France isn’t the only country producing top NBA prospects – it appears that way.
Victor Wembanyama was the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft a year ago and won the league championship. Rookie of the Year Award.
Two more Frenchmen – Alexandre Sarr and Zaccharie Risacher – are the projected top picks Wednesday night at the draft. Tidjane Salaun is another potential French lottery pick, and Pacome Dadiet could be a late arrival in the first round.
But the international pool extends beyond France. Other prospects include Nikola Topic and Nikola Djurisic of Serbia, Bobi Klintman of Sweden, Juan Nunez of Spain and Ulrich Chomche of Cameroon.
Here’s a closer look:
The 6-foot-6 point guard has a Partially torn ACL but is still projected to be a first-round pick. He doesn’t turn 19 until August. He was projected as a top-five prospect heading into the 2023-24 season following his performance with Belgrade club Mega – center for the Denver Nuggets Nikola Jokic old team. Topic returned mid-season to his original club, Crvena Zvezda (Red Star), to play alongside one of his idols, Milos Theodosius, and to get some significant minutes in the Euroleague. But he missed time with a left knee injury – before the ACL problem that came later.
“I’m working on my rehab from the knee injury, and that’s the main focus right now,” Topic said in a video call with reporters on June 4 from NBA pre-draft camp in Treviso, Italy. “After that, I’m going to work on basketball. … I’ve been doing (the) weight room. rehabilitation, especially in the knee and body.
In the last AP NBA Mock Draft,The topic is projected to be selected 15th. He needs to improve his 3-point shooting – as he shot about 30% last season. He averaged 14.5 points, 5.5 assists and 2.3 turnovers per game in an injury-shortened season.
The 6-7 small forward has logged big minutes the past two years as a starter for the Mega, where he was a teammate with Topic for part of last season. Djurisic, 20, has improved his 3-point shooting this season, but still shoots just 30.5% overall – and 33.6% in 30 Adriatic League games. He averaged 14.8 points, 2.8 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 1.2 steals and 3.2 turnovers.
On a interview with the Indiana Pacers When he visited there for a pre-draft workout, the 209-pound Djurisic said he’s trying to show he’s a “three-tier scorer, can guard multiple positions, can switch from 1 to 4.” He says he is “definitely a creator” “who cares about finding open teammates.” He is projected as a second-round pick.
The 21-year-old Swede played last season in Australia as part of the “ Upcoming stars ” program. A 6-foot-2 versatile forward, Klintman shot 36% from 3-point range in 23 NBL games for the Cairns Taipans, averaging 9.7 points and 4.8 rebounds per game. The 212-pound Klintman , played one season at Wake Forest and opted out of last year’s draft. The AP’s mock draft predicts Klintman will go late in the first round.
After developing through Real Madrid’s youth system, the 6-4 guard played for Ratiopharm Ulm in Germany for the past two seasons. The lefty shot 31.9% from 3-point range in both seasons there.
Nunez, 20 years old, showed improvement. He averaged 9.9 points, 4.9 assists and 2.3 turnovers in 2023-24 and in 15 Eurocup games he increased those numbers to 10.8 points, 5.7 assists and shot 35% from beyond the arc. . A crafty pick-and-roll playmaker, the 205-pound Nunez lacks explosiveness. He’s not an elite defender, but he can be disruptive in that area. Nunez shot just 60.7% from the free throw line last season. Most mock drafts predict Nunez as a second-round pick, which could make him a draft-and-stash candidate.
The 6-10 center is trying to become the first NBA Academy student-athlete to go directly to an NBA team. The 232-pound Chomche barely qualifies for this draft — he turns 19 on December 30.
He played in two seasons of the African Basketball League. Chomche was preparing for a third season, but withdrew when he received an invitation to the NBA Combine. In three BAL qualifying games Playing for the academy team, he averaged 13 points, nine rebounds and 2.7 blocks. His game is often described as “ crude”, because of limitations on the offensive side. With a 7-foot wingspan, he can certainly block shots and protect the rim. African academy alumni Babacar Sané from Senegal and Thierry Darlan from the Central African Republic have left for G League Ignite. Sané is in the draft; Darlan declared, but withdrew.
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