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I have yet to understand why European scouts don't salivate at the opportunity to head to D-League games the way NBA scouts flock to Europe.



Seriously, these guys are getting paid nothing, a few years ago it was something like $30,000 a season. They're fringe players trying to get recognized by an NBA team but from a European perspective the D-league is oozing with young talent on small paychecks.



More money + better competition in exchange for stepping out of the NBA spotlight. It's a tough deal to turn down.
I'm not sure. Maybe its because there are so many other recruiting options coming from the various college leagues.
There are 3400 Americans playing in Europe. How many are there in NBDL? chances are that is a player is good enough to play pro in Europe, he already is.



European market can't absorve 100% of American players outside NBA.



Think of it, if they did who would play in NBDL?
[quote name='Black Urum' timestamp='1286552069' post='25473']

There are 3400 Americans playing in Europe. How many are there in NBDL? chances are that is a player is good enough to play pro in Europe, he already is.



European market can't absorve 100% of American players outside NBA.



Think of it, if they did who would play in NBDL?

[/quote]



That is a good point Black. USA has a large surplus of players. So Europe and other leagues have plenty to choose from. The international market is not large enough to house them yet. If basketball continues to grow in China and other places this might change. D-League is mainly a NBA farm league specifically built to D(develop)basketball talent for the NBA. There are 16 teams in the NBA D-League. So I would say roughly 256 active players. I believe many players stay in D-league as oppose to going to Europe or elsewhere because they wish to stay in the USA. Many players would rather stay here in the USA and make less money in the short term than travel abroad.
[quote name='Black Urum' timestamp='1286552069' post='25473']

There are 3400 Americans playing in Europe. How many are there in NBDL? chances are that is a player is good enough to play pro in Europe, he already is.



European market can't absorve 100% of American players outside NBA.



Think of it, if they did who would play in NBDL?

[/quote]



I disagree with this, which is why I started the thread. They key difference between the NBDL and European leagues is that the sole purpose of the NBDL is to develop talent thus the games are not as competitive nor important from a team perspective. But in terms of raw individual talent there are some extremely talented yanks playing in the D-League. Some of these guys would not fit in well in Europe but if I am an owner in Europe I'd certainly have my staff go over and be the judge of that.



I am trying to find the average age of players in the NBDL, so far I've been unsuccessful in the search but a fair portion of these guys just came out of college within the past few years and can still be seen as quite raw players.



The D-leaguer earns on average $35,000 but is in constant view of NBA scouts and has the possibility of getting called up to the NBA on any given day but again I think the combination of a more competitive environment and more money should be enough to lure away the talent that you want. Some NBDL players will eventually move overseas after a couple of years in the D-league and others have no desire to leave the US for personal issues. Nevertheless, if I'm running a team in Europe I'd have my scouts paying close attention to the NBDL and working hard to sign up the guys that I want from day one.



Here are some solid players who played in the D-league last year:



DJ Strawberry

Greg Stiemsma

Gabe Pruitt

Alonzo Gee

DJ White

Renaldo Major

Joey Dorsey

Brian Butch

Earl Barron

Rob Kurz (now with Granada)



I would certainly take a chance on any of these guys and find it hard to believe that they are not talented enough to crack the top 3400 Americans in Europe.
Many scouts of European clubs are keeping an eye on NBDL, I'm sure about that. If the clubs needs a player then the priority is to look for a player who plays in Europe whether he's European or not. Because if a player plays in Europe it will be easier for him to adjust to the style of the game played here. As you said some of players in NBDL don't want to move abroad. Others might ask for a big contract if they receive an offer from European team and the team might not be willing to spend that much. There could be some players who might be asking for a clause in their contract which would let them leave for NBA at any time etc.



My point is that the players that are willing to play abroad will be signed if there is a team interested in them. NBDL is not overlooked by European scouts.



