Former No. 6 Overall Pick Leaves NBA, Heads Overseas

 Despite signing three contracts in the NBA last season, he never saw a minute of time on the floor. That appears to have been the last straw for the former No. 6 overall pick Willie Cauley-Stein, as he has decided to take his talents to Europe.

Seven-year NBA veteran Willie Cauley-Stein joins the Italian team, Pallacanestro Varese 😯 pic.twitter.com/IliVmOt7iJ

— BasketNews (@BasketNews_com) July 31, 2023

The seven-year veteran center will suit up for Pallacanestro Varese of the Italian league this coming season. 

The 29-year-old was selected with the lofty position of No. 6 in the 2015 NBA Draft by the Sacramento Kings and spent his first four seasons there. He made the All-Rookie Second Team in 2016, and in his final two years there, 2017-18 and '18-'19, he was a solid starter in the middle, averaging about 12 points and nearly 8.0 rebounds, while also pilfering over one steal per game. 

Since then, however, he has bounced around from the Golden State Warriors to the Dallas Mavericks, and even spent two games in 2022 with the Philadelphia 76ers. 

Cauley-Stein signed with the Houston Rockets three times this past year, but never got the call in an NBA game, spending most of his time with Rockets' G League affiliate, the Rio Grande Valley Vipers. In 13 games there, he averaged 8.8 points, 5.8 rebounds and 2.4 assists. 

He'll now try his hand in Europe for the first time. 

Photo: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports