Zona adds top European possibility Murauskas
Paulius Murauskas, among the top European potential customers in his age, has signed a letter of intent with the Arizona Wildcats, he informed ESPN on Wednesday.
“My decision to go to the NCAA is all about enhancement,” Murauskas informed ESPN. “Particularly physical enhancement to be able to contend in high-intensity games. Personally, I think that this will be the best location for my further advancement as an individual and as a basketball player.”
The 6-foot-9 forward from Lithuania led the FIBA U18 European Championship in scoring last summertime at 20.7 points per game, ending up 2nd in player effectiveness ranking (PER) behind MVP Izan Almansa.Editor’s Picks 2 Associated Murauskas was determined as a top-tier prospect in Lithuania from an early phase, making his first-division launching with his home club of Zalgiris already as a 16-year old. He brings a wealth of experience for a player his age, playing 61 games at the pro level in the EuroCup and Lithuanian very first division this season, averaging 6 points and 3 rebounds in 15 minutes per game, shooting 68 %from 2-point variety and 34% for 3. He played up as a 17-year-old on loan in the first department with Nevezis last season, averaging 8.4 points in 20 minutes per game, a rarity at this level of competition.Murauskas offers significant inequality capacity at the college level with his strong
frame and exceptional ballhandling, shot-creation and passing ability at 6-9, seeing minutes at both forward spots this past season for Lietkabelis, which completed in 4th place in Lithuania. He brings a level of physicality you don’t frequently see from players his age, attacking defenders non-stop, pushing off the defensive glass and getting to the complimentary throw line prolifically everywhere he has actually played.”I believe that the adjustment will spend some time,”Murauskas said.”This is even regular for older American players concerning various European leagues
. Nevertheless, I think that my experience in Europe betting mature players will assist me adjust more quickly. I played at a really high level for 2 years now, and I believe my flexibility, size and abilities will be successful in the NCAA.” The Wildcats have a strong nucleus of guards and huge men, drawing in highly related to transfers Caleb Love (North Carolina), Jaden Bradley(Alabama )and Keshad Johnson (San Diego State
)to go along with three crucial returners in Oumar Ballo, Pelle Larsson and Kylan Boswell. With his border skill and improving jumper, Murauskas needs to have the ability to see some minutes at the little forward position for Arizona next season, where there are minutes to be had.Arizona head coach Tommy Lloyd developed his track record as a global basketball recruiting maven at Gonzaga by drawing in the similarity Domantas Sabonis(Lithuania), Ronny Turiaf( France), Rui Hachimura(Japan), Kelly Olynyk (Canada), Mario Kasun(Croatia)and others, and Murauskas continues that custom in addition to previous nationwide group and Zalgiris teammate Motiejus Krivas, a 7-foot-2 center who will be joining him in Tucson next season.Murauskas will be the seventh global player on Arizona’s lineup next season, signing up with Krivas(Lithuania), Ballo(Mali), Larsson(Sweden), Henri Veesaar(Estonia ), Filip Borovicanin(Serbia )and Conrad Martinez (Spain). Jonathan Givony is an NBA draft expert and the founder and co-owner of DraftExpress.com
, a personal scouting and analytics service utilized by NBA, NCAA and international teams.