The Golden State Warriors have finally signed this incredible star to a historic contract after a protracted battle.
Sarunas Marciulionis started 26 games over the course of 4 seasons with the Golden State Warriors and he earns the fourth spot on this list.
Though technically he was drafted, Marciulionis wasn’t allowed to join the NBA immediately. The Warriors selected him in the 6th round (127th overall) in the 1987 Draft. The Atlanta Hawks would not allow it to happen, complaining to the league that the Lithuanian player was older than the eligibility rules allowed for foreign players joining the NBA.
The Hawks then pursued him and eventually persuaded Marciulionis to sign with Atlanta, but the Soviet Union team which he played for wouldn’t allow it. The Hawks never submitted the contract to the NBA and, a few years later, because of Donnie Nelson’s influence he signed with Golden State.
In his four seasons, he averaged 14.7 points per game and, over his last two years, scored over 18 points per game. He was the runner up for Sixth Man of the Year in both 1992 and 1993, giving the Warriors a huge boost off the bench.
Marciulionis isn’t on this lost only because of what he did on the basketball court, but also because of his impact off of it. He became the first Soviet player to join the NBA and was one of the first Europeans to succeed in the Association.
He’s a Hall of Fame player, largely because of what he did in international play. He was named one of FIBA’s 50 Greatest Players. He won a medal in three different Olympic games, including a Gold in 1988 in Seoul as a member of the Soviet Union’s team.
The NBA has become a global league and it wouldn’t have happened without Marciulionis.
