After mapping out the rest of his summer, from playing in America and then for Ukraine, the newest Wizard had a request. He asked it timidly.
Oleksiy Pecherov wanted seven days off to go on vacation.
The nerve.
“I told him to take 10 days off,” his agent, Marc Fleisher said. “He doesn’t like to take time off.”
Thus explains how Pecherov, who was introduced Thursday at Verizon Center, has made the jump from former soccer player to NBA draft pick in only five years. When he first started playing basketball in his hometown of Kharkov, Ukraine, at age 15, he often had fun warming up by bouncing the ball on his head, or kicking it with his feet. He soon graduated to more rigorous workouts.
“He has anunbelievable work ethic,” Fleisher said.
“He’s competitive and he has desire,” Wizards General Manager Ernie Grunfeld said. “Those are the kind of players we want.”
That’s why the Wizards made the 6-foot-11 Ukranian the 18th overall choice in Wednesday’s draft. Pecherov played for Paris Basket Racing last year, but likely would play for a higher league if he stays overseas. He’s on loan from B.C. Kiev. If he opts to play in the NBA, there’s an $800,000 buyout clause, of which the Wizards can pay up to $500,000.
After the summer league next week in Las Vegas, the Wizards will decide what route he should take.
Washington also selected Vladimir Veremeenko, who played in Russia, in the second round. He’ll also likely stay overseas for a couple years.
For Pecherov, once he abandoned soccer, he invested fully in basketball, watching NBA games on TV, reading books and magazines about the sport. Soccer helped his coordination, making him a player who runs the floor well.
“Right now my life is all about basketball,” Pecherov said. “I want to prove to myself and this team so I can be good player and play on this level.”
