Damian Johnson gets timberwolves workout

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Per this tweet ..

just found out i got a workout with the t wolves on the 21st of june
 

not to be a downer, but doesn't pretty much every gopher work out for the t-wolves? if this is something different congrats to him...
 

This is 3 days before the draft. Good for Damian. Could lead to D League or Euro League start. Connections....

I should add, Damian has been working his butt off since the season ended.
 

I thought his amateur eligibility was over.

I'm funny today.
 



I always thought the Euro would be more attractive than the D-League. You get paid way more and have a chance to live in a place that people always dream of touring.
 

BigGopherFan said:
I always thought the Euro would be more attractive than the D-League. You get paid way more and have a chance to live in a place that people always dream of touring.
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A player like DJ isn't going to get a whole lot of money in Europe as a rookie anyway, and there are far more teams in undesirable locations in Europe than there are teams in the areas where people want to go. D-League is about the exposure, it's the most scouted league in the world by both NBA teams and overseas teams. There are a lot of cases where it works out better for a player than being stuck in some craphole town like Cholet, France or Galil Israel.
 

I know its not a for sure thing, but if he could ever develop a consistent jump shot, there's no reason why he couldn't play the 3 and be a solid defender, ala Bruce Bowen.
 

Macc_Aviv said:
A player like DJ isn't going to get a whole lot of money in Europe as a rookie anyway, and there are far more teams in undesirable locations in Europe than there are teams in the areas where people want to go. D-League is about the exposure, it's the most scouted league in the world by both NBA teams and overseas teams. There are a lot of cases where it works out better for a player than being stuck in some craphole town like Cholet, France or Galil Israel.
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I think DJ could make some serious Euro money right away. Jonte Flowers inked a decent-sized contract right out of Division II Winona State. There are a couple guys from the North Dakota State basketball team playing and making a great living in Europe too. But you're right, there are some crappy places to play over-seas and they get 1-year contacts only.
However, playing for the Dakota Wizards of the D-League doesn't sound all that exciting either.
 



BigGopherFan said:
I think DJ could make some serious Euro money right away. Jonte Flowers inked a decent-sized contract right out of Division II Winona State. There are a couple guys from the North Dakota State basketball team playing and making a great living in Europe too. But you're right, there are some crappy places to play over-seas and they get 1-year contacts only.
However, playing for the Dakota Wizards of the D-League doesn't sound all that exciting either.
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thats unfair though because the kids who lived in North Dakota got used to living in an all white frozen land, so they can go to Russia and not feel any different then they felt during college. People who lived in civilization during college would have a tough time adjusting.
 

yeah the T-wolves need him...among lots of other things.
 

they should trade th3 4th pick to the 76ers for the 2nd pick and take Brands contract.
 

Macc_Aviv said:
A player like DJ isn't going to get a whole lot of money in Europe as a rookie anyway, and there are far more teams in undesirable locations in Europe than there are teams in the areas where people want to go. D-League is about the exposure, it's the most scouted league in the world by both NBA teams and overseas teams. There are a lot of cases where it works out better for a player than being stuck in some craphole town like Cholet, France or Galil Israel.
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You sound like you speak from experience :)

I know someone who has played in some crappy places in France, and I would concur with you based on his assessment.
 




dpodoll68 said:
For what? Do you want them to field an entire roster of 4s?
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well that way we can at least get Turner. It would blow having Brand, but by the time his contract is up we would ideally be competitive again.
 

BigGopherFan said:
I think DJ could make some serious Euro money right away. Jonte Flowers inked a decent-sized contract right out of Division II Winona State. There are a couple guys from the North Dakota State basketball team playing and making a great living in Europe too. But you're right, there are some crappy places to play over-seas and they get 1-year contacts only.
However, playing for the Dakota Wizards of the D-League doesn't sound all that exciting either.
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Jonte made 45k playing in Sweden as a rookie, which is one of the lowest leagues in Europe. He had a great year there and last year signed with Vichy in France for 80k. France is considered the 7th best domestic league in Europe. DJ can probably expect anywhere from 40-80k if he chooses to go overseas as a rookie. Money has really been down in Europe outside of the top 5 teams.

Teams at the top level in Europe just don't take rookies anymore. 0 American rookies played in the Spanish ACB season last year. 2 years ago the highest paid rookie player in Europe made 160k, and most of the rest made 80k and lower (but this money is also the amount after taxes as well, minus the small amount the fudge to the IRS when they come back to the United States).

The best option for overseas rookies these days is probably the hardest for them to commit to, since it costs them the chance to go to NBA training camps. The Korean Basketball League pays a 25k a month minimum for American players and they get 2 imports per team. And players who played the last 2 years in a top 6 league in Europe or in the NBA in the last 3 years aren't eligible to play in Korea, so it really narrows down the talent pool.

