The Wolves' Rasho Nesterovic is a work in progress.

So who is the winner? In the poll you voted for Kukoc over Nowitzki and others.

Don't forget to vote in this week's Decision 2000 topic on top sixth men. Here is the poll from last week and some of the better comments below.

I'm from the Dallas/Fort Worth area and I was the first one who thought this was yet another ill-advised move by Nellie, but Dirk Nowitzki has really gotten it together. He still needs to work on his defense, but there are a lot of players out there (European or not) that can't play good defense. He's one of the best pure scorers out there right now and all he needs is more experience and a little more weight, and the rest will come. He'll be a player with a center's height, a forward's speed and quickness, and a two guard's shooting ability. Nowitzki's upside is out of this world.

Cornell Woolridge
Saratoga Springs, N.Y.

I see that Kukoc is leading the poll right now and I must say that I strongly disagree with those who voted for him. If you were a GM for a NBA team, who would rather have? Toni Kukoc or Dirk Nowitzki? Nowitzki, without a doubt. Nowitzki is a great shooter, can create scoring opportunities, and is improving his D with every game he plays. Kukoc might be able to hit the occasional three, but he can't shoot like he used to. Plus, Kukoc is a liability on defense. They just put him on the worst player on the court and hope they don't test him. Oh, and did I mention, Dirk is 10 years younger. Kukoc has seen his best days, but Dirk is five years from seeing his. That's a lot of upside. I guess Kukoc is first because he has has the privilege to play with great players. Dirk, however, is becoming a great player.

Cliff Wright
College Station, Texas

Dirk Nowitzki is by far the best Euro player and will be one of the best NBA players in the league in two years. He is the total package and can dominate any small forward in the game as a 7-footer. Look at his numbers, he's the best second-year player in the league and has had to adjust to life in the USA, the NBA, and without stability around him as an organization.

Shawn Eldridge
Dallas, Texas

I have voted for Rasho Nesterovic because he's from my city. But honestly -- I think that Vlade and Toni should share the title for best European player!

Ervin Sramel
Ljubjana, Slovenia

I am a little biased here voting for Nesterovic, but he does have a lot of potential. He does have a lot of offensive moves for a big man. He needs to add some bulk. This year he has had two or three 20-point games, which is what the Wolves are looking for, to take some of the scoring grind off of KG. Very young and raw.

Brad Gruhot
Bloomington, Minn.

Detlef is good.
Arvydas is incredible for his size.
Vlade can do everything.
Hats off for all these guys, but Toni is the MAN! The others have still some things to learn.

Bodin Vucinic
Ptuj, Slovenia

Maybe European players would have more respect had Drazen Petrovic lived to reach his (NBA) prime, or had Arvydas Sabonis come to the U.S. when he was in his prime. Or maybe the respect would have come after a game between the former Yugoslavia and the original Dream Team. I guess we'll never know. This way all we have left are flashes of brilliance from Kukoc or Sabonis.

Jurica Susnjara
Portland, Ore.

Very soon Predrag Stojakovic will emerge as the best European player. Offensively he has all the skills: He can pass, shoot with range, and can handle the ball a little. Peja's size makes him tough to guard, especially when he plays the shooting guard. Although he is not a good defender, he has good awareness and comes up with some steals. He is capable of developing into a big-time scorer.

David Olmos
Reno, Nev.

Arvydas Sabonis is my pick for the best European player in the NBA. He matches up very well against any other center in the league, he is a terrific passer and shooter and can get the job done from anywhere on the court. He has very good defensive skills as well. Not being picked to the All-Star team was a terrible oversight.

Peja may not be the best European player, YET, but keep your eye on this youngster. Like most Europeans, he's a terrific ball handler and he has a beautiful jump shot. He's also become tough when driving to the basket. I love that you are helping to spread the rumor that he can't play D. That was true last year, but he's shown tremendous improvement in his second NBA season. Teams who thought he was a defensive liability have learned the hard way that he's no longer a pushover. By next season, Peja will be starting and averaging more than 20 points a game, and you'll be reminded once again why Geoff Petrie is the best executive in the NBA.

