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Future of Serbian NT

  • Thread starter Thread starter Straight forward2
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Straight forward2

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Let's speculate on Serbia's future a little bit? Micic is elite EL PG and he should be poised to be among the keys in upcoming decade, Bog not yet particularly a grandpa, Guduric is still rather young, but what are other true Serbian guard studs of the future?

PG Micic
SG Bogdanovic, Guduric
SF Pokusevski
PF Alen Smailagić
C Jokic, Petrušev

Some more studs at 1 is probably needed to some extent...
 
You can add Tristan Vukcevic of Real Madrid, Mario Nakic, Todorovic and Radovanovic
 
All bigs or forwards.

Nakić is classic SG. Look at him in Oostende. He looks better as SG than SF and needs ball in his hands.
My favourite is Đurišić from Mega, Stefanović NCAA from guard positions.
 
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Indeed, there are many prospects at positions 3-5, only few of them at 1-2. But the guy I've noticed is already mentioned by @Katastroika - Nikola Đurišić. Only 16, playing at OKK Beograd in KLS right now (KLS is pretty underwhelming league quality wise, but for those young players at that age it might be beneficial form physical perspective because they are up against tougher and physically much stronger competition), he gives me vibes of those old school Serbian/Yugo guards (forwards) with tons of skills and superb feel for the game. Kind of players not necessarily athletic, even look slow, but so skilled that they play the game in their own pace and just making teams adjust to them rather than adjusting to opposition. Probably the best prospect in his generation, enormous potential.

Nakić projects to be a really good/elite shooter with excellent ball handling skills. Has a great size for a guard. We'll see how he develops in Oostende, he had a great game recently, scored 25 points, tons of rebounds and couple of assists. I'm not sure if he will choose to represent Serbia though, there were indications like it's going that way, but Croatia and even Spain can still be in the play for him. This bubble for European qualifiers was a good chance to invite him, but he still might be undecided.

We'll see about Pokuševski, incredible ceiling, but he is still a long shot.

Need to see more to be able to comment about Tristan Vukčević, from what I've seen he's got a great size, nice shooting stroke, ability to put the ball on the floor and lead transition after securing defensive possession. Very fluid for his size.

Smailagić is kinda stuck between PF and C. Very intriguing skill set, he loves attacking on close-outs, which makes him a valuable asset in some small ball lineups against more traditional slow foot centers. It would be great for him if he profiles himself as an adequate player at both PF and C positions, not to mention it would be great for our NT to have a possibility to throw in some small ball lineups. He is also sneaky athletic, loves to play with the ball in his hands. Not much of a post up player though, defense is a work in progress.

Petrušev is built for European/Euroleague basketball much more than NBA, in my opinion. He is not a rim protector and so far he is not showing a lot of range in his game. That hurts a lot his NBA potential. His strengths are post ups and finishing around the basket as a roll guy. Also a fairly good rebounder. He excels at those skills, and I think his future is in Europe, probably Euroleague basketball. He has the potential to be an elite offensive center in this competition. Also, Milutinov will be a part of our frontcourt rotation for another 5-6 years.

Now, when it comes to some other not necessarily young or wide known prospects who can make a jump to NT, I would predict that Ognjen Jaramaz might become a very valuable piece of our guard rotation in the near future, if he keeps developing like in past two seasons. I see him as a perfect replacement for Jović when retires form NT. Not as good playmaker as Jović, but better ability to create his own shot, really good slasher (able to finish through contact, something that Nedović for example has missed his entire career), and an aggressive on ball defender with excellent lateral quickness. Guys like Avramović, Peno, Dobrić, Davidovac, Kravić etc. are good to have, especially in these circumstances, but they are probably not close to make a serious consideration for the best team.

