Duke lands top international prospect Dame Sarr, who flashed in front of NBA scouts at Nike Hoop Summit
Sarr, 18, called Duke his dream school, and said there was no better place for him to prepare for the NBA, per ESPN.
"My ultimate goal is to play in the NBA, "Sarr continued. "There's no better place to prepare you for that than Duke. For me to be as NBA-ready as possible, and become the best version of myself, I needed to have both experiences."
Advertisement
Sarr started his professional career at age-16 in the Spanish ACB league in 2023. He played for Barcelona, where he became the second-youngest player to debut for the club. Sarr — who is from Italy — also played for the Italian senior national team last year.
In April, Sarr attended the Nike Hoop Summit in Portland, Oregon. Sarr — who is listed as a 6-foot-8 wing — started for Team World. He turned in a strong performance against star high-school players from the United States, dropping 17 points, four rebounds and a steal in the 124-114 loss to Team USA.
The decision to play in the event caused controversy, as Sarr reportedly attended the event without Barcelona's approval. The team reportedly was on board with Sarr attending the event early in the season, but changed course after he emerged as an important player on the roster.
Sarr told ESPN he didn't think it was right to pull out of the event, and attended the Nike Hoop Summit anyway. A few days after the event Barcelona and Sarr released a joint statement announcing Sarr would not play for the club the rest of the season.
Sarr said it was an amicable decision, telling ESPN, "We ended everything on great terms, and I still love Barcelona."
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
USA Today
25 minutes ago
- USA Today
Status of 49ers early position battles revealed in first training camp practice
The San Francisco 49ers on Wednesday held their first training camp practice and offered a glimpse of what the early defensive depth chart looks like. ESPN's Nick Wagoner in a tweet ran through some of his observations from Wednesday's session and noted who the first-team reps went to on that side of the ball. Here's what that group looked like per Wagoner's tweet, along with our own takeaways from the personnel choices: DE: Mykel Williams, Sam Okuayinonu Nick Bosa will hold down one of the starting jobs. He didn't participate in team drills. Okuayinonu getting the initial first-team reps is a good sign for his chances of making the roster. He posted 3.0 sacks in 16 games last year and had enough flashes to be interesting as a fourth pass rusher. It looks early in camp like he's in line for that spot. DT: Kevin Givens, Jordan Elliott It's not a huge surprise the two veterans got the initial first-team reps. Draft picks Alfred Collins and CJ West should be worked into some first-team looks eventually. The 49ers will be in trouble if they go into the year with Givens and Elliott as their starters at DT. LB: Fred Warner, Dee Winters, Luke Gifford Winters was first up in the Will LB battle. He'll be fighting Kyle Shanahan's confidence in 49ers rising star could set table for new Super Bowl windowfor that three-down job with rookie third-round pick Nick Martin. There's no real surprise it was the third-year veteran Winters getting the early first-team reps. Gifford hasn't played a ton defensively over his six-year career, but he did play a career-high 203 defensive snaps for the Titans last season. There will likely be other players in the mix for the Sam LB spot, but the veteran Gifford got the first shot to start in the base defense. CB: Deommodore Lenoir, Renardo Green This isn't the notable CB thing. The notable CB thing is that Tre Brown, an offseason free agent signing, got the first nickel CB reps in the slot with Lenoir and Green playing outside. Rookie third-round pick Upton Stout also get some work in the nickel according to Wagoner. This battle is going to be a fun one, and the opening salvo saw the four-year vet with two-career INTs get the nod. S: Jason Pinnock, Ji'Ayir Brown There's an open safety spot because of Malik Mustapha's knee injury. Pinnock appeared to be the frontrunner to start alongside Brown since he spent one season under 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh when Saleh was the New York Jets head coach. That was confirmed with his early first-team reps. It'll be interesting to see if rookie Marquis Sigle gets a look. Free agent Richie Grant could also get a shot at some first-team snaps. Brown's status as a starter may also be in flux if he struggles in camp. For now he's still getting the first-team looks. More 49ers: Kyle Shanahan's confidence in 49ers rising star could set table for new Super Bowl window
