TREVISO, Italy -- I spent last week in Treviso, Italy, the site of one of my favorite basketball events of the entire year and increasingly, the most important scouting event for the NBA. The Reebok Eurocamp is the international version of the NBA's pre-draft camp that is held in Orlando, and the Eurocamp is an opportunity for teams to watch some of the best young players -- and nearly half the camp (22 of 50) were taller than 6-foot-9 -- abroad.
This was my fifth year coaching at the camp and because this was easily the deepest Eurocamp ever, I was surprised that more NBA decision-makers were not here, especially when it is much easier to evaluate the college players during the basketball season and harder to get many of the international players in one location at one time. I mean, how many times do you need to scout Kansas' Sasha Kaun or Ohio State's Othello Hunter over the course of the year? Frankly, when you factor in the outstanding young players, there were more future first-round picks in Treviso than in Orlando.
In the interest of full disclosure, one of my former Manhattan College players, Pete Philo, the Minnesota Timberwolves' international scout, is the camp's director and did an outstanding job of corralling the level of talent to the camp. Dealing with the interests of the professional clubs, the basketball federations of various countries and the agents of the players is like trying to solve a Rubik's Cube, but Philo pulled it off. It will be hard to top this level of talent at the camp in the future, but the momentum is building as a place for the young international stars to be seen.
While this is not a deep draft for international players in the first round, there could be a slew in the second round because NBA teams can retain their rights, but do not have to pay them as they continue to develop for professional clubs in Europe.
Here are some the evaluations of the top players in the camp:
• Serge Ibaka, 6-10, PF, Congo
The 2008 Eurocamp MVP, Ibaka is the closest thing to a high school player in the draft because he was the youngest player in it. He will turn 19 later this year. And while he might be young, there are not five players in this draft that are more athletic. He is, possibly, the best running big man in the draft, has a good-looking shot that still needs to be refined and showed a great work ethic, as well.
The downside with Ibaka is that he is three years from contributing regularly to an NBA team because of his inexperience and lack of physical maturity. He would be a solid pick for a team at the end of the first round -- a team with the patience to wait on him to develop. If he is taken early in the second round, he will stay in Spain and continue to improve.
• Nicolas Batum, 6-8, SF, France
I had the chance to coach him at the camp, and as advertised, he is a tremendous athlete and a good outside shooter. His ballhandling skills limit his escapability from defenders and will hurt him. After last year's excellent performance in the Hoop Summit, he would have projected as a lottery pick, however the more people have focused in on him, the more his weaknesses have shown and the more likely he'll slide to a spot between the 15th and 25th picks.
• Omer Asik, 7-0, C, Turkey
Asik is a draft-eligible player (born in 1986) that has intrigued NBA scouts all season as he stepped up in competition in the Euroleague, which is a step above college basketball. In his organized workout here for NBA teams, it was clear that he is not an offensive talent, but a very good athlete who moves well for someone his size. He is known for his shot blocking and rebounding, which is no surprise when you watch how much bounce he has.
Asik is a late first-round talent who might slide to the second round because of his contract with his Turkish club, Fenerbahce Ulker. A team that drafts him can leave him in Europe and retain his rights, while he continues to develop as he finishes his contractual commitment to his current team.
• Semih Erden, 7-1, C, Turkey
Erden is more offensively talented than Asik, his teammate on Fenerbahce. However, Erden is not the athlete that Asik is. He'll likely go somewhere in the second round by a team that will be able to monitor his progress in Europe the next couple of seasons.
• Rudy Mbemba, 6-0, PG, Sweden
Mbemba is one of the quickest players in this year's draft and certainly on a par in ability with many of the point guards that will be drafted after Derrick Rose and D.J. Augustin. I describe him as a "punt returner," because he will run a few back and fumble a few, as well. If he doesn't get a guarantee from a team to draft him, he will certainly return to Europe and be in next year's draft.
• Goran Dragic, 6-3, PG, Slovenia
Dragic played only one day because he arrived after his team won the Slovenian League championship, but he put on an impressive performance for the NBA scouts. He has outstanding speed, quickness, agility and court awareness. Although certainly not in the class of Rose, Dragic would compare favorably -- athletically -- with many of the point guard prospects in this draft. And, he has more experience at a higher level.
Like many European players, Dragic is under contract to a professional team, Spain's Tau Ceramica, so he will likely go in the second round and the earliest he is likely to wear an NBA uniform would be three seasons from now.
• Henk Norel, 6-10, PF, Netherlands
Norel, who plays as part of the famous Spanish team, DKV Joventut, and had a very good week, receiving his most extensive action in front of NBA personnel in his young career. Although he is likely to withdraw from the draft, he created a buzz at the camp with his energy and effort which earned him the "Mr. Hustle" award.
By the way, Norel will play with Ricky Rubio, the sensational young Spaniard, who has played professionally in the Spanish ACB League since he was 14 years old.
• Anton Ponkrashov, 6-7, PG, Russia
Ponkrashov is another of those good risks for an NBA team in the second round. He is a big point guard who plays the game with great intensity and already possesses a lot of experience for a 22-year-old. While he is not a great shooter, his best strength is his passing ability for a player his size.
• Jonas Jerebko, 6-9, SF, Sweden
Jerebko is the son of former Syracuse player, Chris Jerebko, who played professionally in Sweden and stayed there after retiring. The younger Jerebko, who almost attended the University of Buffalo, came to the camp with the intent of getting some exposure for the future, and he succeeded. He will likely withdraw from this year's draft.
Jerebko is a player that handles the ball well for his size, has a frame that will likely gain weight and has Luke Walton-like versatility. At this point, he is someone worth keeping an eye on.
• Donatas Motiejunas, 7-0, C, Lithuania
This 17-year-old Lithuanian big man is already a well-known name in Europe. At the camp, he had NBA scouts talking about his potential because, for someone his size and age, he has an excellent shooting touch and skill package.
Although Motiejunas will be eligible for next year's draft, don't expect to see him for a few more years. The consensus, however, among NBA scouts is that he will be one of the most likely players in the camp that will wear an NBA uniform.
• Alexey Shved, 6-6, SG, Russia
"Shooting guard" is not just a generic term for many of Europe's best young players as there are many that can shoot lights out. Shved, 19, is at the top of that list of shooting guards and is another of Europe's best young players. He made 8-for-15 from behind the international 3-point arc in a 40-point drubbing of the French Under-20 national team by the Eurocamp all-stars.
• Semen Shashkov, 6-8, SF, Russia
Shashkov just looks like a future star with a sweet shooting stroke and a basketball body. His long and active arms give him a chance to become a very good defender. At only 18 years old, we won't see him in the NBA for a few years.
More Eurocamp notes
I had a great visit at the camp with Danilo Gallinari, who will almost definitely be the first international player chosen in the NBA draft this year. He is an engaging kid who is coming off an outstanding season in the Euroleague, leading Milan in scoring as a 19-year-old.
While I think he will be a great fit in New York, I told him to expect to be booed on draft night at Madison Square Garden, and he seemed surprised. Knicks fans know far more about the current crop of college players than a teenager from Italy who they have never seen play.
However, if the Knicks were to take him and he produces like I think he eventually will, he will own New York in the way athletes like Derek Jeter, Brian Leetch and Tiki Barber have in the recent past. He has an infectious smile and a terrific personality.
Former Philadelphia 76er, Casey Shaw, who was a teammate of Gallinari's this season, told me recently that Gallinari just has a gift with people. Gallinari was the team's youngest, best and most popular player. More importantly, Shaw believes that Gallinari has the skills to be a star in the NBA some day, as well.
• CSKA Moscow's Eurocamp Connection
Sheved, Shashkov and Ponkrashov are part of the CSKA Moscow pipeline that, at the moment, has helped build the best professional team in Europe. They have won the Euroleague championship in two of the last three years and could compete with the bottom eight to 10 teams in the NBA on a regular basis.
One of the reasons CSKA has been so successful is that it has an outstanding youth development program. Each year, the club sends its best young prospects to the Eurocamp, and it is paying off. They compete against the rest of Europe's best and are some of the most coachable and competitive players at the camp.
Unlike some other European teams like Turkey's Fenerbahce, which allowed its two young stars to work out for only one hour at the camp, CSKA has no insecurity in sending its players to Treviso to be seen by NBA and European teams because it doesn't feel that it is competing for its own prospects. CSKA has an NBA-level payroll and given what the dollar is currently worth in Europe and the fact that clubs pay the taxes for their players and pay the agent's fees, a $1 million deal with CSKA is like a $5 million NBA contract.
CSKA supports the camp in other ways, as well. Ettore Messina, the legendary Italian coach and acknowledged as one of the best in the world, is currently the coach of CSKA Moscow. He regularly attends the camp and, this year, spoke to the 50 prospects. And his words carry the same weight in Europe that John Wooden's or Dean Smith's would in the United States.
• Euro-Centric?
Because I love working the Eurocamp each year, it does not lessen my love for college basketball at all. But I will tell anyone who listens that there is a joy to coaching smart, skilled players who work hard at the game all the time and play with great passion. Think back to the recent NCAA tournament and how Davidson played the game, and that is what we experience each June in Treviso.
These kids will never be as athletic as American players, but they have been taught the game correctly from the youth level on up, and I wish that anyone who loves basketball could see what the American coaches see each time they return from Italy.
The next time you see St. Anthony's High School coach, Bob Hurley, a Basketball Hall of Fame nominee last year, ask him about his last two years as a member of the Eurocamp coaching staff. In my opinion, he might be the finest coach in our country at any level, and he left shaking his head at how good the level of play has been at the camp.
Hopefully, as the basketball world continues to grow smaller, the influence of international players will continue. The way they play the game will only help our game in America.