I think the consensus here is that Dirk is the best European-born player to play in the NBA. But what about overall? Best player to play the NBA that wasn't American-born. I'll go with Olajuwon.
Hmm since the question isn't who was the best NBA player I would say Sabonis wins easily. He is considered the best player ever in Europe, and dominated everyone before injuries. Saboins is the best non American player to play in the NBA. Another player I think was amazing is Drazen Petrovic
I was lucky to catch a game or two of Sabonis in his prime in Europe. Boy, was he was good... But I was lucky enough to see Hakeem in his prime as well. Hakeem is the answer for me. While Sabonis looked magnificent in his prime - he did it against European competition. Hakeem looked magnificent in his prime against a young Shaq or Admiral or Ewing in his prime. Hakeem was an undersized center that held his own against bigger and stronger centers and had the moves of a guard. He was something else.
