Mikhail Torrance, the former Alabama point guard, has signed in Israel with Maccabi Tel Aviv according to the Euroleague's official website.
Torrance will head overseas after a peculiar couple of months on the cusp of the NBA.
The 6-foot-5 point guard was seemingly on his way to being drafted in June's NBA Draft after solid showings at the Portsmouth Invitational and then the NBA Pre-Draft Camp in Chicago as he was ranked in the top 50 prospects by both ESPN's Chad Ford as well as DraftExpress. Sixty players heard their name called that night, though, and none of them were named Mikhail Torrance - despite a draft class that had very few NBA prospects at the point guard position and none with Torrance's mix of size, versatility and athletic ability.
The reason, as we'd later find out, was due to a heart condition known as "athletic heart" - an ailment Torrance says means that his heart is just "a little bit bigger than normal."
While that issue seemed to keep Torrance out of the draft, he'd still have plenty of suitors trying to sign him to play for their team's entry in the NBA Summer League's. Torrance ultimately chose to play for the Miami Heat in Las Vegas, but another wrench was thrown into his NBA plans.
"For those who have asked, undrafted Alabama guard Mikhail Torrance was released by the Heat before it departed to Vegas for summer league," tweeted Miami Heat beatwriter Ira Winderman.
For a player that looked to be well on his way to at minimum an NBA training camp invite after averaging 15.6 points and 5.1 assists in the SEC, Torrance's career certainly has taken an interesting turn - though it might not be all for naught.
With Maccabi, Torrance will have a chance to play with his former Alabama teammate (and fellow on-the-cusp-NBA-prospect) Richard Hendrix as well Cornell big man Jeff Foote and USC alum David Bluthenthal. All three players are talented big men that will be able to ease Torrance's transition to the pro game.
Torrance also has a player option for the second year of his contract, meaning that he will be free to try and play in the NBA next Summer if he wishes to do so.
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