Join Europe? Why can t Bamba stay in the NBA at the age of 27?

Latest reports from European media, Serbian basketball club Belgrade guerrillas are interested in Bamba, who is currently a free agent.

It should be noted that this is not the first time Bamba has been tied to a European team this summer. There have been rumors that Greek giant Olympiacos is also interested in Bamba. Antetokounmpo's younger brother, Costas Antetokounmpo, is also playing for this team now.

It can be seen that Bamba's market seems to be good in the European market, but in the NBA market, this summer is a bit quiet.

In such a free market environment that is so friendly to centers, nearly two months have passed, Bamba has not received any NBA team signings, and even rumors have not appeared, indicating that his NBA prospects are very bad.

The reason for this is nothing more than one reason: not strong enough.

Take last season for example. Bamba first played for the Clippers, but he only played 28 games in total, averaging 12.6 minutes per game, scoring 4.6 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.0 blocks, shooting percentage of 46.6% and three-point shooting percentage of 30.0%. Before the transaction deadline, the Clippers and the Jazz reached a deal:

-The Jazz gave Bamba + PJ Tucker + 1 second round pick

-The Jazz gave Eubanks + Mills

The main purpose of the Clippers' transaction was to handle Tucker's contract (the Clippers were below the luxury tax line after the transaction was reached). Bamba was not left by the Jazz as part of the transaction, and the Jazz cut it off after the transaction was completed.

After becoming a free agent, Bamba waited for many teams, such as the Lakers and the Pacers, but none of these teams signed him in the end (the Lakers chose Ryan). It was not until March that Bamba reached a 10-day short contract with the Pelicans.

Baba's performance was not very good during this 10-day short contract. He played in a total of 4 games, averaging 15.3 minutes per game, scoring 2.5 points and 6.3 rebounds, shooting percentage of 44.4%, and 0 of 4 three-pointers combined. After the short contract expired, the Pelicans did not continue to keep him.

Bamba was the 6th pick in the first round of 2018. He was 2.13 meters tall and had a wingspan of 2.39 meters. It was the longest wingspan of the NBA at that time. His talent was top-notch. Therefore, Bamba was once highly expected by many fans, believing that he was expected to become the next super center.

Unfortunately, Bamba's growth did not meet expectations. He spent all of his first four years of his career with the Magic, and his fourth season was his peak, with an average of 10.6 points, 8.1 rebounds and 1.7 blocks per game, shooting percentage of 48.0%, and 38.1% of his three-point shooting percentage.

Because of his performance this season, the Magic gave him a 2-year, 21 million contract renewal in the summer of 2022. It should be noted that this is a 1+1 contract and is insured in the second year.

In the 2022-23 season, Bamba played 40 games in the Magic and was then sent to the Lakers (the Lakers sent Beverly + 1 second round). At that time, he believed that Bamba could become a substitute for Davis or play with Davis.

Ideal is beautiful, but reality is very skinny. During the Bamba Lakers, they only played 9 games in total, averaged less than 10 minutes per game, scored 3.7 points and 4.6 rebounds, shooting percentage of 40.7% and three-point shooting percentage of 31.3%.

Baba was completely abandoned during the Lakers' Western Conference Finals that year, and only played 3 games in total. He played for 10 minutes and did not score a single point.

In the 2023 offseason, the Lakers cut Bamba, and then Bamba joined the 76ers.

This year, due to Embiid's injury, Bamba got a lot of opportunities, playing in a total of 57 games and 40 substitutes, averaging 13 minutes per game, handing over 4.4 points, 4.2 rebounds and 1.1 blocks, shooting percentage of 49.0% and three-point shooting percentage of 39.1%.

As a substitute, it is actually not bad, but the 76ers did not leave him behind, and then Bamba joined the Clippers, and then there were the things mentioned above.

Bamba's advantage is that his static talent is indeed top-notch, his dynamic talent is not bad, his rebounding is excellent, and he can also shoot three-pointers as a center.

But his shortcomings are far more prominent than his advantages: although he has excellent height and arm spread, his defense is really bad, he has no confrontation, no ball quotation, and he is easy to get swing, and the quality of the pick-and-roll is not good; he can end the offensive end, but he likes to shoot three-pointers from the outside (half of the shots at the peak are outside the three-point line), but his shooting percentage is unstable and he cannot be truly used as a space point.

It is worth mentioning that although Bamba performed poorly in the NBA, her performance in the Development League is simply a superstar. In the four G League games that represented the Pelicans last season, Bamba averaged 21.0 points, 14.5 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game, with a shooting percentage of 51.7%, and a three-point shooting percentage of 43.5%.

I saw a very appropriate description of Bamba - he is a very tempting lottery, and every team wants to scrape it, hoping that he will win the lottery, but the Magic, Lakers, 76ers, and Clippers have tried it, and this lottery has already been "thank you for patronizing".

Bamba is only 27 years old now, and he is at his peak. He still has the possibility of staying in the NBA, but even if he stays, he is likely to have a basic salary and he cannot get too much playing time. The possibility of joining Europe is not low. Seeing his performance in the Development League, we can really look forward to what kind of data he will play in Europe when he goes to Europe.