TAMPERE (Finland) - The eyes of the basketball world will be set on Finland for the next few days, as Europe's future stars will be on show at the FIBA U18 EuroBasket in Tampere.
We've selected 10 players to watch during the tournament in a list that includes future college standouts, pro-level stars and potential NBA impact players. You can vote below for which player you think will make the biggest impact in this year's competition.
Make sure to also check out the players to watch in the Division B, which will be taking place in Skopje, North Macedonia.
Noa Essengue - France
Power Forward
Birth Date: December 18, 2006 (17 years old) Height: 2.09m (6ft 10in) Club: BBU 01 Ulm (GER)
After averaging 10.6 points and 4.3 rebounds in last year's U18 EuroBasket, Essengue had a breakthrough 2023-24 season where he put up a dominant performance at ANGT and made his debut for Ulm in the German Basketball Bundesliga. Essengue is an unstoppable force with the ball in his hands, showing a tremendous combination of size, speed and ball-handling ability which makes him an incredibly difficult cover for defenders when he gets downhill. His 2.09m size and length allows him to also be a factor as a rebounder and rim protector who can contest and block shots as a help defender.
Essengue will be one of the highest-upside players in Tampere, with his elite combination of size, ball-handling ability, shooting flashes and defensive impact. France's one-two punch of Essengue and Nolan Traore will not only be the key on their quest for their first U18 EuroBasket title since 2016: it will be must-watch basketball.
Nolan Traore - France
Point Guard
Birth Date: May 28, 2006 (18 years old) Height: 1.92m (6ft 4in) Club: SQBB- JSC (FRA)
Traore has been generating tremendous buzz in scouting circles during 2024, after a strong appearance at ANGT, where he averaged 24.7 points and 6.5 assists per game, and, especially, after his late-season stint for Saint-Quentin in the French LNB Elite where he looked like a seasoned veteran in just nine games for the team. Traore is a floor general who can control the tempo of the offense and find teammates in the half-court, but his most impressive moments come when he calls his own number. He's a versatile shooter who can hit tough pull-up jumpers with ease, and his combination of tough and optimal positional size at 1.92m, allows him to be an effective scorer around the rim.
Traore is a name to watch for the 2025 NBA Draft, and France will need his elite offensive creation to improve on last year's fourth-place finish and take home their fifth U18 EuroBasket title.
Neoklis Avdalas - Greece
Small Forward
Birth Date: February 4, 2006 (18 years old) Height: 2.00m (6ft 7in) Club: Panathinaikos Aktor Athens (GRE)
Avdalas is someone who has made an impact consistently for Greece in FIBA Youth competitions, being named to the All-Star Five at U16 EuroBasket 2022, and being an important piece in last year's U18 EuroBasket, where he averaged 12.6 points, 4.2 assists and 3.8 rebounds per game. The Greek point forward is able to utilize his combination of 2.00m size and passing vision to find teammates with creative and accurate deliveries over the top of the defense. Avdalas can also leverage his mix of size, body control and ball-handling ability to get to the rim and to convert jumpers off-the-dribble.
Avdalas will form one of the most talented duos in Tampere with Eleftherios Liotopoulos, providing the necessary playmaking next to the high-scoring profile of the St. John's commit.
Ben Saraf - Israel
Guard
Birth Date: April 14, 2006 (18 years old) Height: 1.95m (6ft 5in) Club: Elitzur Kiryat Ata (ISR)
At his young age, Saraf has already made an impact at the professional level, averaging 10.4 points and 3.6 assists per game during the 2023-24 season for Elitzur Kiryat Ata in the Israeli BSL. A dominant scorer who put up a tournament-leading 24.3 points per game mark at the FIBA U16 EuroBasket 2022, Saraf is a versatile shotmaker from three-point range, and he is able to utilize his combination of 1.95m size, creative handling ability and body control to get to his spots and finish around the basket.
After spending most of the 2010s in Division B, Israel returned to the top division in 2022 and quickly established themselves as a contender, with back-to-back top-eight finishes. This year, with Saraf and Omer Mayer on board, they'll have plenty of offensive firepower to contend for a title.
Savo Drezgic - Serbia
Point Guard
Birth Date: August 11, 2006 (17 years old) Height: 1.92m (6ft 4in) Club: Partizan NIS (SRB)
Drezgic has been making waves on both sides of the Atlantic, appearing in different youth tournaments for Partizan, while also being a highly touted recruit in the high school class of 2025 who recently committed to the Georgia Bulldogs of the NCAA. Drezgic is a true offensive engine who excels creating shots both for teammates and for himself. The Serbian guard is a versatile scorer who can get by defenders in the perimeter and utilize the advantages he creates with his dribble to finish at the rim, hit pull-up jumpers and set up open teammates.
Serbia is in the middle of a dominant run at U18 EuroBasket, having won three of the last five titles. They have enough talent to come out on top once again in Tampere, with the versatility and two-way impact of Mitar Bosnjakovic and Ognjen Srzentic providing the perfect backdrop for Drezgic to dominate with his offensive arsenal.
