With Luka Doncic and Slovenia eliminated from EuroBasket 2025, Los Angeles Lakers fans who continued to watch the tournament would have gotten a great look at a former member of the team who played tremendously. No, not Dennis Schroder. Rather, all eyes were on Isaac Bonga.
Both Schroder and Bonga were members of the German national team who wound up winning the entire competition after taking down Turkey in a tight 88-83 win for the gold medal. The German point guard may have taken home tournament MVP. However, it was Bonga who stole the show for many.
The former Lakers castoff scored 20 points, shooting 8-of-11 from the field and 4-of-7 from beyond the arc in the final. Bonga added five rebounds, three assists, one steal, and one block, posting a plus/minus of +7, the second highest for Germany in the matchup against Turkey.
The strong run at EuroBasket 2025 has made one thing abundantly clear: the 25-year-old is worth taking a shot on for a 15-man roster in the NBA. Bonga may have needed to detour over to the EuroLeague to continue his basketball career. However, an opportunity in the NBA should be calling his name once more.
Isaac Bonga’s growth abroad shows he still has plenty to offer NBA teams
With the game of basketball more global than it has ever been, paying attention to tournaments like this one is important. Hidden gems can be found in these instances. Look no further than the Paris 2024 Olympic Games for a prime example of that.
Guerschon Yabusele had washed out of the NBA previously. After a strong run for his national team at the Olympic Games, the French big man made many teams doubt whether that was premature.
Yabusele returned to the NBA in 2024-25, signing a one-year deal with the Philadelphia 76ers. The former first round pick averaged 11.0 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 2.1 assists per game, shooting 50.1 percent from the field and 38.0 percent from distance. Yabusele proved he belonged in the league once more.
Bonga should be afforded the same type of opportunity. The German wing is considerably younger than Yabusele, which gives him the luxury of time to still continue growing upon returning to the NBA.
Bonga averaged 9.9 points, 4.3 rebounds, 2.1 assists, and 1.4 steals in 23.1 minutes per game for Germany's tournament-winning team. That came with lockdown defense which was good enough to earn him the honors of taking home the inaugural Best Defensive Player award.
45.2 percent from 3-point land ended up being the mark Bonga finished EuroBasket 2025 with. That came on 3.4 attempts per game.
The 3-and-D mold of role players are at an all-time high in their value across the NBA. With that fact being true, Bonga deserves another shot to make an impact in basketball's best league.