Yahoo
38 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Bradley Beal officially gets Suns buyout, will sign 2-year deal with Clippers
The post Bradley Beal officially gets Suns buyout, will sign 2-year deal with Clippers appeared first on ClutchPoints. The Phoenix Suns and Bradley Beal have officially agreed to a contract buyout on Wednesday, according to ESPN's Shams Charania. Beal will receive his more than $50 million annual salary for the upcoming season. The insider is also reporting that Beal will sign a two-year, $11 million deal with the Los Angeles Clippers. While some thought there were other options (stretch and waiver or waiving his no-trade clause), the franchise believed this was the best-case scenario. However, the team has until the end of August to stretch and waiver Beal. According ClutchPoints NBA insider Brett Siegel, the Suns are expected to stretch and waiver the former shooting guard. Phoenix would take on $19.4 million each season over the next five years as a dead cap hit. The organization is ripping the band-aid off a tumultuous two seasons. In Beal's first year, the Suns were swept in the opening round of the playoffs by the Minnesota Timberwolves. Still, he only played 53 games that season, a worrying sign of what was to come. Then, in his second season with the team, Mike Budenholzer stepped in as head coach and made some interesting moves. One of the main ones was the Suns' benching of Bradley Beal at the start of 2025. While the latter took it in stride, it was an uncomfortable sign, considering that he was making close to $50 million, for him to come off the bench. Towards the end of the season, and with the Suns trading for Jalen Green, courtesy of moving Kevin Durant, the writing was starting to appear on the wall. Having three guards in the lineup and potentially having an even-worse Big 3 without Durant isn't a good look. Hypotheticals highlighted Bradley Beal's time with the Suns No one will truly know how good the previous Suns Big 3 with Beal, Durant, and Devin Booker could have been. There was a beaming light with only Durant and Booker. However, once Beal was added to the mix, it created a seismic shift in the offensive chemistry. All three players have similar skill sets, and didn't necessarily complement well off one another. Still, the biggest what-if was if everyone stayed healthy. As mentioned earlier, Beal only played 53 games in 2023-24, and it was the same a year later. There was never a true chance to showcase the dynamic of the three stars on a consistent nightly basis. This prior season, the team went a combined 19-18 with the three stars playing together. It felt as if Beal was the odd man out, considering what happened with Booker and Durant a season before Beal arrived in Phoenix. Either way, the band-aid coming off stings, but it's better than an alternative where he's eating up the cap sheet for four or five seasons. Safe to say that the Bradley Beal in Phoenix experiment flopped as badly as it can get. Still, plenty of contending teams could have used a scorer and a veteran presence like him, and now the Clippers get to try to get the most out of the polarizing superstar. Related: 10 most disappointing college basketball stars in the NBA in recent memory, ranked Related: NBA rumors: Jonathan Kuminga's desired salary that Warriors don't want to pay
Yahoo
38 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Bradley Beal signing with Clippers draws hyped responses from Tyronn Lue, Lawrence Frank
The post Bradley Beal signing with Clippers draws hyped responses from Tyronn Lue, Lawrence Frank appeared first on ClutchPoints. After clearing waivers on Friday afternoon, Bradley Beal officially signed with the Los Angeles Clippers. The team announced the signing via a press release with comments from President of Basketball Operations Lawrence Frank and head coach Tyronn Lue. The former three-time NBA All-Star now brings his talents to Los Angeles looking to jumpstart his career after a couple of rough seasons with the Phoenix Suns. Bradley Beal signing draws strong response from Lawrence Frank Bradley Beal officially cleared waivers on Friday and signed a deal with the LA Clippers. The contract is reportedly a two-year, $10.9 million deal worth the remainder of the Clippers midlevel exception after signing Brook Lopez to a two-year, $18 million deal. 