Will Cummings: 'I won't lose sleep if I never play in the EuroLeague' / News - Basketnews.com

Credit: Andreas Burmann via Imago Credit Andreas Burmann via Imago

Will Cummings has come a long way in his seven-year career in Europe. The 29-year-old point guard has thus far collected every accolade possible at the continent's mid-tier level.

The Greek League Top Scorer award in 2017 was just the prelude to a series of individual and collective achievements that have come to include even more prestigious titles and competitions: German BBL Top Scorer and MVP in 2019, French LNB MVP in 2022, EuroCup Top Scorer and First Team selection in 2022.

However, it was the EuroCup title with Darussafaka Tekfen Istanbul in 2018 that rendered Cummings one of the most coveted names among high-profile clubs.

Those two games against his future team, Lokomotiv Kuban, turned out to be what Cummings would call 'a stepping stone' in his career.

"One, because I won a title. Two, because before that series, I wasn't playing a lot. I was behind Scottie Wilbekin and another Turkish guard (Muhammed Baygul)," Cummings recalls while enjoying his off-season in the USA.

As a member of the team featuring Scottie Wilbekin, Michael Eric, Howard Sant-Roos, and JaJuan Johnson, Cummings' total playing time had clocked in at 24 minutes across the four contests preceding the final series.

He miraculously stayed on the court for 48 minutes in the two decisive games, producing 29 points and 11 rebounds. His PIR skyrocketed from an average of 6.6 to 16.5, and, more importantly, he finished both games with zero turnovers.

The Temple graduate maintains it was a learning experience that essentially set an example of how overseas adversity should be treated.

"It was a sticky situation, but when it came to that series, (coach David) Blatt played me, and I ended up being Finals MVP in Game 1 next to Scottie. Then, I played well in Game 2. It tested me mentally. I look back at that situation a lot when I'm dealing with different troubles in Europe. Everything can change in one game."

Ironically, that EuroCup crown with Dacka has been the one and only title Cummings has ever won. His stock has risen considerably since then based on his proven track and reputation as a first-rate scoring guard.

However, until this day, Will Cummings hasn't done something that several of his Darussafaka teammates have managed to achieve - sign with a EuroLeague team.

Wilbekin went to Maccabi Tel Aviv in 2018. Eric joined Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz in 2019. Sant-Roos left AEK Athens for CSKA Moscow in early 2020, while JaJuan Johnson made his EuroLeague debut with FC Bayern Munich that same year.

In return for his services in the 2018 EuroCup finals, Cummings accepted an offer from Oldenburg in Germany and then received a lucrative deal from Lokomotiv Kuban. His 2018-19 MVP season in Germany couldn't grant him a EuroLeague deal.

Looking back, Cummings says high-level teams were reluctant to give him a shot.

"I'd be the first to tell you that I'm not as respected as I should be with what I've accomplished and what I bring to the table. I've been told that all the time by teammates and coaches," he tells BasketNews.

"But I don't lose sleep, I move on to the next team and try to have the best impact. That's why I've chosen to play at clubs that have shown interest and where there's a personal connection," he adds.

Following his bright season with Oldenburg, Cummings spent two years with Lokomotiv, appearing in 41 VTB games and averaging 12.5 points, 3.5 assists, and 1.2 steals per game for the Krasnodar team.

This past season might provide him with another chance to make the leap to the EuroLeague for the first time.

The American guard shined with French side Metropolitans 92, averaging 17.8 points, 4.6 assists, 3.5 rebounds, and 1.6 steals in the EuroCup and 17.2 points, 5.2 assists, and 1.5 steals in France's top flight. What more can one ask for?

"I get that question every day," Cummings responds with laughter. "I get all those mentions on social media."

The LNB MVP says he could have made the EuroLeague jump before if he really wanted to.

"That was after my year in Germany in 2019. I just didn't want for the deal to manifest. But that's not a big topic for me right now," he clarifies.

Cummings thinks that European and American players grow up with different leagues on their minds. He's not particularly keen on prioritizing Europe's top competition just because of its quality.

"Guys in Europe grow up as EuroLeague was their NBA. I grew up as my NBA was the NBA. Everything else was the same," he says.

