NBA fans are eagerly waiting for the calendar to turn to October so that the 2022-23 season can be underway. The fact we are still in August and a while away from NBA action returning is frustrating, but the offseason has kept fans entertained with the various trade sagas around the league.
NBA players have been spotted in action at pro-am games across the country, as well as players making appearances at basketball camps. But for anyone wanting to watch competitive basketball, the best option they have is the WNBA, where a heated playoff race is ongoing.
EuroBasket 2022 is going to provide many fans the taste of competitive men’s basketball that has been missing. A lot of elite European NBA players will be participating in the same to lead their country to glory. 41 NBA and former NBA players are expected to be at the European basketball tournament, including Giannis Antetokounmpo, Luka Doncic, Nikola Jokic, and Rudy Gobert, among others.
Full list:
France: Evan Fournier (New York Knicks), Rudy Gobert (Minnesota Timberwolves), Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot (Atlanta Hawks), Theo Maledon (Oklahoma City Thunder), and Frank Ntilikina (Dallas Mavericks)
Greece: Giannis Antetokounmpo (Milwaukee Bucks), Thanasis Antetokounmpo (Milwaukee Bucks), Tyler Dorsey (Dallas Mavericks), Kostas Antetokounmpo (Free Agent), and Alex Antetokounmpo (G League)
Germany: Dennis Schroder (Free Agent), Daniel Theis (Indiana Pacers), Franz Wagner (Orlando Magic), and Moritz Wagner (Orlando Magic)
Croatia: Bojan Bogdanovic (Utah Jazz), Dario Saric (Phoenix Suns), Ivica Zubac (Los Angeles Clippers), and Mario Hezonja (Real Madrid)
Turkey: Cedi Osman (Cleveland Cavaliers), Alperen Sengun (Houston Rockets), and Furkan Korkmaz (Philadelphia 76ers)
Slovenia: Vlatko Cancar (Denver Nuggets), Luka Doncic (Dallas Mavericks), and Goran Dragic (Chicago Bulls)
Spain: Usman Garuba (Houston Rockets), Juancho Hernangomez (Toronto Raptors), and Willy Hernangomez (New Orleans Pelicans)
Czech Republic: Tomas Satoransky (FC Barcelona), Jan Vesely (FC Barcelona), and Vit Krejci (Oklahoma City Thunder)
Georgia: Goga Bitadze (Indiana Pacers) and Sandro Mamukelashvili (Milwaukee Bucks)
Italy: Simone Fontecchio (Utah Jazz) and Danilo Gallinari (Boston Celtics)
Lithuania: Domantas Sabonis (Sacramento Kings) and Jonas Valanciunas (New Orleans Pelicans)
Ukraine: Alex Len (Sacramento Kings) and Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk (Toronto Raptors)
Serbia: Nikola Jokic (Denver Nuggets)
Bosnia-Herzegovina: Jusuf Nurkic (Portland Trail Blazers)
Finland: Lauri Markkanen (Cleveland Cavaliers)
Israel: Deni Avdija (Washington Wizards)
Montenegro: Marko Simonovic (Chicago Bulls)
Poland: Jeremy Sochan (San Antonio Spurs) [h/t Slice&Dice Basketball]
18 countries will have the opportunity to field NBA players, with France and Greece leading the pack with 5 players. France recently had Joel Embiid declare his allegiance to represent the country internationally, but he won’t be eligible for EuroBasket 2022. Outside Gobert, France will also field Frank Ntilikina, Evan Fournier, Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot, and Theo Maledon.
Greece will be led by Giannis Antetokounmpo and will feature the other 3 Antetokounmpo brothers in Alex, Kostas, and Thanasis as well. The final NBA player on the Greek national team is Tyler Dorsey, who recently signed with the Dallas Mavericks.
The last edition of EuroBasket was won by the underdog Slovenian national team, led by Goran Dragic. A 17-year-old Luka Doncic was also a part of that Gold medal-winning team and will hope to lead the country to another medal finish as the star this edition.