Hugo Gonzalez - Spain
Forward
Birth Date: February 5, 2006 (18 years old) Height: 1.93m (6ft 4in) Club: Real Madrid (ESP)
Gonzalez has been hailed as the next big thing coming out of Spain for a number of years, and he has lived up to the hype every time he plays for his national team, having been a key piece in Spain's silver-medal run at the FIBA U17 Basketball World Cup 2022 and earning an All-Star Five nod in last year's EuroBasket, where he averaged 14.3 points and 6.6 rebounds per game. Gonzalez is an athletic wing who can impact the game on both ends of the floor. He's a downhill threat with the ball in his hands, driving to the rim with a great combination of speed and power, while also adding value with his shooting and passing abilities. Defensively, Gonzalez is a perimeter stopper in the perimeter who plays with a relentless motor.
Spain's three-peat bid came up just short in 2023, as they lost in the Final to hosts Serbia. With Mario Saint-Supery and Gonzalez as their leaders, Spain is looking like a serious candidate to make another run this year.
Kasparas Jakucionis - Lithuania
Forward
Birth Date: May 29, 2006 (18 years old) Height: 1.98m (6ft 6in) Club: FC Barcelona (ESP)
Lithuania is looking for a return to glory in Tampere, as their 11th place finish in the 2023 edition of U18 EuroBasket was their worst final placement since 1996. Fortunately, they'll have winning pedigree on roster this year, with a number of players who were part of their U16 EuroBasket title-winning run in 2022; including Nojus Indusraitis, Kristupas Smirnov, Dovydas Buika and Kasparas Jakucionis.
The 1.98m wing is a tremendous shooter, who shot 38.5 percent from three in last year's U18 EuroBasket, and is able to convert jumpers both off-the-catch and off-the-dribble. The Lithuanian guard combines his shooting with his tough slashing ability and his playmaking for others, being an advanced passer who can exploit his scoring gravity to free open teammates as well as run the pick-and-roll with precision.
Jakucionis has been a name on the rise over the last few years, and he will head to the NCAA after this tournament to play for the Illinois Illini during the 2024-25 season, where he's expected to be one of the top freshmen and a potential first round pick in the 2025 NBA Draft.
Elhadji Dame Sarr - Italy
Guard
Birth Date: June 4, 2006 (18 years old) Height: 1.96m (6ft 5in) Club: FC Barcelona (ESP)
Italy will return their leading scorer from last year's EuroBasket in Sarr, who averaged 17.3 points per game in Nis. Sarr is a toolsy wing who utilizes his combination of size, length, quickness and open-court athleticism to get to the rim and to make plays on defense. The Italian wing's calling card, however, is his three-point shooting, as he shot 40.9% from three-point range in last year's EuroBasket on 6.3 attempts per game.
Italy will be looking for their first U18 title in 34 years at Tampere: Any team looking to break that type of streak will need two key factors. The first one is roster depth and the Azzurri will have plenty, with names like Diego Garavaglia, Samuele Miccoli and Maikcol Perez. The other element? A special individual talent who can take over games; that’s exactly the type of talent Sarr brings to the table.
Ivan Kharchenkov - Germany
Small Forward
Birth Date: September 20, 2006 (17 years old) Height: 1.98m (6ft 6in) Club: FC Bayern Munich (GER)
Kharchenkov is a well known name in the youth basketball scene, who is coming off back-to-back podium appearances and All-Star Five nods, at both the 2022 FIBA U16 EuroBasket, Division B and last year's U18 EuroBasket. The 1.98m wing stands out with his versatile shooting ability, being able to convert three-point jumpers off-movement with tremendous range. Kharchenkov also adds value with his ability to get downhill, his passing on the move and his perimeter defense.
Germany reached the podium for the first time in last year's edition of U18 EuroBasket and they should be expected to make another run in Tampere, as they'll be returning their leading scorer in Kharchenkov, who averaged 17.1 points per game in 2023.
Vit Hrabar - Slovenia
Small Forward
Birth Date: March 1, 2006 (18 years old) Height: 2.03m (6ft 8in) Club: Saski Baskonia (ESP)
Slovenia has finished in the top eight of U18 EuroBasket in every edition since their return to Division A in 2019, and they should be expected to contend once again this year, as they will have a considerable amount of returning players from last year's U18 campaign, including leading scorer Urban Krofilic, Mark Padjen, Bine Plut and Baskonia forward Vit Hrabar, who averaged 9.0 points per game while shooting 37.9 percent from three-point range at Nis.
Hrabar provides a two-way impact every time he's on the floor. He combines great size for a forward, standing at 2.03m with his perimeter skillset, as he's able to get to the rim and convert three-pointers off the catch. Hrabar also utilizes his size and length to make an impact on the defensive end of the floor, getting in passing lanes in the perimeter, and contesting and blocking shots around the basket.
FIBA