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Turkish Prospects

  • Thread starter Thread starter Levenspiel2
  • Start date Start date
Watched the game of Demir Dogan in the Macedonian League and it was fun. This guy will be an insane weapon as a weak side rim attacker. He took the ball from the 3 point line and dunked it without putting the ball on the floor. His strength is growing so his understanding of the game. I like his decisions, could be a bit more selfish. Can easily play in a U20 EC tournament. Still has 3 years of development before eligible for the NBA which is insane.
 
Toruko said:
Today I am like wanting to write about my excitements and expectations for the new season and the outstanding 2004 generation. Unlike the most of our seasons we have many many ballers outside of Turkey who will participate in Europes major leagues.

Sarper David Mutaf (2002) a superb shooter off the dribble and off screens. Averaging 20+ points in the Spanish second league for Murcias second team will participate in the main team next season. Being very talented scorer on the offensive end his defense needs work. Could have a good season which allows him to be in the NT. He has played recently for Gran Canaria in ACB and Eurocup.

Eray Büyükcangaz (2004), a 201cm combo guard with very good handling and very long wingspan. Loves making plays from drive and dish and creates restrictively out off the dribble. He is a very good catch and shoot and catch and drive guy though. He can easily defend 1-3 positions. Good passer as well. We will see to what extend he will play in the ABA league for SC Derby.
A problem could be his skinny frame. Needs to bulk up more.
https://twitter.com/PCristofori03/status/1375913353378414593

Berke Büyüktuncel (late 2004), he is growing and growing. Should be around 6'10 6'11 and is playing with the main team of Tofas. Tbh its not his best time. He struggles finding minutes despite his amazing frame. He seems to have lost ball handling skills and plays more five. One of the fastest catch and shooter that I saw. Couldnt show many of his defensive skills. He can defend 2-5 everything. Could really end up being a 7 footer. Its time for him to work over the summer and start playing. He will get his chance with Tofas. He needs to polish his movements, too raw atm.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RdEtCclHidk&t=686s

Yigit Hamza Mestoglu, (2004) undersized pf center with a very good post game and shooting and rebounding upside. A relentless fighter and a very good defender with a high motor. Has been playing for Murcias second team in the Spanish third league and found minutes in the main team as well. Cant say if he finds a roster spot but its probable.

Efe Tahmaz (2004) very polished 201cm SG/SF/PF very versatile player who combines athleticism with pure shooting and very polished game. Got a pro contract from Partizan. I dont give him much chances in his first year but a very valuable prospect.

Last but not least the most valuable prospect of the Turkish BB beside Demir Dogan. Ege Tan Mestoglu (2004) player from Galatasaray Istanbul. The federation and GS give him all support they can give him. He is leading Galatasarays youth team and the team in the third league.

In order to show his meaning here are the stats.

TB2L (Turkish third league) 33 minutes play time 15 points and 9 assists average
BGL (Turkish youth league) 31 minutes play time 21 points 6 rebounds, 6 assists 3 steals

Shooting needs work but is an elite shot creator and superb ball handler. We will see if GS is brave enough to give him a bench role this season.

This is the most talented generation of Turkey with no big btw but talent doesnt mean that they will reach their peak.
Click to expand...

Ege Tan Yildizoglu is never ever the most important prospect after Demir Dogan. Even in his generation he isn´t. First time i saw Ege Tan for Efes at U13 and he never impressed me. He has solid vision, good character and mentality but he is way too to prone, not good 1v1 player and his scoring is questionable against good competition. It´s very tough to give a young turkish PG minutes at high level. Yigit Tekin is not ready for high level too but he will be unstoppable in U18 european championship, i don´t think the same about Ege Tan.

Eray Büyükcangaz is the most important player of this generation because we need players which can handle the tempo of the game, it doesn't must be a PG, just players which can control the tempo.

The biggest prospect of this generation is Kerem Konan(SF), he has the biggest potential in this generation but big bust potential too.

Ali Hamza Altin(05, Efes, SF) is very interesting, he has very interesting potential.

In this U14 season we see very interesting wing(big) players like Efe Doran Turhanoglu(Efes), Hüseyin Alper Sentürk(Dacka), Efe Tercan(Dacka), Atilla ??????(Besiktas).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SAtpCnaW6ZI

Most likely we will see this kid from Izmir in the next season for a club in Istanbul. Impressive agility. 220 is not an advantage though......
 
Eray Büyükcangaz, Samet Yigitoglu and Demir Dogan in Team Belgrades Allstar team

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This is no Belgrade All Star Team but all players under contract from Aleksandar Raskovic :)

Besides all this should be a very competitive team. At least I cannot think that Raskovic would allow a desaster. It's about his reputation first.
 
