ABA league 23/24

[Serbian_Layup]

The reason for this topic is to track loads of talent this season in ABA league. Many of them will get plenty minutes, and not just Serbian talents.

Partizan - Smailagic, Vukcevic, Koprivica, Trifunovic

Mega - Topic, Djurisic, Jovic, Jelavic (Croatian PF, great touch, shooting, rebounding), Ilyasoglu (very interesting Turkish guard, injured at the moment), Miljenovic (scoring combo who is making a noise)

FMP - Saranovic, Besson (French, NBA material), Zivanovic (PG from Montenegro)

Borac - Nikolic (SF/PF with potential to be excellent role player)

Igokea - Stankovic (big point guard, best prospect on this position after Topic), Nakic (he came back after a year out due to injury, still young and talented)

Cedevita - Matkovic (athletic big man, lob threat), Scuka, Glass (both Slovenians with nice shooting touch)

Buducnost - Grbovic (talented Montenegrin PF), Yoan Makoundu (French, played last season for Monaco)

SC Derby - Ivisic (big Croatian C), Mirkovic (very interesting and skilled forward from Montenegro), Bogavac (Montenegrin shooter)

Zadar - Njegovan (didn't watch him a lot except one friendly game, but seems like a talented forward)

Split - Gnjidic, Tisma

I don't know about Krka and Cibona, but I do know that Zvezda has a total of zero young talented players in their 20 player roster. Fantastic vision as usual LOL.

It's clear that Partizan and Zvezda will play in the final again (Buducnost and Cedevita should be able to make some noise), but it will be interesting to follow because of many talents across the league. Some of them like Topic could be the next big time players coming from ABA league.

[Serbian_Layup]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6CnXog15AYA&t=30s

Tristan with good game. Great talent on offense, but to live up to expectations footwork on defense will have to improve.

[Serbian_Layup]

https://twitter.com/ABA_League/status/1709548087138513402

Topic's first round highlights.

[Serbian_Layup]

Now the question is whether ABA league is too weak or Topic is already too good for this level.

28/8 last night on 10/15 FG and some long range bombs. Missed last 3 minutes due to injury in one point loss. Djurisic had good game until those missed free throws. Interesting, Rebraca's son is playing for Borac this season. Nice stats for him too.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2q9ShTPip6s

You just can't play switch defense on Topic. He is destroying bigger players on the perimeter with just first step. He basically just turned 18 and has like 4 more years of development while already being this good. He knows what to do with the ball at any moment and is so decisive not losing any time. Micic for example likes to dribble a lot, while Topic attacks immediately putting a lot of stress on defense. Right now, he is getting whatever he wants at professional level and it seems it comes even easier than a few months ago at U18 championship. Incredible rise of this kid. Legitimate candidate for Olympic roster already. Not to mention that he could be ABA league MVP at just 18.

[Serbian_Layup]

21/10 for Topic in a win which he sealed down the stretch. 10 assists and just 1 turnover. Third straight game with 20+ points. Shooting over 60% from the field. He might be too good for ABA league already. Jokic is the biggest talent I have seen so far, but Topic is right there behind him. He is just 18 but plays like 10 years older. Similar to how Jokic played when he was 18, also dominating ABA league in Mega jersey. Stats after 3 games: 24.7 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 7.3 apg on 61% FG. Numbers like he is playing in junior league.

Topic has been getting a lot of buzz lately, there are a lot of scouting videos coming out from some respected basketball figures. If he keeps improving his outside shot, top 10 might not be out of reach in next year's draft.

I also liked very much Stefan Miljenovic, combo guard with excellent slashing skills and very active footwork on defense.

Besson is talented, you can see NBA potential there.

[Serbian_Layup]

https://twitter.com/eyreball/status/1714046559287972011

FMP tried to play hard on him, but he was just too good. His combination of passing and scoring instincts are rare to find. He might reach that superb level when opposition is forced to pick their poison while Topic is punishing them with either passing or scoring. Developing a reliable outside shot will play an important role to reach that level. We have that kind of player in Jokic, but I'm not too hesitant to make a similar prognosis for Topic too.

[Serbian_Layup]

Topic&Djurisic duo continues to impress. Mega took down Partizan in a great game. Gonna be a blast to watch them in NT during windows. Djurisic's jumper definitely looks improved. He flashed everything in this game, spot up shooting, pull up jumpers, driving. He looks ready and healthy. Miljenovic and Plavsic are very interesting and could be options for qualification windows.

On the other hand, Partizan doesn't look good, but at least Avramovic is still playing with great confidence after World Cup. Vukcevic looks a bit lost because entire team is underperforming. It probably would be better for him to go on loan smewhere else and play big minutes.

Topic might be the best guard in the league, including guards from both Partizan and Zvezda. Good for him that he got away from Zvezda, he would be probably sitting in the stands had he stayed there.

https://twitter.com/tyler_rucker/status/1716559794893672644

This is something we are going to watch in the NT very soon, hopefully.

[Serbian_Layup]

Mega-Zvezda...Teo (36) vs Topic (18)...our past against our future. Call me romantic, but this game was special. It's like Teo was passing the torch to Topic. Anyway, great game, Topic lived up to expectations. 21/5/5 on great efficiency. Fantastic mentality, had only 2 points at half with -1 index rating, and then he just exploded in the second half, brought the lead to Mega and kept them in the game until the end. Both Teo and Topic finished with 21 points. A real battle between a legend and young future star, hopefully.