I thought Radanov would get a chance at Zvezda this season, but apparently it isn't happening. Why is that so, I have no idea. It baffles me that Zvezda hasn't been able to produce one single domestic Euroleague level player since they became regular participant. When you take into consideration that they have by far the best conditions to develop younger players, very good infrastructure, one entire ABA league club – FMP is basically their affiliate, it just can’t be that there aren’t younger players worthy of chance to compete for a playing time at Zvezda’s roster. It’s a waste of all resources that they have been enjoying for years due to a very favorable political ambiance in Serbia. And that’s very gutless. I don’t believe it’s all about lack of domestic talent, but rather unwillingness to really invest in younger players due to pressure to make a noisy result in Euroleague. A lack of daring mentality, it looks to me.

All in all, right now, Pokuševski, Vukčević and Đurišić (two years younger) are probably the brightest Serbian prospects, followed by Nakić. Smailagić and Petrušev, I think they have a high floor, but not too high ceiling. Definitely potential to become valuable NT material.

Guards with scoring ability or playmaking skills are definitely missing here, but with Micić, Bogdan, potentially Pokuševski who is basically point forward, and of course Jokić, I don’t feel like we will be experiencing problems in our guard rotation due to lack of playmaking, or lack of scoring guards.
 
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Very good post. Reflects situation realistically.

The more I watch Milijasevic the more I like him. He is a very good driver and shooter. But we have to wait serious competition.

I like a lot Pavle Stosic, he reminds me on Lucic. He went from Real to Zaragoza but is really athletic, can handle, hustle, rebound, has back to basket game - complete skillset and really modern player.
A lot of people mention Jovic from Mega now, hype started this season, he looks very interesting, it is way too early to compare him with serious players and especially really good ones, but yeah, he reminds a little on Bjelica.
As i said for Stefanovic, we will see him now in a very good NCAA system in Utah, he is very confident shooter.
Tarlac got injured but has basketball in his gens, he is versatile, maybe a little stuck between 3 and 4 but handles seem good.
Trifunovic has great potential but is used a lot less this year than under Trinchieri. But I am really fan of him and think he has one of greatest upsides of all players here.
Miskovic, Pecarski two great young players that like often lost a little superiority after becoming seniors but are still very young and we will see if they will be serious EL quality.

There are serveral rumours about 2004 and 2005 generation but this are children and my experience in following basketball shows me that usually the ones you expect most underperform in a long term and then suddenly someone jumps out.
Fun fact: Jankovic from Partizan was starting center in U19 Serbia at World Cup in front of Jokic.
 
True, there is always someone under the radar, waiting to get into big picture. There are really a lot of prospects, many of them probably won't live up to expectations, but some others will just come out of nowhere.
It's always been like that, especially in our basketball sphere.
 
Avramović Is making a serious case to be considered for Olympic qualifications. He deserves the chance to compete for that spot, has been great for this team in the past couple of years in multiple qualification windows.

Also, big positive takeaway from Finland game is Radanov, great defensive effort and off ball movement on offense. Kokoškov made excellent adjustments by giving him quality minutes. If improves his outside shot, could be a nice two way player. But he needs to start playing or moving on from Zvezda. I don't get why he isn't getting any minutes, not even in ABA league.
 
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Avramovic is a more stable version of Nedovic in my opinion. He plays great in Spain, he plays great in national team. Maybe Jaramaz will be 12th player, maybe Guduric, but my impression is that Aleksa deserves the spot most (at least in this form). Great scorer, great driver. Mentally stable. Leading gen. Maybe even too good for 12th spot. I like this combo guard set up a lot and seeing how Kokoskov works I think this will be the basic of our game.

Radanov looked like a hungry dog being unleashed. I liked Simanic, too. Those guys deserve minutes in zvezda. I hope that this games opened eyes to Obradovic.

PS: As we spoke few days ago about talents you should watch a few numbers of Jovic from Mega in cadett league. Index 50 games regularly. I don't know if stat padding or serious, if accelerant or pure talent but it looks gigantic from highlights.
 