"Now, learning how EuroLeague and EuroCup work, I won't lose sleep at night if I never play EuroLeague. That's kind of how I grew up; we weren't taught about EuroLeague. Still, many kids in America don't understand what EuroLeague is. If you tell them you play EuroCup, they'll call it EuroLeague."

On the other hand, Cummings isn't willing to lose sleep if he doesn't make the NBA either. Besides, some teams approached him, offering a non-guaranteed deal. He turned down the offers, choosing to stay in Europe instead. It all goes down to the role ascribed to the players getting the NBA call-up.

"I've been at peace. Just like Shane Larkin said in an interview, he hasn't gone back to the NBA because he wants to actually play. That's the case for a lot of Americans over here.

We understand the market and what we would be asked to do if we went back. Guys prefer to stay in Europe and dominate rather than go there and play maybe 15 minutes a game," Cummings notes.

For the time being, the 2016 NBA D-League All-Star is relaxing, focusing on working out and preparing for the next season. Some reports have linked him to Valencia Basket, one of the three teams promoted this summer from the EuroCup to the EuroLeague.

Cummings says regardless of who comes knocking, his decision will be made once all offers have been placed on the table.

"There's no offer from Valencia that I know of," he concedes. "There could be one - or not. I've told my agent to leave me out of the small talks, and when there's actually time to make a decision, that's when I come in. That's the way I operate. There's no timeframe, I'm seeing all my options for next year," he further adds.

Usually, scorers say that they prefer places where they can be themselves, meaning having the chance to play many minutes and carry their team offensively. Whatever team Cummings plays with, the element he prioritizes over anything else is the freedom to make decisions and affect the game.

"I've learned over the years that I can help my team when I get to play freely. Every time that has happened, I've thrived. That's the situation I'm looking for going forward."

Will Cummings talked to BasketNews about his future and Metropolitans 92 brand-new acquisition, Victor Wembanyama, chosen as the French league's Best Defender.

Moreover, the veteran guard weighed in on Europe's best platform in terms of drawing NBA interest, his temporary shooting struggles, his rookie season in Europe, and what he needed to go through to mature as a player.

How would you rate the season overall for you and Metropolitans 92? At one point, it looked like you could go all the way, but ultimately you were eliminated by Valencia in the TOP 16 and by Pau-Orthez in the playoff semifinals, despite finishing third in the regular season and Vincent Collet winning the Coach of the Year award. To what extent could things have panned out better?We look at it as an extremely successful season. Nobody expected us to do what we did this year in any competitions, beating Lokomotiv and Joventut Badalona. If a team has a bigger budget, they're expected to win. We managed to knock them off and proved ourselves as a good team.

In the French League, we had many injuries towards the end. We didn't even have enough people for practice. We physically didn't have the numbers to keep up with anybody at the end of the year, especially in the French league. We definitely overachieved, past everybody's ranking.

For me, it was successful from the accolade standpoint.

You've also won German League MVP honors. Which of the two leagues, France or Germany, has been the toughest one for you?That's a tough question. In both leagues, I kind of knew I was going to receive the award at some point. No one else had been able to accomplish what I had in the season.

The French League might have been a little bit harder, just because it's more based on referees and the calls that you don't get. It's a lot easier to score in Germany just because you get the touch fouls and the NBA type of calls.

There were games in Germany where I would shoot many free throws, but the referees in the French League don't want to give you the call. France is a more physical league.

I can't help asking you about Victor Wembanyama, who recently moved to Metropolitans 92. How high can this boy get in his career?He's definitely a young talent with limitless potential. Obviously, he has a lot to learn. Even if he's very tall, we would attack him because of how young and raw he is. You can see his jump shot, his athletic ability, and his movements can make him a star.

A lot of guys that big can't move and shoot that way. Just him being athletically gifted and his coordination allows him to grow and have the potential to become a Rudy Gobert.

What does the future hold for him?It's up to him. It really depends on how hard he's going to work to get where he wants to go. We all expect him to get drafted, so he'll start from zero. He's going up against grown men. It's a whole different level of talent and competition.

Do you think Luka Doncic has paved the way for young European talents to be regarded as valid NBA players?He has definitely paved the way for guys of that caliber to do it. Players who have been in Europe for the last 6-7 years, while Luka was there, we already expected him to do what he's doing now. We saw him as a 17-year-old do those things against grown men. I remember NBA analysts and broadcasters saying, "Who's this guy?"

