As the Gators continue to look for ball handling insurance in the backcourt, an interesting name continues to come up in the search.
Urban Klavzar is a Slovenian point guard who currently plays in the second division of the Spanish League (called LEB Oro), and his name continues to be connected to the Gators. He’s currently competing at the Adidas Eurocamp, an event with all kinds of eyes from college programs as well as NBA teams, where he has been opening eyes with his skilled and highly intelligent brand of basketball.
Klavzar might not be a well-known name in basketball circles at the moment, but there was once a time when he was a huge name in the European and NBA Draft circles. When Klavzar was just 14 years old, Spanish powerhouse Real Madrid signed him to a professional contract. You might remember that Real Madrid previously had success signing a Slovenian point guard as a teenager, as that guy was Luka Doncic. For that reason, Klavzar had buzz as someone who could be yet another NBA star from Europe.
In 2021 as just a 17-year old, Klavzar had one of the biggest moments of his career. With COVID ravaging the elite Real Madrid roster they were forced to not only dress the teenager, but play him against one of the best teams in the world. This was a game against Russian powerhouse CSKA Moscow in Euroleague competition–unquestionably the best competition outside the NBA in the world. Not only did Klavzar play, and have to play big minutes–he contributed. Playing with a skeleton crew roster he got his teammates organized, distributed the ball, and ended with 10 points and 1 assist against a team good enough to hold their own in the NBA.
While Klazvar played well in his time at Real Madrid, he didn’t live up to the lofty expectations and ended up leaving Real Madrid to go to UCAM Murcia, another quality Spanish program, to have a bigger role. From there, Murcia assigned him to a second-division team where he could play more minutes and have a bigger role. Last year, he averaged 8.9 points and 1.5 assists per game while knocking down 43% of his threes.
A couple notes–first of all, assists are not as generously rewarded in Europe as they are in the NBA, so if the assist total looks low for a point guard just know that it’s likely he would have had more should his plays have been viewed through the eyes of an American statistician. Also, it’s important to note that the LEB Oro, the league that he was playing in, is not a development league by any means. It’s high level basketball with teams looking to be promoted to the top division in Spain, and most of the starting players in this league are 26 years old or older–so everything Klavzar did was against seasoned veterans fighting for contracts.
Standing at 6’1” and 180 pounds, Klavzar’s measurements don’t jump off the page but he plays like someone who is much bigger. Nearly 20 years old and with years in professional programs under his belt he has had excellent strength and conditioning training and he looks like he has a fully developed frame and plays like it, embracing physicality on both sides of the floor. He also has fairly long arms, something that helps him on the defensive end despite him being only 6’1”.
As a player, Klavzar is a scoring point guard who can break down opposing defenders one on one or pick apart defenses in a complex offensive scheme. Spain features some of the best coaches in the world and Klavzar has played in some beautiful offensive schemes, and the poise and intelligence he plays with far exceeds what you would see from most players entering college. His jumper is pure as indicated by the 43% he shot from deep, and he also makes his free throws hitting 83% from the line.
Make no mistake about it, Klavzar is no “prospect” or development project, he is someone who could play in the SEC tomorrow and contribute at a high level. Prior to NIL this is the type of player that would stay in a top European development program, but nowadays it’s a player that wants to come to the NCAA. Todd Golden has been looking for a young ball handler both with upside as well as someone who could contribute right away and there is no question Klavzar checks those boxes.
There are a number of high-major programs recruiting Klavzar but the Gators are thought to be in an excellent position due to their resources as well as the role they have available at the point guard position. This is definitely a recruitment to watch.