Nikoloz Tskitishvili

From Hoopedia

Nikoloz Tskitishvili (Georgian: ნიკოლოზ ცქიტიშვილი; (born April 14, 1983 in Tbilisi, Georgian SSR, Soviet Union) is an American professional basketball player who currently plays for Caja San Fernando in the ACB. A 7'0", 245 lbs. power forward from Georgia, Tskitishvili was selected 5th overall by the Denver Nuggets in the 2002 NBA Draft.

On February 25, 2005, Tskitishvili was traded by the Nuggets to the Golden State Warriors along with Rodney White, in exchange for Eduardo Najera, Luis Flores, and a 2007 future 1st round pick. After playing just 12 games for the Warriors, he signed as a free agent with the Minnesota Timberwolves after playing on their summer league team. He was traded half way through the 2005-06 season to the Phoenix Suns in exchange for a second-round draft pick.

On June 30, 2006, Tskitishvili was claimed off of waivers by the Portland Trail Blazers. He was waived five days later, after the team announced they would re-sign center Joel Przybilla. On October 2, 2006, Tskitishvili was signed by the New York Knicks and was waived on October 25.

With a career average of 3.0 points and 1.8 rebounds per game over his first three seasons, Tskitishvili is widely considered to be a major draft bust. Writer Bill Simmons claimed that Tskitishvili is "the worst-case scenario for any foreign pick" in the NBA.