Former Lakers 3-point assassin RUNNING from NBA, joining former coach

Aug 8, 2025 12:37 PM EDT

For Cole Swider, it was certainly useful, coming into the NBA with a reputation as one of the top shooters in college basketball–he shot 41.1% from the arc as a senior at Syracuse–and proving himself worthy of that title through the grind of multiple G League seasons. He bounced from South Bay to Sioux Falls to Motor City during his many G League stints, but after starting his NBA career with the Lakers organization, it appears he might well have ended it there, too.

Swider is nearing a deal with the Turkish powerhouse Anadolu Efes according to veteran reporter Marc Stein. The Eurohoops site confirmed that report, and added that it will be a one-year, $600,000 contract.

Writes Stein, on Twitter/X: “After stints with the Lakers, Heat, Pistons and Raptors, Swider is poised to join the growing number of NBAers moving to the EuroLeague and play for ex-Suns coach Igor Kokoskov.”

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Cole Swider Played Well for Lakers Summer Team

Swider never played for Koskoskov directly, but Koskokov has a a longstanding reputation as an assistant in the NBA, with one disastrous, 19-win season as a head coach in Phoenix mixed in.

Swider, meanwhile, is one of the great shooters in G League history. It’s a small sample size, of course, but Swider never shot less than 43.6% from the 3-point line in any of his minor-league stints, and has a career G League 3-point mark of 45.5% in 59 games.

He was never able to match that in the NBA, though. In three seasons with four NBA teams, Swider only saw the floor 35 times. On just 85 attempts, he shot only 32.9% from the 3-point line in the NBA.

There was some hope for Swider this summer, after he averaged 17.6 points and made 40.9% of his 8.8 3-point attempts per game in the Las Vegas summer league, but because no NBA deal materialized after that showing, he is heading overseas.

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