Watched some Avramovic as well this season in ACB. Really impressive agility and coordination, gets a little but wild here and there, but some drives are just incredible. I think he's still somewhat a bit streaky and to certain extent unpredictable, but really interesting player. Would see him as a short stretches super energy guy for any Euro NT basically, even Serbia.
 
Watched some Avramovic as well this season in ACB. Really impressive agility and coordination, gets a little but wild here and there, but some drives are just incredible. I think he's still somewhat a bit streaky and to certain extent unpredictable, but really interesting player. Would see him as a short stretches super energy guy for any Euro NT basically, even Serbia.

Well, with the way we have been missing key players year after year, his chances might be better than people think.
 
Avramovic is a more stable version of Nedovic in my opinion. He plays great in Spain, he plays great in national team. Maybe Jaramaz will be 12th player, maybe Guduric, but my impression is that Aleksa deserves the spot most (at least in this form). Great scorer, great driver. Mentally stable. Leading gen. Maybe even too good for 12th spot. I like this combo guard set up a lot and seeing how Kokoskov works I think this will be the basic of our game.

Radanov looked like a hungry dog being unleashed. I liked Simanic, too. Those guys deserve minutes in zvezda. I hope that this games opened eyes to Obradovic.

PS: As we spoke few days ago about talents you should watch a few numbers of Jovic from Mega in cadett league. Index 50 games regularly. I don't know if stat padding or serious, if accelerant or pure talent but it looks gigantic from highlights.



His shooting skills are impressive. Shooting mechanics and quick release definitely reminds a lot of Bjelica. He can shoot from everywhere on the floor, and those one legged turnaround jumpers are surprisingy clean and so fluid for his age.
 
@straight forward:

https://www.instagram.com/p/CIqGLrNDvNz/

Same dad? :D I began to laugh during the video. Flashback. (Of course if we take into consideration that Zeljko would have rather died than shoot outside the three point line - but those post ups and moves are like a copy).
 
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@straight forward:

https://www.instagram.com/p/CIqGLrNDvNz/

Same dad? :D I began to laugh during the video. Flashback. (Of course if we take into consideration that Zeljko would have rather died than shoot outside the three point line - but those post ups and moves are like a copy).

Indeed, same touch. Genes is a strong thing :D

We Lithuanians are realising this specially now. We have Arvydas son becoming HOF, Marciulionis' kid has a lot of similar moves, Jokubaitis is also former player's son, R. Giedraitis as well and more. We hear now that Jasikevicius' son is playing ball, we'll have to wait a little bit I guess, LOL.
 
Djurisic is a 16 year old player from Mega who plays KLS on loan for OKK Beograd.

Serbian Layup and me mentioned him as an interesting guard to follow. His first steps in senior basketball look promising. It's way to early for conclusions but it's nice to see that he has a "scorer's instinct" our main guards always had. I assume he will be a starter in Mega from next year as he is clear NBA potential and Raznatovic sends his slaves to draft pretty early in the last years, unfortunately European trend:
https://twitter.com/SerbiaHoop/status/1339548776948789249

If Mega wouldn't sell players on a daily basis this team would be a favourite of winning ABA in the next years with Petrusev, Simonovic, Djurisic, Jovic, incredible amount of talent. Besides all, even the school and project works, it's very critical to have a team that is in the hands of an agent and where the players are just being forced because of uplifting their market value for draft and European transfers.
 
Djurisic is a 16 year old player from Mega who plays KLS on loan for OKK Beograd.

Serbian Layup and me mentioned him as an interesting guard to follow. His first steps in senior basketball look promising. It's way to early for conclusions but it's nice to see that he has a "scorer's instinct" our main guards always had. I assume he will be a starter in Mega from next year as he is clear NBA potential and Raznatovic sends his slaves to draft pretty early in the last years, unfortunately European trend:
https://twitter.com/SerbiaHoop/status/1339548776948789249

If Mega wouldn't sell players on a daily basis this team would be a favourite of winning ABA in the next years with Petrusev, Simonovic, Djurisic, Jovic, incredible amount of talent. Besides all, even the school and project works, it's very critical to have a team that is in the hands of an agent and where the players are just being forced because of uplifting their market value for draft and European transfers.

