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The NBA has become a melting pot of international talent. Players like Dirk Nowitzki, Marc Gasol, Pau Gasol, Tony Parker, Andrew Wiggins, and Manu Ginobili, just to name a few, have made the NBA a world league. Every draft has it's fair share of European, Latin American, Asian, and African players that many of us may not recognize.
Kristaps Porzingis was drafted out of Latvia by the New York Knicks to a chorus of boos. The reasoning? They didn't know anything about him. He didn't play for Kentucky, Kansas, Duke, Indiana, or any other major college programs, therefore American fans were not familiar with his talent.
It's not a secret that one of the best ways to market yourself to the NBA is by playing for a college basketball powerhouse such as Kentucky. And let's be real, the main goal for every high level basketball player is to one day play in the NBA, not some professional team in China or Israel.
It has been said by recruits, college basketball analysts, and just about anyone familiar with the program, that the Kentucky Wildcats are run like a professional team. Now with the addition of so many international players, it is truer than ever before.
Who are the international stars that will be a member of the Wildcats this season?
Skal Labissiere
Home country- Haiti
Isaac Humphries
Home country- Australia
Mychal Mulder
Home country- Canada
Jamal Murray
Home country- Canada
Welcome to Big Blue Nation all Canadians, Australians, and Haitians!