He had already played against ex-NBA players in EuroLeague, so it was a no-brainer to project that. He was such a generational talent coming from Europe. It's going to be a slippery slope to categorize guys as the next Luka.

Does Wembanyama fall under the same category as Luka?I don't think so. Luka's a different kind of player. He was 17, starting for a EuroLeague-winning team and winning the EuroBasket. The French guy is still learning. He was a rotational player for ASVEL.

So, it's a different type of level, skill, and readiness. He could potentially have the same impact as Luka, but Luka was already ready for what he did.

What do you think will change in the transfer market in Europe now that Russian teams are out of contention?Everyone knows that the money will go down. Russia was the land where guys were going to get paid in Europe. That's going to change the whole scheme of the market in Europe.

They will still be able to get guys to play in the VTB, but not playing in Europe changes a lot in other teams' bargaining chips.

Credit Federico Pestellini via Imago

When you first came to Aris Thessaloniki in the summer of 2016, you said you signed with them because they had a vision.

Given that the club is still trying to erase the bans imposed by FIBA, how will that 2016-17 season go down for you?For me, that season was my baptism in Europe. I encountered every situation you can encounter in Europe - from winning to losing, from fans loving you on games and then not liking you, to not being paid on time.

So, after that, I was ready for any type of situation thrown at me. I'm very appreciative of my Aris situation and what we had there. It was a great year. We finished third in the league, which isn't done too often.

We also made the Cup final, which is rare because you normally get the Olympiacos-Panathinaikos final. I wouldn't choose any other situation to start in Europe. If you're getting spoon-fed and paid on time throughout your European career, you're not ready for it.

Do they still owe you money?No, they checked me off the list (laughs). So, we're good.

In one of your first interviews in Europe, you said that you'd like to be a more consistent pull-up shooter, but the opportunity just has to be given. Now, after your seventh season overseas, which teams have given you that opportunity?I would say my teams in Germany and France. In my first year in Europe, when I was in Greece, I had the opportunity but not the skill set to do it.

In Germany and France, not a word was said to me about shots being taken. It was me looking at the coach and saying, "That was a bad one, my bad!"

I was able to hit shots consistently. The guard defending me didn't let me take spot shots.

Excluding your season with Dacka and your first year with Loko, you've been really consistent from distance, shooting above 37% for your career. Is there any reason in particular behind your low percentages those two seasons?At Dacka, I wasn't playing a lot. If you come in for 10-15 minutes, you take one shot, and you miss, that's 0%. That adds up quickly. In Loko, I wasn't there mentally. It was a rough season.

I struggled to play in that system, and it contributed to how I shot the ball. If you're subbed out after a miss, that starts trickling down to how freely you will release the basketball and take the shots you normally would take.

The only time I shot below 37% was in college. I was mainly a driver, and I didn't need to be able to shoot the ball at a consistent clip. Then, I had my trainer here, and we grinded. It's all about having the freedom to take the shots.

Some years ago, you said that Europe is a stepping stone to try and make the NBA. Is that quote still relevant?Yes, it still is. Guys have been able to leave Europe and go back to the NBA. You can see it with Shane Larkin. He has an opportunity to go back to the NBA every year, just based on his play in Europe. Teams would take him over guys who're playing in the G League.

It's definitely a stepping stone because you're playing high-level basketball. So, I still believe it, but it depends on whether the situation is right for the player and if they want to do the grind to make an NBA roster.

What would you be willing to sacrifice to play in the NBA or in the EuroLeague?For the NBA, I would be willing to sacrifice a lot. I'm not sure what it would be, I'd have to choose. In EuroLeague, it's not too much I would sacrifice.

When I signed with Loko, they were a EuroLeague-caliber organization. So, it doesn't make much difference. There was a guy in Israel who was the league's MVP.

You mean Chinanu Onuaku.Yes. He's at the Loko or Efes level, but he has a chance to go back to the NBA, just as Shane Larkin did. There are a lot of guys that play in Europe and could go back if they had a crazy year.

It depends on the situation of the player, how NBA-acquainted they are and if their skill set is needed. Many variables go into play when we're talking about someone returning to the NBA.

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