would be to land Pau. That would leave us with a stopgap for two to three years so we would still need to draft a center imo. Someone with potential to start. A young prospect and this year has quite a few bigs that can be had at our slot. It's a good year to draft a big. I also think the Spurs could look to deal on draft night for an extra pick.

Personally i prefer Zizic to Zubac but I could understand if they went the route of Zubac. The fact that he is mobile and can bang in the post gives you options and in this cold war with Golden State two way players or players that have versatility are at a premium.

[Drom John]

Basketball Insiders by Steve Kyler, 11 May 2016
29. San Antonio Spurs

[Drom John]

SBNation Pacific Takes: 2016 NBA mock draft - Pac-12 perspective: three Pac-12 players go in Top 10
By Jack Follman  Jackfollman on May 19, 2016, 7:00a

29. San Antonio - Ivica Zubac C Serbia

[Drom John]

Howling T-Wolf: Howlin' T-Wolf 2016 NBA Mock Draft 2.0
By Aaron M. Groshong, 05/23/16, 09:15AM CDT
also with pick by Rob Hess.

29 San Antonio Spurs Ivica Zubac (C) 7’1” Mega Leks, International

[Drom John]

Sports Illustrated: 2016 NBA draft Big Board 3.0: Top 60 prospects
by Jeremy Woo
Thu May 26, 2016

Big Board rather than mock.



29 IVICA ZUBAC, SPAIN

6'9", 265 | FORWARD | 19 YEARS OLD
LAST BIG BOARD: N/A
Zubac turned heads with insane production at the 2015 FIBA U19 Worlds (33.7 PER, 17.6 points, 7.9 rebounds). He’s a little rough around the edges fundamentally, but a strong finisher with a great frame and nice post-up game. Zubac has potential to cut it
defensively and as a screen-setter and rim-runner should be a fit at the next level. He’s expected to be an easy guy to stash and bring over and makes a lot of sense for teams with multiple picks.

[Drom John]

DC Pro Sports Report: 2016 NBA Mock Draft
By Tom Blaz
Updated June 3, 2016


29 Ivica Zubac, C, KK Mega Vizura (Serbia)
San Antonio Spurs

[Drom John]

USA Today: NBA mock draft: Intrigue begins with Boston Celtics at No. 3
Derek Bodner, Special for USA TODAY Sports 11:31 a.m. EDT June 6, 2016


Pick 29 Spurs
With excellent size, mobility, and touch around the rim, what Croatian big man Ivica Zubac lacks in experience he makes up for with a high overall talent level.

[Drom John]

Christopher Kline's Blog: 2016 NBA Mock Draft 4.0
June 13, 2016


29. San Antonio Spurs C Ivica Zubac, Mega Leks

Zubac is a big body in the post and a skilled two-force that the Spurs could develop into a nice rotational big. He's projected in some cases to go higher than this, but it's tough to peg a certain spot, which means the Spurs could get the luxury of pouncing on him. Their frontcourt is notably thinning out around LaMarcus Aldridge and stashing some more assistance overseas alongside their pick from last season (Nikola Mulintinov) would be a reasonable move to make.

[Drom John]

Sporting News: NBA Mock Draft 4.0: Who is rising and sliding entering final week?
By Sean Deveney
Updated 10 a.m. ET [16 June 2016]


29 Spurs: C Ivaca Zubac, Croatia

Zubac was a star of last summer’s FIBA U-19 tournament, averaging 17.6 points and 7.9 rebounds, and has remained a person of interest when it comes to the draft. He’s raw but has a good enough size (7-1, 265 pounds) and interior game to warrant first-round consideration. Whether he has the athleticism to handle pick-and-rolls and perimeter-shooting bigs is a question. But he’s only 19, and has room to grow and improve.

[Drom John]

Basketball Insiders: 2016 “Outsiders” NBA Mock Draft By Basketball Insiders

3 of 4
Brett Pollakoff, Sherrod Blakely & Vince Ellis
selected Zubac for the Spurs.

[Drom John]

Metro.US: 2016 NBA Mock Draft: Sixers, Lakers, Celtics with a franchise-altering day ahead
Matt Burke
PUBLISHED : Yesterday 4:54 pm [AKA 17 June 2016]


29. San Antonio Spurs: Ivica Zubac, C, Croatia: What ever happened to Vivica A. Fox? She was like Cameron Diaz-popular at one point. It is unlikely that Ivica A. Zubac will ever reach that level of popularity in the states.

[Drom John]

CSN NE: Blakely's 2016 NBA Mock Draft 9.0
By A. Sherrod Blakely

Added quote:


Great size and strength, Zubac is your typical draft-and-stash Spur who in a few years will have other teams kicking themselves for not selecting him.

[Drom John]

Today's Fastbreak: Final 2016 NBA Mock Draft
By Daniel O'Brien
Posted on June 22, 2016


29. San Antonio Spurs – Ivica Zubac, 7’1″, 265 lbs, C, Bosnia, 19 years old

The Bosnian bruiser gives San Antonio interior insurance. He’s a fantastic value pick this late in the draft due to his size and post-up skills. If Zubac continues to progress as a powerful pivot-man, he’ll be a tough back-to-the-basket matchup for anyone. The Spurs have the patience and process to maximize his possibilities.