As far as the D-League goes, I'm very familiar with cities and situations from personal experience. Some of the situations are harder than others, but it's a truly great opportunity to be scouted and make better money. Bismarck in the middle of winter is one of the hardest trips to make, but you do get to go to Austin as well. The Los Angeles team is going inactive for a year though, that was always my favorite trip.
 

Juicer said:
You sound like you speak from experience :)

I know someone who has played in some crappy places in France, and I would concur with you based on his assessment.
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One of my best life experiences so far was spending a month in Israel with a friend who is very connected into basketball over there. I went to every city that had a first division team. Tel Aviv and Jerusalem were great.

When I got off the plane after first landing over there, my friend picked me up from the airport with the agent for Omri Casspi, and we drove 3 hours north to the Lebanon border to a small city called Galil to watch Casspi play (he was on loan from Maccabi Tel Aviv). This was also right after the Hezbolah war had wrapped up. I was scared for my safety at first, but was assured that we were so close to Lebanon that they wouldn't fire Rockets at the city because they might hit Lebanon instead of Israel.

About 3 or 4 of the cities were great, but the rest I would never want to live in. And it's mostly the same with every country in Europe as far as basketball goes.
 


Macc_Aviv said:
One of my best life experiences so far was spending a month in Israel with a friend who is very connected into basketball over there. I went to every city that had a first division team. Tel Aviv and Jerusalem were great.

When I got off the plane after first landing over there, my friend picked me up from the airport with the agent for Omri Casspi, and we drove 3 hours north to the Lebanon border to a small city called Galil to watch Casspi play (he was on loan from Maccabi Tel Aviv). This was also right after the Hezbolah war had wrapped up. I was scared for my safety at first, but was assured that we were so close to Lebanon that they wouldn't fire Rockets at the city because they might hit Lebanon instead of Israel.

About 3 or 4 of the cities were great, but the rest I would never want to live in. And it's mostly the same with every country in Europe as far as basketball goes.
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Great story. In 2007 I was in Tel Aviv for work, and at the hotel one morning I was eating breakfast, and the team from Jerusalem walked in (must have been playing later that day). Mario Austin (formerly of Mississippi State) sat at a table next to me, and I started talking to him a little. He sounded happy playing there and was actually pretty friendly. It was weird to see a guy I used to watch on ESPN in Israel.

BTW, Israel is a fascinating place. I wish I would have spent more time there...
 

I was talking with an aunt of Jared Homan, Iowa St. big guy from a few years ago. She said another downside to Europe is actually getting paid. This isnt the first I have heard about this either.
 

Juicer said:
Great story. In 2007 I was in Tel Aviv for work, and at the hotel one morning I was eating breakfast, and the team from Jerusalem walked in (must have been playing later that day). Mario Austin (formerly of Mississippi State) sat at a table next to me, and I started talking to him a little. He sounded happy playing there and was actually pretty friendly. It was weird to see a guy I used to watch on ESPN in Israel.

BTW, Israel is a fascinating place. I wish I would have spent more time there...
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Yes, Mario spent two years with Hapoel Jerusalem. Good guy but doesn't quite care enough about basketball to keep himself in peak playing shape. He was one of the top bigs in Europe that season though, particularly on the offensive end of the floor.

I recommend Israel to a lot of the players I coach if they look to go overseas because a very high percentage of the people speak English, it's very Americanized, the women are hot, and the food is amazing as well. I would estimate that it's the 6th best domestic league in Europe as well.
 

march madness said:
I was talking with an aunt of Jared Homan, Iowa St. big guy from a few years ago. She said another downside to Europe is actually getting paid. This isnt the first I have heard about this either.
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I totally believe this as well. Getting paid on time has always been an issue for a good number of Americans playing in Europe. These days the players get most of their money in Europe, but the team being a month behind on the pay is a very common thing.

With the collapse of the financial markets in Greece there is a huge budget drop going on with the teams over there right now. Also, many of the Adriatic teams had to let players go halfway through the season this year because they couldn't afford to make any payments. Micah Downs' team in Croatia quit paying him around January and he broke his contract and finished the year in Belgium.

Increasingly you'll see top Americans go from the NCAA to South Korea or China instead of Europe, because they actually pay on time in those leagues (Japan too as well as the Philippines, but for less money). In South Korea the min. for an American player is 25k a month plus they get a credit card with $100 daily limit for meals as well as great housing. All the teams are owned by large corporations like LG, and the smallest budget in the league is 4.5 million dollars per season.
 

So Macc Aviv, Nick Nurse takes the job with Iowa State right before McDermott bails. I don't see him on the staff at Creighton. Where did he end up? Back with the Iowa Energy?
 

fan of Ray Williams said:
So Macc Aviv, Nick Nurse takes the job with Iowa State right before McDermott bails. I don't see him on the staff at Creighton. Where did he end up? Back with the Iowa Energy?
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Yes, and still getting his $250K from Iowa State . . . for two days of "work."
 



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