NBA Draft: The Clock is Ticking for Neoklis Avdalas

Neoklis Avdalas is a 6-foot-9 point guard from Greece, who has draft hype in 2026, and could in 2027 too.

After opting out of the 2025 Draft, he chose Virginia Tech where he averaged 12.0 points, 4.0 assists and 3.0 rebounds on 38-31-67 shooting splits. This upcoming season he will play for the North Carolina Tar Heels under former NBA championship head coach Michael Malone.

Avdalas had an electric start to last season where his draft stock was buzzing and was drawing Luka Doncic comparisons from media outlets across the country. Neo had a national breakout performance against Providence last season where he had 33 points, five rebounds and six assists. Unfortunately, this was the only highlight of his roller coaster season.

To be a true play-maker at the next level, the defense has to honor you as a scoring threat. Avdalas struggles creating paint touches for himself and lacks the wiggle or athleticism to blow by his defender.

Averaging under four free throw attempts as an offensive engine is extremely underwhelming. He plays contact adverse and lets physical defenders really mess with him. Instead of getting all the way downhill, he will settle for a floater or a side step jumper. Luka-like, he loves settling for step back threes when he's already a shaky shooter. As a result, he lets the defense off the hook instead of making them work. Neo has been given great physical tools but just doesn't know how to use them.

The potential is still very high with Avdalas. If he can improve his efficiency from the floor it will open up his elite passing ability. I think adding significant muscle to his frame could help him leverage his size against smaller guards. Teams have shown a fascination for jumbo playmakers in recent draft classes. Simply showing the ability to shoot or score at some level could put him in lottery discussions.

This is likely the last season Avdalas will have the chance to prove he can be a point forward at the next level. We've seen failed big guards transition into connective playmaking wings in the NBA and have success. Vit Krejci had a similar make up, where overseas he was developed as a point guard until getting to the league and having to learn how to play exclusively off ball. Instead of holding onto to his ambition of being a lead creator, he scaled down into a complimentary role that has earned him a longer stay in the NBA than people were expecting.

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