Marjanovic and Milutinov out of the Serbian national team (this summer)

[objective]

I wouldn't want Printeziz as it is, I don't think his game would translate so well at his age and athleticism.

[K...]

Georgios Printezis recently announced that he will stay with Olympiakos until he retires. (Just in case anyone comes across any of the articles talking about how the Spurs are still "keeping a close eye on Printezis", while looking into Milutinov. )

Ok what about Vassilis Spanoulis, I know we don't technically have his rights anymore but surely he's ready to come if we call.

[GSH]

Ok what about Vassilis Spanoulis, I know we don't technically have his rights anymore but surely he's ready to come if we call.

LOL. Yeah, I wouldn't be surprised to see some speculation here about bringing in the Greek Michael Jordan.

I wouldn't want Printeziz as it is, I don't think his game would translate so well at his age and athleticism.

I only brought it up because there was an article back in November or December talking about Peter Holt going to Athens to check out Prentezis. People take those articles and run with them.

I knew when the Spurs got Prentezis' rights that there was little to no chance of him ever wanting to play in the NBA. To be honest, I questioned whether Milutinov had any burning desire to come here. Most American fans assume that every player in Europe wants to come play in the NBA, if they are good enough. A lot of guys just aren't interested.

[Obi Juan Kenobi]

LOL. Yeah, I wouldn't be surprised to see some speculation here about bringing in the Greek Michael Jordan.




I only brought it up because there was an article back in November or December talking about Peter Holt going to Athens to check out Prentezis. People take those articles and run with them.

I knew when the Spurs got Prentezis' rights that there was little to no chance of him ever wanting to play in the NBA. To be honest, I questioned whether Milutinov had any burning desire to come here. Most American fans assume that every player in Europe wants to come play in the NBA, if they are good enough. A lot of guys just aren't interested.

Big fish in the small pond mentality perhaps?

[siraulo23]

He hardly got minutes last year, too. Don't know what the hype is

Looks like a good rim protector though.

he's an unproven poor man's splitter, still better than david west

[siraulo23]

His passing is very good for a center and I love that about him. He can execute every pass in the Spurs offense that would be asked of him. That isn't easy for bigs, especially young bigs. I don't think he's as good as Splitter was when he came over at 25, but he can do it. He's less ... slick, I guess I would say. He has never been an offensive focus like Splitter was so he didn't get a lot of double teams and have to pass out of them.

And he moves the ball. He doesn't hold it, think about his scoring chances, then reluctantly pass. He does team ball.

I would much rather see him than some of the veteran journeyman scrubs people seem to be pining for like Thomas Robinson. I don't get why people like that guy. He's like if Jeff Ayres had been a top 5 bust but still was able to live off that reputation of being a top 5 pick.

His post defense needs to get stronger as Papagiannis got him some in the post in the Greek league finals, but that guy is a 7-2 monster. Not too many guys like that will be coming off of NBA benches (until Papagiannis is drafted this month). But Milutinov does need to get stronger, sure.

There's full games on YouTube for anyone who wants to see him, unfortunately not too many highlight clips.

[Mnky]

Big fish in the small pond mentality perhaps?

Exactly.

[Chinook]

Big fish in the small pond mentality perhaps?

Or not wanting to travel across the world when you're already making good money where you are. Or not wanting to be embedded in a culture you may not understand.

[GSH]

Or not wanting to travel across the world when you're already making good money where you are. Or not wanting to be embedded in a culture you may not understand.

Yep. When you really like where you are, and you're making very good money to play basketball? It's a no-brainer for a lot of guys.

I think you can throw style of play I there. Neither one is right or wrong, but there is no denying that the style of play is different. Timmy came back from playing international ball and said, "FIBA sucks". Imagine how he would feel if he had to play every game under those conditions. Maybe he would eventually get used to it, but he had no reason to. Those guys feel the same way. A lot of them have been playing semi-pro ball since their teens, and that's the game they know and love.

If the payday is big enough, some guys will make the jump even when they aren't crazy about doing it. Some stick, but some go back after a season or two. What the - different people like different things. If you've got enough money, why wouldn't you do what you love, instead of doing something you don't like as much?