This video shows an array of scoring skills...spot up, pull up, step back, transition, penetration...super fluid for his age, it doesn't feel like he is just 16 while watching his highlights. KLS is not a quality league, but it's a great school for young kids experiencing senior basketball.

You mentioned earlier Lazar Stefanović from Partizan, I watched Partizan – Mega juniors game some days ago, and he was lighting it up for the whole game. Jović had a decent game for Mega (showed flashes of ridiculous shooting and ballhandling again), but Stefanović really stood out on offense. Very calm, potential to be a great shooter. He seems comfortable with ball in his hands as he created off the drible quite easily. I would also mention Mihailo Petrović from Partizan, a bit undersized point guard, but also a really good shooter who seems to have capacity of being a reliable floor general.

https://twitter.com/idprospects/status/1338933742010851329

Thinking about top prospects born 2001-2004, it's obvious that most of them have potential to be sharpshooters and above average to great ballhandlers – Pokuševski, Nakić, Vukčević, Jović, Đurišić, Stefanović, Petrović, Belić, they all have advanced ballhandling skills for their age. And all of them project to be at least capable shooters, which is really important considering that shooting from the three point range is becoming vital these days. It's not a high probability that all of them will turn into game changers, but those generations are filled with extraordinary talent. And we have Petrušev/Smailagić as biggest talents from 2000 generation. Petrušev is dominating ABA legaue against high profile teams. He averages 20+ points, 10+ rebounds against Partizan, Zvezda and Budućnost this season. Most importantly for him and possibly crucial for his NBA career is that he is starting to hit his outside shot making clear progress. What's unique about him when I compare him to Jokić and Milutinov is that he runs the floor so well, which enables him to establish a good postion down low early on in possession or just finish in transition. This really stood out in the game against Budućnost the other day. He is really good at running up and down the floor, often out-running smaller guys on the floor. I think he is becoming a clear third option at center position ahead of Marjanović and Raduljica. Also, he fits perfectly into p&r sets with our guards, as he is quick and strong on his feet finishing well around the rim (though I think his touch needs a bit of refining, as well as his footwork). Defensively, when he is locked in, seems like a capable defender and rim protector, but focus on that end is something that needs work. He is progressing really fast, it's not like he is just pumping those numbers while his team is losing, because Mega is competitive against the best teams in the league, and he is the big reason for their success.
 
Djurisic is a 16 year old player from Mega who plays KLS on loan for OKK Beograd.

Serbian Layup and me mentioned him as an interesting guard to follow. His first steps in senior basketball look promising. It's way to early for conclusions but it's nice to see that he has a "scorer's instinct" our main guards always had. I assume he will be a starter in Mega from next year as he is clear NBA potential and Raznatovic sends his slaves to draft pretty early in the last years, unfortunately European trend:
https://twitter.com/SerbiaHoop/status/1339548776948789249

If Mega wouldn't sell players on a daily basis this team would be a favourite of winning ABA in the next years with Petrusev, Simonovic, Djurisic, Jovic, incredible amount of talent. Besides all, even the school and project works, it's very critical to have a team that is in the hands of an agent and where the players are just being forced because of uplifting their market value for draft and European transfers.