Topic's highlights

https://twitter.com/NoCeilingsNBA/status/1734300982862061930

But Topic wasn't the only show tonight. There were ridiculous number of NBA scouts and they could see a few more names to remember. Mega is really talented, so many kids with great potential. Djurisic had a great first half, flashed shot making ability, off the dribble, pull up, but kinda dissapeared in the second half. What I noticed is that he lacks better stamina. He was gassed out in the second half.

However, one name I need to specifically single out is Filip Jovic. Topic's teammate from golden generation, we wrote about him earlier. What a great potential. He is 205cm F/C with amazingly quick feet and explosive legs. Perfect for small ball lineup, especially when he bulks up a little bit. Has ability to play PF, but will need to improve outside shooting. But man, his face up dribble is just fantastic. Destroyed Bolomboy with huge poster dunk. Then, he blocked Simonovic with ease. Such an explosive first jump. A little bit undersized but already making an impact on the game. Also, only 18 y.o. It's been awhile since we had such a bouncy type of F/C. Topic, Djurisic, Jovic, Markovic...such great talents. Jovic and Markovic are projects for next season, but already getting minutes this season.

https://twitter.com/ABA_League/status/1734272010534977815?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5 Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1734272010534977815%7Ctwgr% 5Ebdd39994434eda40838d9521c67a431e86cc9089%7Ctwcon %5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.b92.net%2Fsport%2 Fkosarka%2Fvesti.php%3Fyyyy%3D2023mm%3D12dd%3D11na v_id%3D2448305

The buzz is that Zvezda wants to bring Topic back in January. He might play Euroleague games already this season, but the worrysome part is that he would be going to the toxic environmemt such as Zvezda with clueless sports management sector. It might be better for him to just stay at Mega, even though playing good minutes in Euroleague would be great experience.

[Serbian_Layup]

Turkish player Ilyasoglu is interesting. Nice scoring ability, very good shooting stroke. But his decision making is really bad, needs to work on that. Croatian PF Jelavic is also very talented. Nice shooting stroke, but had to get stronger, and make better reads on offense. He tends to shoot no matter what.

Stankovic (6'7 point guard) had a nice game for Igokea. Fundamental big poont guard with great passing game. Has to work on his shot.

Savo Drezgic (6'2 point guard) had a nice game for Partizan. Flashed some really nice passes. He seems a bit tiny, but stil very young. Vukcevic is getting better on defense, playing more physical, getting rebounds.

[Toruko]

Turkish player Ilyasoglu is interesting. Nice scoring ability, very good shooting stroke. But his decision making is really bad, needs to work on that. Croatian PF Jelavic is also very talented. Nice shooting stroke, but had to get stronger, and make better reads on offense. He tends to shoot no matter what.

Stankovic (6'7 point guard) had a nice game for Igokea. Fundamental big poont guard with great passing game. Has to work on his shot.

Savo Drezgic (6'2 point guard) had a nice game for Partizan. Flashed some really nice passes. He seems a bit tiny, but stil very young. Vukcevic is getting better on defense, playing more physical, getting rebounds.

How was Omercans defense? Actually his court vision and passing skills are really good but he is normally very sloppy and he defends horribly. At least it was that way in Turkey.

[Serbian_Layup]

How was Omercans defense? Actually his court vision and passing skills are really good but he is normally very sloppy and he defends horribly. At least it was that way in Turkey.

His passing angles are problematic. Puts himself in difficult positions to pass which usually ends up in transition offense for opposing team. Gets carried away too much (like every Mega player basically). Not much of a defender. He has to improve his body, shape it up and build some muscle. But his shot making ability is clearly a strength. Shoots with a lot of confidence, has range and a really quick release. I think he needs a good guidance to get rid of some bad habits and keep improving. He has scoring mentality and looks to be more of a combo guard than playmaking guard. If Topic goes to Zvezda, he will get big minutes in rest of season.

[Serbian_Layup]

So, it's done, Topic is back to Zvezda. Good thing is he will get to play Euroleague with good minutes. Bad thing is he is going to one of the worst developmental teams. Sfairopoulos said he wanted him badly and will play him serious minutes. There are some obvious areas Topic has to improve and Euroleague might be a good thing to point out to those weaknesses in his game. Also, one of the best things is he gets to learn under Teo's guidance.

https://twitter.com/kkcrvenazvezda/status/1739720257965588481

Fun matchup between Topic and Stankovic in the last round. They might play in NT together very soon. Stankovic is fluid with the ball and very talented floor general. Excellent passing with great body (2.01cm) and physical tools. Shooting is problematic and will likely determine his upside, but the talent is there. Topic and Stankovic at 1 is a really huge pair of point guards. Stankovic is about to get big minutes in ABA league after Moody's departure from Igokea.

Vukcevic getting more and more minutes. Getting regular minutes in Euroleague too. Improving defensively and Obradovic is trusting him more. Fantastic shooting touch and feel for the game.

https://youtu.be/SnMyiod84Rg?si=TPNew7a9m1AoVCHC

[Straight forward]

Can't wait to see how Topic does in EL.

[argentfloor]

It's interesting to observe the players' movements. Judge direction and have interesting experiences ivj when standing in the observation position. So impatiently looking forward to the tournament! geometry dash lite

[Serbian_Layup]

Djurisic has been playing like a man possessed in the past month. He has made some incredible rare strides in the last 7-8 games. He went off for 31 points in the first game of 1/4, along with 5 reb and 7 ass on 11/16 FG. Everything is coming together for him. Too bad its the end of season but it should help him improve his draft stock. I think he will be the next great SG of our national team.

Topic is finally getting back to play. ABA league 1/2 could be a battle between Topic and Djurisic. Most talented guards in the country and quite possibly future cornerstones of Serbian national team.