I didn't think a min contract would be enough to bring Milutinov over, and I didn't think anyone would give him much more than that based on where his game is right now. I guess we'll see.

[Chinook]

Yep. When you really like where you are, and you're making very good money to play basketball? It's a no-brainer for a lot of guys.

I think you can throw style of play I there. Neither one is right or wrong, but there is no denying that the style of play is different. Timmy came back from playing international ball and said, "FIBA sucks". Imagine how he would feel if he had to play every game under those conditions. Maybe he would eventually get used to it, but he had no reason to. Those guys feel the same way. A lot of them have been playing semi-pro ball since their teens, and that's the game they know and love.

If the payday is big enough, some guys will make the jump even when they aren't crazy about doing it. Some stick, but some go back after a season or two. What the - different people like different things. If you've got enough money, why wouldn't you do what you love, instead of doing something you don't like as much?

I didn't think a min contract would be enough to bring Milutinov over, and I didn't think anyone would give him much more than that based on where his game is right now. I guess we'll see.

Nikola was a first-rounder. His contract is fixed, and by many accounts, he wants to come over. He wouldn't be doing the SL if he didn't. Despite what some people said earlier, the Spurs have no leverage to make him drop his NT. They aren't paying him yet, and unless they release his rights, he gets to decide whether he wants to come over in two years or not.

[Spurs9]

Doesn't look that impressive tbh

Same euro highlight reel we saw with Splitter

[NikosChelsea7]

Milutinov on the court: 17:22-31:51 , 1:06:01-1:19:03

[NikosChelsea7]

Milutinov on the court: 3:44-6:06 , 40:-11-48:17 , 53:15-58:33
(game also features Adam Hanga)

[NikosChelsea7]

If you want me to post more games , just let me know.

[GSH]

Nikola was a first-rounder. His contract is fixed, and by many accounts, he wants to come over. He wouldn't be doing the SL if he didn't. Despite what some people said earlier, the Spurs have no leverage to make him drop his NT. They aren't paying him yet, and unless they release his rights, he gets to decide whether he wants to come over in two years or not.

You're right (of course). I had mixed up the min contract they have reportedly offered Bertans. Milutinov would get the rookie scale from the year he was drafted.

I had heard that he liked his first year in Greece, and intended to play out his contract without any discussion of a buyout, and coming to the Spurs. But rumors are worth what you pay for them.

When his contract with Olympiacos is up, he goes back to the Spurs as a cap hold, so he would either have to come over, sign with another Euro team, or retire. I guess the Spurs could renounce his rights, too. But, yeah, he has the right to that rookie scale contract.

I try not to even get into discussions about guys playing for their NT's anymore. It always turns into a fight before it's done. I guess I was mostly surprised that he pulled out of his NT to play in the summer league here, since he can't come to the Spurs now, unless a buyout is agreed to. I know a lot of people are thinking that playing in the summer league means he might be joining the Spurs early, but that can't happen without Olympiacos agreeing to it.

One possibility that no one has mentioned is that he thinks playing the summer league will help him improve his game more than playing with the NT. It doesn't have to have anything to do with his intentions to come here to play.

[Chinook]

I guess I was mostly surprised that he pulled out of his NT to play in the summer league here, since he can't come to the Spurs now, unless a buyout is agreed to. I know a lot of people are thinking that playing in the summer league means he might be joining the Spurs early, but that can't happen without Olympiacos agreeing to it.

I'm pretty sure there's already a buyout agreement in place. This isn't like the NBA where the buyouts are usually negotiated right before release. Most contracts for Euro prospects have the buyouts already agreed to. Like Bertans is still under contract next season with LK, but the Spurs can just unilaterally pay the buyout and then sign Davis. I've heard that Milutinov is in a similar situation, though the buyout could be higher. That doesn't mean the Spurs will bring him over, but I'm pretty sure between them and Nikola, the option is there.

One possibility that no one has mentioned is that he thinks playing the summer league will help him improve his game more than playing with the NT. It doesn't have to have anything to do with his intentions to come here to play.

