Overseas Round-Up: Auto-Eligible Standouts
The early entry candidate list for the 2023 NBA Draft has been set for a couple of weeks, which allows scouts to focus on a limited number of names in the lead up to the draft. Missing from the list, however, are the auto-eligible prospects, which, when it comes to international prospects, this means every player born in 2001.
While NBA teams certainly value youth when it comes to prospects, we have seen auto-eligible international players drafted as recently as 2019 when Vanja Marinkovic was selected by the Sacramento Kings with the last pick in the draft.
This year, there are two clear stand outs in the international auto-eligible class who could get their names called in the second round.
Nikos Rogkavopoulos
6’8” Forward | 21.9 Years Old | Greece | Team: Merkezefendi (Turkey)
Rogkavopoulos has been one of the most consistent shooters in Europe since his breakout appearance at the U16 European Championships in 2017. After four seasons of professional basketball in his native Greece, Rogkavopoulos moved to Turkey this season where he was able to let it fly with tremendous volume, shooting 35.6% from beyond the arc on over six attempts per game.
Rogkavopoulos is a consistent threat as a shooter off-the-catch with his smooth and repeatable shot release, while also standing out as a versatile shooter, being able to convert jumpers coming off-screens, thanks to his touch off movement and his quickness to prepare for a shot. Selectively, Rogkavopoulos can put the ball on the floor and shoot off the dribble, though over 70% of his jumpers qualify as catch-and-shoot attempts according to Synergy.
Standing at 6-foot-8, Rogkavopoulos has an interesting combination of size and open-court speed which makes him an impactful target in transition. He is, however, limited when it comes to length, explosiveness and vertical athleticism, which puts a cap on his impact on other areas of the floor such as rim protection and creating for himself in the perimeter.
Despite his limitations, Rogkavopoulos’ combination of size and shooting ability could entice a number of NBA teams as a draft-and-stash bet. If Rogkavopoulos stays in Europe and develops in a similar way to Sahsa Vezenkov, another great floor-spacing forward who was drafted late in the NBA Draft despite his athletic limitations, he could find his way to the NBA sooner than later.
Malcolm Cazalon
6’6” Wing | 21.7 Years Old | France | Team: Mega MIS (Serbia)
Unlike Rogkavopoulos, Cazalon lacks a single skill that he can perform at an elite level which might limit the value some NBA teams see in him, but on the other hand, he is versatile enough to contribute in a number of areas.
Offensively, Cazalon is a tough cover for defenders in the Adriatic with his combination of size, length and open-court athleticism. He gets downhill with a good level of speed, which allows him to attack the basket in transition and in the early offense. Cazalon has also become consistent as a shooter ever since he got to Mega, having converted 35.5% of his 3-point attempts over the past three seasons and shooting 76.5% from the free throw line.
Defensively, Cazalon has also shown major improvement, making plays off the ball, utilizing his length to get in passing lanes and creating defensive events.
The limitation with Cazalon is his ability to create for himself and for others in the half-court. He is not developed enough as a ball-handler to change directions and pull out counter moves when driving, which makes him somewhat predictable as a driver, and he’s not someone who has been tasked with creating his own shot in the perimeter, being more of a shooter off-the-catch who has shown some level of versatility in jumpers coming off screens.
Overall, Cazalon has an interesting profile as an off-ball wing who can space the floor, attack closeouts, defend the perimeter and move the ball. While somewhat limited as a creator, some teams might be interested in his profile as a versatile wing who can contribute off-the-ball in multiple areas.
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