Milan Macvan

Milan Macvan - 54th pick, 2011
Talented inside/outside offensive player, off the dribble and with the shot, who lacks for NBA athleticism & who is a very ineffectual defender. Should stay where he is - the higher echelons of Europe.

Cleveland then throws the first of a few curveballs with the selection of Milan Macvan, a Serbian forward who Stu Scott calls a Croatian. (If you don't think that's an important difference, Google some early 90's military history. Bad faux pas from Stu, even if he doesn't know it.) As a documented Macvan fan, I have written of his skills and progression many times, a couple of which can be found by clicking on the emboldened version of his name. Essentially, he is a versatile and highly talented offensive player who just doesn't want it defensively. He's a passer, who can hit some occasional jumpers (albeit while taking too many of them), who posts up well, who has footwork and touch, and who can rebound when he wants to. Macvan has some Motiejunas about him. But he is noticeably shorter than Motiejunas, fatter, far slower, and plays similarly little defense. He is picked here tonight because his talent level is greater than that of someone like Mike Davis or Jamine Peterson, not because he is especially likely to ever join the NBA.

Sofo, brought in from Olympiakos, is in the midst of the best season of his career. This isn't as powerful of a statement as it might have been, given some of the wasted years he had in an Olympiakos jersey, yet it's something. He is playing at what looks to be about 350lbs - which time has proven to be about as slim as you can ever expect from him - and is using it to be an unstoppable scorer in the paint. Sofo averages 12.3 points in only 19 minutes per game, shooting 57% from the field, getting to the line five times a game, and even hitting those free throws at a much improved 67% clip. The only thing that stops him is his own feet - a good number of his alarmingly high 2.4 turnovers per game can be attributed to travels. Macvan, brought in midseason from Serbain team Hemofarm, has slotted in as a face-up scorer off the bench, averaging 3.9 points in 8.6 minutes. He has gone from playing in the high thirties in minutes in the Eurocup, to being a 10th man in the Euroleague, but he's a fine tenth man to have. Macvan is a smooth and fluid scorer, with good hands and great passing vision, able to score in the post, rebound, get open, drive the ball, and hit some jumpshots (albeit far too confident at this latter ability). If he gave even half of the defensive effort that he does on offense, he'd move further up the hierarchy.