Laura Fisher
Oakland, Calif.

Before this year, Arvydas Sabonis would have been my choice without hesitation, but this year has shown me a new Euro-Star in the Magic's John Amaechi. This guy is incredible on and off the court. In a league where finishing school comes somewhere between Hell and High Water, this guy is getting his PhD from Penn State. He is a tireless worker on the court, who often provides the spark the overachieving Magic have needed to get to the playoffs. This guy is absolutely the best of the best from Europe, in all facets of life.

Ron Bowles
Alexandria, Va.

Rik Smits is the best! He is an all-around player, he can play defense, and he can play offense.

Margje Van Der Weide (Rik's mom)
Eindhhoven, Holland

No question about it: The best NBA-European player of all-time is Toni Kukoc. Not because I am from Toni's hometown, but because of his effort to second three-peat by Chicago Bulls, and his versatility: hey, remember that Toni is only player in history of NBA who played all positions in field! Well, there was another one, I think his name was Magic Johnson or something like that. So, Toni is number one. There is no number two and number three: number four is Drazen Petrovic, and number five fantastic Arvydas Sabonis. P.S. There are so many European players in NBA today. One idea for David Stern: think about the match -- American vs. European (or non-American) NBA stars.

Boris Dezulovic
Split, Croatia

I think that in this group, Tariq Abdul-Wahad is the only one who really stands out. Not necessarily because he's the best, but because he is the only one besides Divac who plays solid D, and he IS the ONLY one who makes defense his priority. That makes him stand out. I can't remember there ever being another European defensive specialist, they are all shooters. He is one of the best defensive two-guards in the league, and he can still score off the dribble.

Devyn Petek
Sacramento, Calif.

I think that no European player will ever match the skills of Drazen Petrovic. He had it all, and above all the skills he had the guts. The guy used to be out there with the NBA's best and plays like he owned the court. Remember Barcelona 1992? He was up against the best team in history and showed no fear.

Ali Al-Khalil
Amman, Jordan

Thank you for putting John Amaechi on the list of Europeans. I know he's not the best on that list but he is sure capable of scoring big points. I am an Orlando fan so I will give my vote to him. In my opinion he's been far better than Toni Kukoc (this year anyway). But really I think the most talented, and the guy with the most potential is Dirk Nowitzki.

Alex
Brandon, Fla.

As a fellow German I'm voting for Dirk Nowitzki of course. But if you look at the stats, he really is the leading European player in the league right now. Like others, I'm looking forward to his future development in the NBA and I think he definitely has the potential to become the second German NBA All-Star. I think his most striking ability is his three-point shooting (finishing first in the first round of this year's All-Star shootout). If he works on his defense and constantly improves his stats, all fans in Dallas and Germany will enjoy his play even more! And what else is so striking about him is that he is still so young: He's the youngest player in your list of candidates and among them he's first in points per game. Already having accomplished a career high of 32 points and being one of the top players in the sophomore team in this year's rookie challenge, I think the vote can only be Dirk! As a big German NBA fan, I'm a little bit sad about how things are going for Detlef Schrempf. OK, he's on a team that is a championship candidate, but I'm convinced he's still able to show more than they allow him to in Portland.

Christoph Ebert
Gustavsburg, Germany

You'd have to go with Vlade Divac on this one. Though his numbers are not the best, he took over for Sacramento when Webber was not having a good playoff series against the Jazz. If it were not for his great team around him, he would be getting around 18 and 10 easily. He also is the best leader out of all of them.

Jason Spence
San Diego, Calif.

If he ever gets both feet healthy at the same time Zydrunas Illgauskas could be better than any of these selections. He was MVP of the rookie game two years ago and was really beginning to open some eyes. However, that rookie campaign was actually his second year (missed the first with broken foot) and he hasn't played more than 10 games since due to additional foot problems. This guy makes Bill Walton look like Dr. Scholl.

Brian Loescher
Columbus, Ohio

I would definitely have to say that Toni Kukoc is the best all-around player from Europe. He's an excellent shooter, and overall offensive player, though his defensive skills need a little brushing up on.

Anthony Pasquarella
Marlton, N.J.