It will be interesting to see the stats that would show how many players from NBDL moved to Europe last season for example.
Rumor has it that Antoine Walker may soon be joining the D-League! Crazy way to end his career.
European teams definitely scout the D-League. The reason why not too many D-League players play in the Euroleague is because over the years, most of the very elite D-League players have been pretty terrible Euroleague players.



A few of them have been good, but most of them have been pretty terrible. So as a result of that, Euroleague teams put more stock in former D-League players that have gone on to prove themselves in Europe, say in a domestic league.



And really, most of the small amount of D-League players from the US that have done well in the Euroleague, played in the D-League in the early stages of it. Back when it was played as a competition. Since it changed to a pure developmental league it has not produced a single decent Euroleague player that I can think of.



And to look at the D-League now, I don't see a single player that would be that good in the Euroleague except maybe Anderson and he was always a ball hogging problem. Simply put, the talent pool is not there. The reality is that the REAL reason the D-League exists is so that NBA teams can have some players and coaches go there and they can see what they have and not have to count them on their NBA team.



At this point, the D-League is not even developing any talent even at all. It's a lower level than the NBA Summer League IMHO. Every time I watch the D-League on Versus channel, it's like watching a pickup game with a bunch of average players (when I say average I mean no better than the best player at your local park or rec league).
D-League has players with raw talent and less skill. This new D-league is working well for research and development.
An interesting article by a Lithuanian comparing the D-League to Europe.



Quote:D-League Versus Europe, Part I

By: Erildas Budraitis

Feb 01, 2011 16:02 PM EST



Charles Barkley described the D-League as “just a bunch of guys who don’t want to get a damn job”, while D-League president Dan Reed calls it a real opportunity to open the door to the NBA.



No matter how many new successful D-League’s stories are born every season, American players who have succeeded in Europe don’t even consider playing in the NBA’s minor league. Moreover, they are not interested in going through the 10-day to guaranteed contract process and comparing Europe with the D-League usually makes them smile.



Former NBA player J.R.Giddens, who has decided to leave the USA and come to play in overseas this season, had a chance to evaluate both the D-League and Euroleague levels. Giddens, who has also played in the D-League for the Utah Flash in 08-09 while on assignment by the Celtics, believes the Euroleague is a higher-level competition.



“In Europe, I feel like teams are more organized and more stable,” said Giddens. “You have older guys who have been over here for years, some of them have been in the NBA and then they came back to the Euroelague. I feel like Euroleague is a higher level than the D-League.”



Of course, Giddens is not the only American, who sees more advantages in Europe than in the D-League. Euroleague title contender Olympiakos Piraeus guard Jamon Lucas also sees more reasons for leaving the United States to play in Europe.



“D-League will never be a part of my dream. Never,” Lucas told RealGM. “Because you never know, one player is sitting down and you’re playing great and then you have to get on the bench. You have to know in D-League there’s lot of things outside of basketball that matters. In Europe, best players play most of the time. You come out and show what you can.”



Darrick Leonard, currently playing in the second Lithuanian league, also would not take a chance to play in the D-League versus Europe, but understands athletes who made a different decision.



“Europe to me is more of an all-around experience,” said Leonard. “You get a chance to travel around the world, meet different people and experience their culture. It's a once in a lifetime opportunity! I feel blessed to be in a situation that allows me to do so. Not everybody gets this opportunity, and maybe some players would not choose it, which is why they choose the D-League route.



“I've met some great guys abroad and if I had a chance to play in the D-League versus come to Europe... I'd choose Europe 99 out of 100 times!”



Nevertheless, money is probably the most important factor for American players, who moved overseas. Some of them have never thought about playing in the D-League just because of incredibly low salaries.



“I never consider about playing in D-League,” said Panathinaikos Athens guard Drew Nicholas, who has played in Europe for seven years. “To be honest, those guys don’t make any money and they are chasing very very slight dream to get a call-up from the NBA and hopefully stick with the NBA team but those chances are so slim.”



