Point guard Mark Lyons is headed to the sixth country of his professional basketball career. Lyons signed with Enisey Krasnoyarsk early Jan. 17, joining the Russian side hours after agreeing to a buyout from Turkish side Gaziantep, where he spent the first half of the season. The Arizona product averaged 14 points and 4.1 assists per game in all competitions for Gaziantep, his second stint in Turkey after playing for Usak Sportif in 2016.
Lyons will be joining a Enisey side that is struggling both domestically and in European play. They are 3-7 in the VTB United League, and 2-9 in their group in the Basketball Champions League. The point guard is a two-time Israeli League All-Star and wonthe Israeli League in 2016 with Maccabi Rishon LeZion.
Patrick Miller is joining Gaziantep for the rest of the season. The former Tennessee State star signed with the Turkish side early Jan. 16, with Miller's agent announcing the signing via Twitter.
Miller started the season with Partizan NIS in Serbia, averaging 15.8 points and 4.6 assists per game across all competitions, which included both the Adriatic League and the FIBA Europe Cup. This season is Miller's first abroad since the 2014-2015 season, where he played in Turkey for Besiktas and Yesilgiresun Belediye. He's spent the past two seasons in the NBA G League playing for the Texas Legends (2015-2016) and the Sioux Falls Skyforce (2016-2017). According to his agent, Gaziantep bought out Miller's contract after a tremendous first half of his season, and he is signed with the Turkish side through the end of the year.
Gaziantep could certainly use his help; the team is in second-to-last place in the Turkish Basketball Super League with a 3-12 record, and is at the bottom of its group in the Basketball Champions League with a 2-8 record. Miller's play-making abilities will certainly give a boost to the team in the short term, and will hopefully help them carve out a few more wins.
Partizan NIS has signed combo guard Kwame Vaughn through the rest of the season, according to several sources. Vaughn played the first half of the 2017-2018 season with Aris Thessaloniki. In 11 games across all competitions for the Greek side, Vaughn averaged 9.0 points and 2.0 rebounds per game, career lows in both categories.
Vaughn will join a Partizan NIS side that is sitting in fifth place in the ABA League with an 8-8 record. However, Partizan is in a much better position than the 5-7 team he left in Greece. Serbia will be the seventh country that Vaughn has played in during his five-year career after graduating from Cal State Fullerton in 2013. He was named in the FIBA Europe Cup's 'Starting Five' in 2016.
Lawal has played in eight countries so far in his career, with Iran being the ninth. He has also spent time in the US with four different NBA G League teams, as well as playing for the Phoenix Suns during the 2010-2011 season. Pertochimi is in the middle of the Iranian Basketball Super League playoffs after finishing the regular seaosn with a 15-1 record, and faces Mahram in the semifinal round
BOTW takes us to Israel for the second week of 2018, where a huge performance byJordan Loyd catapulted him into the conversation. Loyd made all six of his two-point field goal attempts to finish with 30 points and 11 rebounds as Hapoel Eilat cruised by Ironi Nes Ziona 85-69. The Indianapolis grad nearly doubled his scoring average of 17.0 points per game, making this scoring outburst an easy call for Baller of the Week.
Aaron Jones is a third-year forward playing in Finland, the third country he's played in after stops in Germany and Bulgaria. He's currently having the best season of his professional career, averaging 16.7 points and 11.5 rebounds per game. We talked to Jones about how he's adjusted to playing in Finland this season.
1. What team do you play for in Finland, and where in the country is it located? My team is called Salon Vilpas. The country is located in the North Pole. 2. Are there any other Americans on your team? I have three other Americans on my team: John Jordan, Torbin Carberry and Javontae Hawkins. 3. What's the level of play like in Korisliiga (Finland's top division)? It's hard to say how the competition is because this is the best year I've had stat wise, but it's also been the hardest I've ever worked. 4. What has been the biggest adjustment to playing in Finland? On the court, I've had to adjust not playing downhill and playing with my back to the basket. Off the court, lifting weights on game days has been one of the biggest adjustments. 5. What are some of your goals for this season? My goals are simple: win as many championships as possible. 6. What's one thing that's surprised you about living in Europe? What's been your favorite thing so far? That Finland doesn't use chemicals in their food. My favorite thing is that I get to experience different cultures.
J.P. Prince has signed a month-long contract with the Antibes Sharks in France, Sportando and other outlets are reporting. The cousin of former NBA player Tayshaun Prince, J.P. last played in the spring of 2017 for Orleans Basket, which plays in the same division as Antibes (LNB Pro A) in France. He averaged 12.3 points and 5.8 assists per game in eight games for Orleans at the end of the 2016-2017 season. Prince has also played in France during the 2015-2016 season, when he suited up for Cholet Basket.
The Antibes Sharks currently sit in the bottom half of the LNB Pro A standings at 6-9, so Prince's playmaking abilities will certainly help in the short term for the club. |