So after having watched Belgrads allstar vs Mega (great team) and both Tofas games its time to a first resume:

Lets start with the three Turks of Belgrad mixed up team. First of all I never saw a U18 team who defends like this. Its really mindblowing defense what they play. Great one vs one defense, great helps from the weak side great rotations. It was really difficult to score. Nevertheless...

Eray Büyükcangaz: I wasnt very happy about his decision making. He controls the ball very well for a 6'7 guy but he unnecessarily plays too much with it without producing much. He has size and can see over his guard opponents but his production was weak in the first half. He couldnt dis-balance the defense and he got stucked many times because of mindless driving in open spots. Disappointing game as a play maker. I have to add there was not much harmony in this team, so i wouldnt blame him entirely but he doesnt show much upside as a primarily play maker atm.

Samet Yigitoglu: He is tall, I mean really tall, I mean really really tall... ok, thats enough you should have got it. Additionally to his size he has fast legs which is a very good combination. Just standing in front of a player he shots everything down but still he makes positional mistakes here and there (no big deal). The rebounding numbers look impressive but he doesnt know much about positioning, boxing out is ok atm if he stands randomly correct. He secures the ball, shares it, can even dribble a bit to avoid pressure but he has 0 feeling about where a ball will jump after hitting the rim.

His biggest problem is rolling to the rim: His eye hand coordination is very bad atm. While he moves he cant grab any ball coming from the sides, from high post its ok. This must change. He is not very smart or crafty when it comes to his post move arsenal but he is efficient, has good hands around the rim, very smooth finisher. Another strength is his very good free throw shooting. He has everything to develop a mid range jumper.

There is a long way to go and its difficult to measure his value. He could end up as a total bust or even a NBA big.

Last but not least prodigy (and I mean it) Demir Dogan: A 2006 born 6'9 point forward who can do nearly everything on the court. He has NBA explosiveness and athleticism. He is an unselfish guy who likes to assist then to score. His biggest value is his ball handling skills. He is better than most of Turkish point guards. He is a deadly weapon if you bring defenses out of balance and let him attack the rim. Unstoppable.

He shows flashes of post games but he is more of a face up player. Shooting doesnt look bad but needs work. His frame is great unlike Pokushevski. I cant say that he has a distinct offensive weapon but the setting is awesome.

He is not the most willing defender, just when he wants and feels the momentum he defends well. Especially in post games he gives up and allows second chance points but he is a very good iso play defender, he fouls very often when the guy goes to the rim because of clumsiness but creating a shot against him is impossible.

His positioning as a post defender is bad and he is not very willing to learn from his mistakes, maybe he is too weak right now and doesnt like to fight bigs in the low post.
 
Lets come to the Turkish team Tofas U18... which has won all of its two games...

I had my eyes on 3 guys who have a future as a pro.

Berke Büyüktuncel is probably the famous one and is considered to be the player of this 04 generation with the highest upside. He is listed as 6'8 but he is taller. I would say 6'9 for sure but 6'10 also possible. Shows still a certain skill as a creator and works more in the painted area instead of taking shots. He lost confidence in his shot. No idea why but he is a great shooter normally with a very fast release and high enough. His training with the main team made him tougher, he uses his body well against smaller guys (which are 98% of the guys) but nothing is here ready for the Turkish BSL:

The good: his defense, great active hands, steals balls like nothing, is a very good chase down and weak side shot blocker, knows very well when to come to help.

His problem last season was his lack of athleticism, he improved a lot but there is not much NBA upside except his defense right now.

Ege Demir: 6'9 Turkish big with African roots. Listed as 2004 born but is way older. There is noway that this body belongs to a 18 year old guy, never ever. Nevertheless his defense is great and he has Euroleague strength and speed. He doesnt have impressive skill but what he can he can do very well. Shot blocking, rolling to the rim, a bit face up, hustle and a bit working from the post. He out powers you, so simple.

I see a very good Euroleague player.

Last but not least but the most surprising for me Kerem Kuthan Konan: I never had a deep look at this kid, saw him here and there with Besiktas in the youth but now he seems to be in Bursa with Tofas. Whatever...

Anyway, for being 6'6 and born October 04 he is awesomely crafty, well coordinated and tough. This kid has Serbian toughness. A duracell bunny who doesnt know to give up, absorbs contacts very well, finishes easily with contact at the rim, is a very good rebounder, uses fakes to create shots near the rim but the funniest part of his game is his pesky defense, he makes everypone of his opponents mad with his active hands and peskiness. Its really difficult to describe.

