Retired - Retired after 2022 season
- Birthdate: 02/22/1985
- Drafted (NBA): 58th pick, 2007
- Pre-draft team: Olimpia Larisa (Greece)
- Country: Greece
- Hand: Right
- Agent: -
June 29, 2017
Giorgios Printezis - 58th pick, 2007
Now aged 32, Printezis too may have missed his NBA window. His offensive skills have developed over his career to the point that he is a significant Euroleague scorer, both spotting up and posting. However, as they have improved, the explosion of his youth has tapered off.
April 2, 2011
Giorgis Printezis (58th pick, 2007)
- Printezis only just joined the Mavs, a necessary yet unnecessary inclusion in the trade that sent Alexis Ajinca to Toronto. He was included as a throw-in in a minor deal for the simple reason that Toronto no longer considers him to be an NBA prospect. In the almost four years since being drafted, Printezis has played for Olympiakos and Unicaja Malaga, both quality places. But he hasn't shone through at either, despite being incredibly highly paid. Having turned 26 in February, Printezis's skills have never caught up to his athleticism, nor his production to his potential, nor his reputation to his salary. Printezis is athletic, aggressive, tough, fearless, rugged, and kind of dirty, an athletic small forward who can defend his position. But he has no mid range game, can't create, dribble or pass with any consistency. And his outside jumpshot, which wasn't bad when he was left open, seems to have left him.
Toronto traded a 2008 second round pick to San Antonio for the rights to Printezis, a pick that was later used on Goran Dragic. It is rarely the right move to trade anything other than cash for picks in the 50's.
Chances of making the NBA expressed as an arbitrary percentage: 1%
June 19, 2010
Not everyone changes teams in the summer. It seems like they do, but some stay on where they are. Those who have signed extensions with their current clubs include Slovakian scoring machine Radoslav Rancik, who has signed a two year deal with Galatasaray, and ex-San Diego State forward Mohamed Abukar, who signed a two year deal of his own with the Swiss champion Lugano Tigers. Dimitris Diamantidis snuffed out the 1% possibility of him ever joining the NBA as he signed a three year extension with Panathinaikos, and Mengke Bateer has re-signed with Xinjiang, staving off his retirement (and inevitable subsequent move into full-time acting) for at least one more year. Ex-Raptors draft pick Roko Ukic took a buyout from Milwaukee part way through last season to join Turkish team Fenerbahce, and he's just signed for two extra years there. And another Raptors draft pick, Giorgis Printezis, has taken a pay cut in signing a two year extension with Unicaja Malaga. For some reason.
April 14, 2010
- Giorgos Printezis
The next great Raptors European hope, Gorgeous Giorgos left Olympiakos in the summer for a big money deal with Unicaja Malaga. He averaged 11.7 points and 4.3 rebounds per game in their Euroleague campaign, alongside 9.8 points and 3.4 rebounds per game in the ACB. Despite this being a website with a focus on player salaries, I tend not to comment upon the salaries of European players, for they are highly speculative and basically impossible to verify. However, Printezis signed with Malaga to a deal that pays 7 figures and then some; therefore, even with Toronto's favourable tax rates (that I don't particularly understand but am aware they exist) for the Raptors to compete with that means using at least a BAE. So a move to the NBA is perhaps not imminent.