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Do Not Draft Serge Ibaka Before Pick #31

The first domestic fan of Serge Ibaka I knew -- FanHouse alumnus Shoals of The Sporting Blog and FreeDarko -- picks up a somewhat funny but ultimately smart request from Ibaka and his agent Justin Zanek, which appeared on DraftExpress.

Basically, Ibaka has a deal to make some good bread in Spain for a few years, more than a set-in-stone rookie scale outside the lottery would pay him. There's no salary scale for second rounders, so the team which owns his rights could theoretically pay enough in a few years to make the transatlantic journey worthwhile for Ibaka.

Ibaka's not alone, though. Turkish big man Omer Asik -- who could be phenomenal in the right system -- either has signed or is about to sign a massive deal in his native country, and shouldn't be picked before #31 either. Nikola Pekovic of Serbia, Ante Tomic of Croatia, and Goran Dragic of Slovenia -- all lesser prospects, but good enough to be drafted -- are in similar situations.

It wouldn't be surprising to see all five of these internationals go within the first 10 picks of the second round. While the Euro Revolution has stalled, there should be enough of Luis Scola bump to lead some teams with full rosters to lock up these prospects' rights.

NBA Draft Live Chat


Will it be Derrick Rose or Michael Beasley that goes number one? What will the Heat do with that number two pick? And just who the heck is Ante Tomic? We may not know the answers to any of these questions until Thursday night, but it doesn't mean we can't take our guesses. Have a look at what every team should do, then head over here with your questions and comments, as we talk NBA Draft today, beginning at 1PM EST.

NBA Draft Crystal Ballin': Chicago Bulls

Crystal Ballin' takes a team-by-team look at what should, could, and probably will happen in the June 26th NBA Draft.

Steve Schanwald, you magnificent bastard. That guy's going to get a statue before Scottie Pippen. And -- depending on just how good the #1 pick turns out -- he might do more than Pippen for Chicago's championship aspirations.

Picks: #1, #39.

Needs:
Depending on who you ask: a power forward better than Drew Gooden, or a point guard better than Kirk Hinrich.

Best case scenario: If these odd rumors about pulling either Dwyane Wade or the #2 pick from Miami actually have heat ... yeah, that's a "best case scenario." The second-rounder is also high enough to matter next training camp.

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