Sixers pick Korkmaz staying in Turkey
LAS VEGAS – Sixers draft pick Furkan Korkmaz will remain in Turkey for at least another season.
The agent of the 26th overall selection says Korkmaz is under contract next season with Anadoulu Efes of the Turkish Super League and can't afford to get out of it.
The buyout price for the 6-foot-8, 170-pounder is $2 million. NBA teams are allowed to pay only up to $650,000 toward a buyout. League rules dictate that players must pay any remaining balance. Korkmaz is slotted to make a little more than $1.02 million in 2016-17 if he signs with the Sixers. He reportedly can pay off his buyout in installments.
Korkmaz would have made around $1.74 million in the NBA as the last lottery pick (14th overall). He thought he would be selected late in the lottery or somewhere in the middle of the first round. That's why he didn't withdraw his name and reapply for next summer's draft.
Only 18 years old and rail thin, Korkmaz could benefit from one or two more seasons overseas. Right now, he's a spot-up shooter who can run off screens. Korkmaz needs to develop his ballhandling and defensive fundamentals to compete in the NBA.
He averaged 5.6 points and 14.3 minutes and shot 43 percent on three-pointers in 29 Turkish league games. He struggled from the foul line, making just 62 percent.
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