Hapoel Tel Aviv are working the phones for frontcourt reinforcements, and according to ONE, one name near the top of the list is Nick Richards, the 28-year-old American center who spent last season bouncing between the Chicago Bulls' rotation and the trade market.
ONE's exclusive report describes Richards as one of two senior candidates the Reds are weighing for a center spot, though the outlet is careful to note he has not yet given his approval for a move to Europe. That is the crucial caveat: this is a club target, not an agreed deal.
Richards, a 7-footer out of the University of Kentucky, was the 42nd pick in the 2020 NBA draft by New Orleans and has since logged more than 300 regular-season games across stints with Charlotte, Phoenix and Chicago, built on efficient interior scoring and rebounding rather than perimeter range.
He enters the market as an unrestricted free agent this summer after Chicago's offseason business left him unsigned, giving Hapoel and other suitors a genuine opening if he decides an EuroLeague payday and playing time outweigh chasing another NBA training-camp deal.
The Richards interest is not happening in isolation. ONE also has Hapoel pursuing Maxi Kleber, the veteran German forward-center who was renounced by the Lakers last month, a pursuit independently reported by Eurohoops and HoopsHype in recent days as Kleber explores EuroLeague offers.
Beyond those two, ONE says the club is also keeping tabs on D'Angelo Russell, the 2015 second overall pick now with Memphis, as part of what the report calls an 'intensive' rebuild of the roster for next season.
None of this is confirmed business yet. Hapoel have not commented publicly, and Richards' camp has given no indication he is close to committing to a move abroad, but the club's frontcourt shopping list for 2026-27 is clearly taking shape.
