Sort of old, but my local paper had an article about the Spurs regarding Splitter. Merge it with the Splitter thread if need be, I didn't feel like searching for it. Sorry.

http://www.contracostatimes.com/warr...nclick_check=1

NBA money isn't always enough for foreign players
By Marcus Thompson II
Staff writer

Article Launched: 06/01/2008 04:49:05 AM PDT


With the anticipated return of injured stars, the Los Angeles Lakers, Portland Trail Blazers and Los Angeles Clippers are expected to get better next season. It's obvious the San Antonio Spurs are going to need to beef up their roster.

Unfortunately for San Antonio, it appears one of its prospects is following the trend of foreigners shunning the NBA. Brazilian power forward Tiago Splitter, a first-round draft pick by the Spurs last year, is strongly considering staying in Spain, according to ESPN.com. The Spurs can thank the league's rookie salary scale for that.

Teams used to draft international players with the intention of letting them develop overseas before bringing them to the NBA. But if a player gets too good overseas, it's to his financial advantage to stay abroad because an NBA rookie's salary is limited by where he's drafted, provided he's a first-round pick.

Splitter was taken No. 28 overall last June. He averaged 14 points and five rebounds for Tau Ceramica this season, which could earn him a much larger free-agent payday than the $771,000 maximum he could make with the Spurs next season. What's more, Splitter would have to play for at least two years under the scale, four if the Spurs pick up both options. ESPN.com. reported that Splitter is on the verge of signing with Tau Ceramica for two more years, a deal that doesn't have a buyout until


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2010.

Fran Vasquez, selected No. 11 by Orlando in 2005, never reported to the Magic, opting for more money with FC Barcelona in Spain. Spanish point guard Rudy Fernandez was acquired by Portland on draft day after the Phoenix Suns selected him No. 24 overall last year. A month later, Fernandez's contract was extended by Spain's Joventut Badalona. He has yet to play with Portland

Center Ante Tomic of Croatia, who pulled out of last year's draft, and Serbian center Nikola Pekovic have signed big contracts overseas, according to ESPN.com.

That the Euro is superior to the dollar makes the monetary gap even larger. The $771,000 Splitter would make in his first year with the Spurs is currently less than 500,000 Euro.

A smaller salary is not the only disadvantage of coming to the NBA. Higher expectations, diminished celebrity status and a decrease in playing time often greet Euroleague defectors in the NBA.

Greek star Vassilis Spanoulis was drafted by Dallas in the second round of the 2004 draft and traded to the Houston Rockets on draft day. He didn't play for the Rockets until the 2006-07 season, in which he averaged 8.8 minutes in 31 games, occasionally expressing his frustration publicly about lack of playing time. He was traded to the Spurs before this season but opted to re-sign with Panathinaikos in Greece, reportedly receiving a three-year deal worth 5 million Euro.

All of these factors are making it increasingly difficult to lure international studs to America. The risk of the player staying overseas makes spending a first-round draft pick perhaps too risky, especially when you throw in buyout negotiations.

Perhaps the most famous situation was that of Argentinian star Luis Scola, who was drafted by the Spurs with the 56th pick in the 2002 draft. Scola didn't make it to the NBA until 2007 and not with the Spurs. In the Spanoulis deal, San Antonio traded Scola's rights to Houston, where Scola is now a starter.

Some of the top international players may fall into the second round. The rookie salary scale applies only to first-round picks. Contracts for second-round picks are negotiated. NBA teams can even use their midlevel exception ($5.3 million last season) to sign a second-rounder.

J-O ON THE MOVE?: In a radio interview Thursday