About Mega, well, it's a fact that Ražnatović has something like monopoly on young talents in Serbia. It's also a fact that he is working very well with them, way better than Partizan and especially Zvezda are working with their talents. The trouble is that Ražnatović is in a classic conflict of interest..of course, legal papers will say it differently, but it's obvious that he is both the owner of the club and manager of all players who play for his club. And what to make out of this? It's clear that his main interest is not to win games but develop players in order to sell them to highest bidders. He is probably treating those players well (especially the most talented ones), because he knows he will get a lot of credit for their success (which is important for luring most talented kids from next generations), and of course he will have a substantial share of money from their contracts (his ultimate goal is to send his players to NBA, and with Jokić success he gained certain attention and reputation among NBA GM's, not to mention young kids whose dream is to play in NBA). The trouble is that he is doing it in a professional league, where all teams compete to win games, while he competes to showcase his clients/players to bigger markets, even if he has a chance to win a title in ABA league by just holding those players for another season. A couple of years ago in the middle of the season when Mega was fighting for top 4 seed in ABA league, they decided to send couple of their most talented players to some prestigious camp only to showcase them in front of NBA scouts. Things like this put doubts into league's regulations because it affects a bunch of other teams and general standings. On the other hand, Mega might be the best thing that happened to Serbian basketball in recent years, because lots of talented kids have a chance to compete at a high level in young age, which is something they could only dream of in Partizan (post Vujošević years) and Zvezda (it's mind-boggling what Zvezda has been doing with their talents for years now - zero vision and courage to throw them into fire, and the saddest part is that they aren't doing anything special in Euroleague, rather opposite - they are pretty bad). So basically, there are two sides of the coin like always, bad and good mixed together to the point that you can't really judge them, but it's also clear that they are not a paradigm of honesty or legal cleanness.

Speaking of conflict of interest, what to say about Čović? Both FMP and Zvezda are his toys. Both teams compete in the same professional league. Now imagine all of calculations, transactions, illegal moves that are just hurting the league's regulations. Look at FMP this year...they are left with basically nothing after Čović transferred Radanov, Reath, Uskoković from FMP to Zvezda. He runs both clubs, so he will do whatever he likes and what is more convenient for Zvezda in a given situation because right now Zvezda is his shiny toy with big expectations. Ridiculous conflict of interest, this shouldn't be happening in a serious league. But there is a hole in the law which recognizes only papers, and since there are million ways to mask illegal doings by the use of paper, and also calculating political favoritism which is crucial (because Zvezda is actually a toy of president Vučić), they can get away with anything. There is a term called affiliate, defined as an organization attached to or subordinated to a larger organization, in this case - team. NBA G league, for example, consists of teams that are all affiliates of NBA teams, competing at lower levels in order to develop players for NBA, and that's fine, developing is the purpose of that league. But you can not have both primary and affiliate team at the high level in the same professional league, because it gives you huge competitive advantage over your opponents and a possibility to do lots of illegal stuff (fixing results, transferring players however you want and whenever you want, financial fraud, illegal transactions etc.).

Ražnatović uses Mega solely for developmental purposes in a league that requires professional competition and winning to play in European cups or stay in the league. It happens that Ražnatović can always construct a good enough talent to stay in the league, but he doesn't want to win for the purposes of the team but only to introduce his clients to the big market. It happens to be a good thing for Serbian basketball (maybe not so good, it remains to be seen), but it's not honest competitiveness or legally clean in a professional league. Basically, Mega looks more like a marketing instrument of his BeoBasket agency than a sports team.
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T2-wukK6AZg
Finally debut in EL. What impressed me more than the offensive sequences whas his very good defensive participation. Only way to gain minutes in Radonjic's system is just to continue to play good defense. I really have no clue why he didn't get a chance from Sasa. Totally clueless about this one.
 
Pokuševski getting more and more comfortable with NBA offense/defense game. I knew he has potential to be a good help side defender with his size and wingspan to protect the rim and disrupt passing lanes, but I didn't expect he would look this good defensively on the perimeter staying with smaller players. That last game he played vs Lakers reminded me of Kirilenko in terms of defensive awareness and great motor on chasedown blocks.

I've been browsing through some Thunder forums, and basically they are all in on his potential and surprised that he is showing better than expected defensive awareness so quickly. At this stage of his development it's definitely better to show defensive progress as offense will probably come naturally for him at the time. He is making a jump from Greek second division to NBA basketball, that kind of transition is rare in many ways.

https://www.reddit.com/r/Thunder/comments/kwxs6u/aleksej_pokusevski_highlights_okc_thunder_10_pts/
 
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