'Brad is one of the most talented shooting guards in the NBA,' Clippers President of Basketball Operations Lawrence Frank said in a press release Friday. 'He is a two-way player and an accomplished three-level scorer who brings additional shooting, ball-handling and creation to the team. 'Brad had a lot of options this summer, for good reason, and we're honored he chose the Clippers. We look forward to providing him with all the support he needs to reach the high standards he's set throughout his decorated career.' Beal is a 13-year NBA veteran and former third overall pick in the 2012 NBA Draft. The 32-year-old guard has career averages of 21.5 points, 4.1 rebounds, 4.3 assists, and 1.1 steals in 801 regular-season appearances. Bradley Beal struggled in his last two seasons after being traded to the Phoenix Suns in 2023. His boxscore numbers look solid with averages of 17.6 points, 3.9 rebounds, 4.3 assists, and 1.0 steals per game while shooting 50.5 percent from the field, 40.7 percent from three, and 80.8 percent from the free-throw line. But the three-time All-Star played just 106 of a possible 164 regular-season games was one of the poorest individual defenders in the league and was on a roster that was simply not fit to capitalize on his strengths while hiding his weaknesses. The Clippers, on the other hand, have all the tools necessary to help Bradley Beal on both ends of the floor. LA finished with the third best defensive rating in the NBA last season at 109.4 points per 100 possessions and the fifth best net rating in the league at +4.9 points per 100 possessions. With James Harden at the point-guard position, a fully healthy Kawhi Leonard expected to start training camp for the first time since he joined the Clippers, and the rise of star center Ivica Zubac, Bradley Beal should be a seamless fit into what the Clippers want to build in Los Angeles. That's not even factoring in some of the newest additions in John Collins and Brook Lopez in addition to some of the versatile role players on the team like Nicolas Batum, Kris Dunn, and Derrick Jones Jr. 'Players of this caliber are very rare, and they're hard to come by,' said head coach Tyronn Lue. 'Brad has been an All-Star. He's been in a race for the scoring title. He's been the best player on his team. You can put him in so many different spots, and he'll find ways to score: out of pick-and-roll, coming off screens, catch-and-shoot. 'He can create his own or he can play off the ball. He's a great cutter. He's also a great playmaker who is going to make everybody else better. I'm excited he's with us.' The Clippers have everything necessary to rejuvenate Bradley Beal's career following a couple of rough seasons in Phoenix. Even his agent, Mark Bartelstein, recently said in an interview that Beal is hoping to sign a long-term deal with the Clippers in the summer of 2026. 'The hope is everything goes well with the Clippers, and the Clippers are a team that's going to have a lot of cap room this summer, and the goal is to sign a long-term deal with the Clippers this summer,' Mark Bartelstein said in an interview with Front Office Sports. 'That's the goal, but that player option is just there as a security blanket, a 'God-forbid' type of thing. And that's the purpose of it. 'What happens with player options is sometimes we deal with a salary cap in the NBA that is stringent at times It puts a lot of restrictions on what teams can do, and so if the team is getting a player for a below-market value deal because that's tone of the tools they have to pay that player. 'The player option will often come in place as an insurance policy to give the player something to fall back on if things don't go well, but the intention is certainly to opt out and get back into the market to reclaim your value, and that's what's going to happen with Brad. 'Brad doesn't like change. It's one of the reasons he stayed in Washington so long. The goal of this is to go to LA, have an awesome season, and then re-sign a long-term deal with the Clippers this summer.' This offseason, the Clippers have seen the departures of Norman Powell, Amir Coffey, Ben Simmons, Drew Eubanks, and Patty Mills. The additions to this team have been Brook Lopez, John Collins, and Bradley Beal, with league sources telling ClutchPoints that free-agent point guard Chris Paul is expected to be the next signing for the Clippers. Related: Where LA Clippers rank in Western Conference after Bradley Beal deal Related: Bradley Beal's plans for 2026 free agency after signing with Clippers