That's fine during an odd year, and indeed the Spurs have their prospects come over all the time, but this is an even year, so players often prioritize the NTs with actual medals at stake. Milutinov may well have gotten minutes against better compe ion, and especially as it moved toward the Olympics the experience he could pick up even on the bench is immense.

Him picking SL over that implies either than he doesn't care much at all about the SNT (which is possible but still sort of weird that they wouldn't know that by now) or that he REALLY values being a Spur and working toward an NBA career. It's clearly not the SNT's view that the SL makes more sense. It might be Olympicacos' view, but I doubt it. I just think this is a sign that he's going to be a Spur sooner than you're assuming. It probably won't be this year. But it should be the next one.

[GSH]

I'm pretty sure there's already a buyout agreement in place. This isn't like the NBA where the buyouts are usually negotiated right before release. Most contracts for Euro prospects have the buyouts already agreed to. Like Bertans is still under contract next season with LK, but the Spurs can just unilaterally pay the buyout and then sign Davis. I've heard that Milutinov is in a similar situation, though the buyout could be higher. That doesn't mean the Spurs will bring him over, but I'm pretty sure between them and Nikola, the option is there.

That's fine during an odd year, and indeed the Spurs have their prospects come over all the time, but this is an even year, so players often prioritize the NTs with actual medals at stake. Milutinov may well have gotten minutes against better compe ion, and especially as it moved toward the Olympics the experience he could pick up even on the bench is immense.

Him picking SL over that implies either than he doesn't care much at all about the SNT (which is possible but still sort of weird that they wouldn't know that by now) or that he REALLY values being a Spur and working toward an NBA career. It's clearly not the SNT's view that the SL makes more sense. It might be Olympicacos' view, but I doubt it. I just think this is a sign that he's going to be a Spur sooner than you're assuming. It probably won't be this year. But it should be the next one.

Thanks. News to me. I remember the negotiations they had over Scola, and it seemed like the buyout process was pretty much ad hoc. I'm guessing they must have standardized the process since then, which is good because it never made much sense. That puts everything in a different light.

Last summer they had Tim coming off a brilliant playoff performance, and they needed cap room for LMA. This year they need to fill some holes in the roster. If Milutinov is a realistic possibility (both in desire and in contract status) that's huge. Bigs are almost always an unknown, when it comes to playing NBA ball - whether they're coming from college or from the Euros. But if there was ever a time when the Spurs could use a big man on a rookie scale contract, this is it. That's the best sounding news I've seen since the season ended.

This time last year I was calling for the Spurs to sign Boban, and I was surprised when they actually did it. But I was also surprised at his inability to run the PnR, and to catch onto the Spurs system in general (on both ends of the floor). He was very good individually, but man he got lost on the court a lot. Hopefully this season plus a stint in SL will get him up to speed. The possibility of actually bringing Milutinov this season is a bonus I hadn't even looked for.

[SAGirl]

Since we are discussing Nikola and his first round contract en lement, What about the cap exploding next season again and the CBA negotiations? I don't know anything about that, but I love speculation as much as anyone.

What if it makes the most sense for the Spurs to consider Nikola right now if he shows in SL that with at least one season of our regular dleague and early season playing time mix, he could soak up some C minutes in the NBA and be ready to contribute his second season while locked into the rookie scale contract (like most recently CoJo and KA?). He's just 21 yrs old still in a developing stage and him not playing a lot in Greece (per reports here) could derail or stall his development like it did for LJC. They may be thinking that it's better to feed him minutes in the dleague and garbage time, and be more involved with him personally. Add to that a potential contractual situation changing and he makes sense coming over. Those spots at the end of the bench had gone to old vets this past season. That shouldn't be the case anymore in what should be a younger team centered on a 25 yr old star, with two of the big 3 now retired or really about to.

[maverick1948]

Milutinov is only 20 years old. If he is the 3rd or 4th center in the NT then why bother to go. He will be left at home Boban got more minutes with the Spurs (SA and Austin) than he would have gotten in Europe. A year under his belt here, Boban will see more action. Same for Mulutinov, if he comes over he may spend time at Austin but the experience with SA will be valuable. Maybe Timmy will give us a decision soon and we can move on with discussion of who may come over.