According to the several sources, D-League players’ salaries are around $12,000 to $24,000 per season. That is less than a foreign player could earn in an average European second league’s club, while Euroleague players’ salaries usually start from $100,000 per season.



“I don’t want to make it a “money thing” but they don’t pay a lot for players, who could make more money over here. I see a lot of people losing a lot of money because of chasing the NBA,” Lucas said. “Playing for Olympiakos is like playing for low team in the NBA.”



Players in Europe also don’t have to pay taxes, unlike NBA players, and a club is also paying for player’s living expenses. And it seems that players from the States enjoy that.



“If I can play here for the rest of my life, I will do that,” Lucas said.



“We as American basketball players can always go back home and continue our American lifestyle,” said Leonard. “I think that's pretty easy but to experience other peoples lifestyle, and eat what they eat, live how they live, is a life changing experience.”



The issue I have is that "Europe" is a pretty broad entity. The Euroleague and teams playing in the EuroCup are by-in-large superior to the D-League and there is no comparison.



Conversely, I like what the chap playing in the second division in Lithuania said about experiencing the world. I would do the same if I was a pro basketball player but in terms of sheer quality, the second Lithuanian division should not be in the same discussion as the D-League. I'd compare the D-League teams to a level of those playing in Holland or Belgium. The raw talent of the D-League players is much better than players in Holland or Belgium but the teamwork and culture in Holland or Belgium is much better than in the D-League.



There's also a few issues that I have with the article, namely I had previously read about 5 years ago that the average salary in the D-League was $27k. I cannot imagine that anybody earning $12k is playing a full season. That stat seems really low; however, the point of the NBDL salaries being a fraction of what players can earn in Europe is legit.



The no taxes comment is nonsense though. As an American who was working in Europe on a EU contract/salary for the past several years I still had to file taxes annually in the US. If a US citizen is paying taxes abroad and those taxes are higher than they are in the US (which they almost certainly are in any European country) then the US citizen doesn't owe the US government anything. If, however, their income has not been taxed abroad, they'll owe the US government a ton of money. Any player receiving non-taxed money in Europe is highly exposed to US tax law.
[quote name='skangles' timestamp='1296696974' post='28340']

An interesting article by a Lithuanian comparing the D-League to Europe.







The issue I have is that "Europe" is a pretty broad entity. The Euroleague and teams playing in the EuroCup are by-in-large superior to the D-League and there is no comparison.



Conversely, I like what the chap playing in the second division in Lithuania said about experiencing the world. I would do the same if I was a pro basketball player but in terms of sheer quality, the second Lithuanian division should not be in the same discussion as the D-League. I'd compare the D-League teams to a level of those playing in Holland or Belgium. The raw talent of the D-League players is much better than players in Holland or Belgium but the teamwork and culture in Holland or Belgium is much better than in the D-League.



There's also a few issues that I have with the article, namely I had previously read about 5 years ago that the average salary in the D-League was $27k. I cannot imagine that anybody earning $12k is playing a full season. That stat seems really low; however, the point of the NBDL salaries being a fraction of what players can earn in Europe is legit.



The no taxes comment is nonsense though. As an American who was working in Europe on a EU contract/salary for the past several years I still had to file taxes annually in the US. If a US citizen is paying taxes abroad and those taxes are higher than they are in the US (which they almost certainly are in any European country) then the US citizen doesn't owe the US government anything. If, however, their income has not been taxed abroad, they'll owe the US government a ton of money. Any player receiving non-taxed money in Europe is highly exposed to US tax law.

[/quote]



Damn. Skangles! What a very interesting article! Yeah I would never think that D-League talent rivaled Euroleague talent. I don't think anyone thought that BUT its interesting to hear what American athletes think about the level of competition. Ive watched a few D-league games via NBA.com and Ive noticed two types of players. Players that 1. Have amazing physical talent but insufficient skill. 2. Players with great skill BUT may not have the physical gifts to make it to the NBA.
the d-league is in no way comparable to the euroleague. not even the eurocup or a couple of domestic leagues imo.