He roles, he hustles under the rim for second chance points, he makes chase down blocks. I cant say anything he doesnt do. His handles looks like he loses the ball anytime but he never does.
 
Kerem Kuthan Konan again with a superb game: very good offensive rebounder, has a feeling for rebounds, can create with fakes around the rim, good touch around the rim, can absorb contact while finishing at the rim and he uses his body very well. A duracell bunny who never gives up on the ball, very good on ball defender, has remarkably many chase down blocks, uses open courts very well.

Shoot mechanic is very very solid and he hits reliably when the shot is open, cant hit when he is in movement. 198 cm and born October 2004. I see NBA upside.
 
It´s really funny that people are not able to see that those heights are almost always bullshit. Kerem Konan is something like 203 without shoes. We saw him 9999999999 times next to Berke Büyüktuncel and Demir Dogan in the last 2-3 days. https://twitter.com/TofasSporKulubu/status/1497497376977821698?cxt=HHwWhIC97cT7lsgpAAAA His height 198 is from summer 2020 Fiba, in that summer were no tournaments but Fiba got heights from all federations. His defense surprised me, he showed more effor as in Turkey. He is a great SF-prospect, with good shot he has very clear NBA-potential with his very wide abilities and IQ. A very little bit Bodiroga? A very very little bit:o

PS: he played just for this tournament for Tofas, he is still Besiktas´ player
 
We Turks tend to overrate or better to say overvalue the average talents who are better off than their mediocre peers on the court.

The truth is that all Turkish basketball education is a disaster. No individual development coaches, we still use old-fashioned basketball methods to train kids (even the coaching books that are certified by the federation belong to 90s), many of the player candidates don't have the basic basketball fundamental or they are good at just one aspect of the game. That's why we have good shooters who can't dribble or pass or defend & good defenders who can't do shit in offense. You can't compete with above-average teams with one-sided players.

According to the guy above, once upon a time Barış Özcan, Barış Hersek, Şafak Edge, Barış Ermiş were the star candidate. They are all disappeared at the highest level of basketball.

Get a life. See the reality. Stop getting hard-ons on so-called prospects who will never satisfy your expectations. Between '98-'06 generation there are only 3 guys who have the potential of being able to difference-makers on NT level.

Bona, Doğan and Mestoğlu.
 

Watched Yigit Mestoglus game. Showed really good scenes as cutter and passer. Very good overall skill set. 19 points, 7 rebounds and 6 assists. Signed a 5 year contract with UCAM Murcia a couple month ago. Could be the solution of our power forward problem.
 

Eray Büyükcangaz played in the local Montenegrin league 26 minutes for SC Derby against Podgorica and contributed 20 points and 3 assists as well as 3 TO.

Numbers look good but I sense a new Okben Ulubay case in this kid. This kid is a diva, an emotional unstable kid with many ups and downs. He has everything to defend 1-3 and his first attempt of defending is often ok but he never follows the ball and gives many second chance opportunities. Shortly said he doesnt like to defend at all.

The good on the other hand is that he can break the pressure very easily a typical drive and kick player who struggles to make plays but he brings a good skill set offensively. Shot selection and making are very good, drives to the rim very well etc but not the player I was hoping for.
 
October 2004 born Besiktas player Kerem Kuthan Konan with a very good game against Fenerbahce. Can have an impact on different ways on the game. Very good rebounder, has very solid post moves and an ok touch around the rim. Shooting touch is also very acceptable. Body is very developed for his age. His 1 on1 defense was ok but he had some trouble reading some pick and roll action.
 
2004 born play maker Ege Tan Yildizoglu is in the Varesa team in the ANGT tournament. Very skilled passing first play maker.

FO7-go2X0AMUPhP
 
Ege Tan Yildizoglu played a superb game with the Varese next generation team. 7 points 7 rebounds 7 assists and 2 steals in 17 minutes.

I liked his defense a lot. His decisions and court vision were great.
 
What a final game in Varese. the Parisian team destroyed the next generation team of Varese in the second half with great defense. Yildizoglu secured the ball very well but he was so under pressure that there was no time to make plays. If these 2m tall guards are 17 years old I am 5 years old.

But I am happy for Tan Yildizoglu because he played a high quality tournament and he wasnt half bad. We could see what he can do on the court and what needs work. Shot in general but creating shots are very important for him. He is a great ball handler and finishing around the rim will get better and he is lightning fast with the ball with great coordination but shots look broken. Good tournament with few prep time.
 
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