Ryan Toolson is coming back to Spain. The shooting guard signed with ICL Manresa earlier today, returning to the Liga ACB for the first time since he played for Unicaja from 2013-2015. More recently, he spent two seasons in Russia with Zenit Saint Petersburg before spending last year in Turkey with Istanbul Buyuksehir Belediyesi.
The Utah Valley grad averaged 12.0 points and 3.2 assists per game, including a 14.9 points per game clip in the FIBA Europe Cup, as Istanbul BB finished the Turkish Basketball Super League with an 11-19 record and finishing in third place in group play in the FIBA Europe Cup. He joins a Manresa team that is headed back to Liga Endesa after winning the LEB Gold championship, Spain's second division, last season.
After three year's in Germany's second division, Joe Lawson is getting a shot at the big time. The big man joined the Crailsheim Merlins in the Basketball Bundesliga, the top league in Germany, after spending three year's in the Pro A league - one year with the Oettinger Rockets and the past two seasons with Niners Chemnitz. The University of Indianapolis grad has averaged double-digit scoring at every stop he's been in so far during his career, including 12.9 points to go along with a career-high 7.8 rebounds per game last season with Chemnitz as the team finished outside of the playoff bracket.
He will be joining a familiar team however, as Crailsheim was in the Pro A last season but got promoted to the BBL after finishing in second place in the regular season and in the Pro A playoffs. Lawson has spent his entire career in Germany after graduating from Indianapolis in 2015, and will look to prove his worth in the Basketball Bundesliga.
Alex Young has reportedly signed in Russia with Enisey Krasnoyarsk. The wing comes to Enisey from Israel, where he spent last season with Ironi Nahariya in the Israeli Winner League. Young had a stellar season with Nahariya, averaging 17.1 points and 5.4 rebounds per game for the team as they finished 13-20 and advanced to the quarterfinals of the Winner League playoffs.
The two-time Israeli League All-Star will be joining an Enisey Krasnoyarsk team that finished tied for last place in the VTB United League after finishing with a 6-18 record. Young has been a scorer everywhere he's gone in his career, averaging at least 14 points per game in every country he's played in, so hopefully his scoring will help Enisey improve on their record this year.
After a season away, Kenny Hayes is returning to Buyukcekmece in Turkey. The point guard signed with the Turkish team for next season after spending last season in France with Limoges CSP. Hayes averaged 11.9 points and 2.8 assists per game across all competitions for Limoges, including a 12.3 points per game average in France's LNB Pro A as his team advanced to the semifinals of the league playoffs, as well as the second stage of EuroCup play.
The Miami (OH) product will be joining a Buyukcekmece team that went a dismal 10-20 in the Turkish Basketball Super League and advanced to the second round of the FIBA Europe Cup. Hayes has also played in Italy, Kazakhstan, Israel, Venezuela, Spain and the United States during his career.
Brian Roberts will be spending next season in Spain after signing for Unicaja in Liga ACB. Roberts spent last season with Olympiacos in Greece, where he averaged 7.6 points per game across all competitions as Olympiacos went 22-4 and advanced to the finals of the Greek A1 league playoffs. His team also went 19-11 in the Euroleague, advancing to the quarterfinals of the Euroleague playoffs.
He joins an Unicaja team finished the Liga ACB regular season with a 19-15 record, advancing to the quarterfinals of the league playoffs. The 32-year-old out of Dayton will be playing in the EuroCup with Unicaja as well as suiting up in Liga ACB. Roberts also played in the United States for three NBA teams between 2012 and 2017.
Donta Smith is headed to the LNB Pro A in France after signing with Pau-Lacq-Orthez. Smith comes to the French side after spending last season with New Basket Brindisi in Italy's top division. The former NBA player averaged 12.1 points and 5.5 rebounds per game in 22 games for Brindisi as the team went a dismal 9-21 to finish near the bottom of the league standings.
He will be joining a Pau-Lacq-Orthez team that snagged the last playoff spot in the LNB Pro A, advancing to the quarterfinals of the league playoffs. Smith was named the MVP of the Israeli Winner League in 2014, and will be playing in the ninth different country in his career when he begins play with Pau-Lacq-Orthez in the fall. He also played in the NBA with the Atlanta Hawks from 2004-2006.
In this edition of the Weekly Roundup we have a few major teams re-signing their guys, while another signs a multi-year contract in Greece. On to the roundup!
Kirolbet Baskonia re-signed sharpshooter Matt Janning.
Ray McCallum signed with Darussafaka Dogus in Turkey after spending last season with Unicaja in Liga ACB (Spain). EWE Baskets Oldenburg signed Will Cummings to a new contract. Cummings played for Darussafaka Dogus in the Turkish Basketball Super League. Alex Ruoff will play for the first time since the 2016-2017 season after signing for Mitteldeutscher BC in the Basketball Bundesliga. DJ Stephens re-signed with Le Mans Sarthe Basket in France. Chris Wright inked with Pallacanestro Trieste in Italy after spending last year with Pallacanestro Reggiana. Olympiacos signed Nigel Williams-Goss to a multi-year contract. Williams-Goss spent last season in Serbia with Partizan NIS. D.J. Cooper remains with AS Monaco Basket after signing with the team for another year. Rookie Gabe Levin signed with Bnei Herzeliya in Israel. PAOK Thessaloniki signed Jamal Jones. Jones spent last season with Scaligera Basket.
Know of a signing that should be included in the Weekly Roundup? Hit us up at ballersabroad@gmail.com or tweet us @BallersAbroad.
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