Serbian NT 2024

[Serbian_Layup]

I guess it's not too early for this topic since we are one of few teams thus far to go directly to Olympics. That is huge relief because OQT is going to be a bloodbath for remaining teams and if we had to play that tournament who knows what could happen and in which roster we would have to play it. So, once again, huge medal and result achieved at the World Cup. Pesic can calmly prepare for Olympics without pressure and there is more time to rest for our players.

Some positive early news regarding Olympics is that Bogdan already said he will be there, Micic also confirmed his availability. Now, regarding Jokic, Maljkovic said he will play for sure. Danilovic also expects him to play. And funny thing, Nikola Vucevic told in one interview for Serbian press that Jokic will surely play at Olympics (not exactly in those words, but that's the meaning of what he said, Vucevic and Jokic are friends). So, if lead players will be there, barring injuries, you have to think that none of role players would pass on opportunity to play with such quality teammates at Olympics. If health serves us well, 2024 team might be the strongest roster we have had since Turkey in 2001 and especailly Indianapolis in 2002.

Now, as for the roster itself, it's pretty clear that Simanic, Davidovac and Ristic will not make it if most of lead players and quality role players are healthy. Those spots should be taken by Jokic, Micic and Kalinic. I wouldn't mind at all to keep remaining 9 players from the World Cup. We need continuity and considering great chemistry, it seems the right way to go. Of course, we need to see what happens with Lucic when he recovers. Then, Topic kid has been amazing, he is already really close to get in that roster, but considering the veteran presence and leadership that Stefan Jovic brings (and he is playing really well for Valencia), I think Pesic will go for experience. Also, Smailagic is playing very well, one more option as a really good shooting big. It remains to be seen what happens with Poku. He is in difficult situation because it seems he can't stay healthy for longer stretches of the season and competition is even tougher than last season. The priority for him is to finally be healthy, then see how he looks at training camp. He has skills for what we need. Question marks about Petrusev and his decision to go to NBA. He is hardly going to find minutes there and if that is the case, he should return to Europe as soon as possible. Good to see Jaramaz playing better lately.

So, basically, these are the players competing for Olympic team:

PG: Micic, Avramovic, Jovic, Topic, Jaramaz

SG: Bogdanovic, Guduric

SF: Dobric, Marinkovic, Lucic

PF: Jovic, Kalinic, Pokusevski, Davidovac

C: Jokic, Milutinov, Petrusev, Smailagic

These 18 players are the best we can field right now. Players like Ristic, Trifunovic, Mitrovic, Nedovic, Ilic, Andjusic, Radanov are all serviceable and decent role players but competition is just too stong for them to make it in Olympic roster.

Djurisic and Vukcevic are too young, but they will probably play in qualification windows, with addition of few new names like Plavsic and possibly Miljenovic if Euroleague players are not allowed to play.

We'll see what happens during the season, wish them a good health.

[Straight forward]

The way you put it, SF position kinda drops out from the status quo level. But off course it's not a problem since Kalinic, Jovic can play 3 as well (and maybe Lucic still has some, but I doubt we'll be as good as 2-3 years ago). Or even Pukusevski. Nevertheless you kinda want that expressed "starter". You have Micic at 1, Bogi ar 2, Jokic 5. While 3 and 4 remains more fluid, even though plenty of names with true starter's upside.

Names wise it's definitely the deepest Serbian NT ever. Jokic> Stojakovic, Divac and Bogi> Bodiroga and Micic>Jaric. Plus, Jovic should come much improved.

With that said, this team has some threats:

- Not an ideal defensive team, even perimeter (Avramovic probably best guard at D and he is not world class lock down defender). That's where Serbia suffered against Germany and will suffer against USA or Canada.


- Bogi will be 32, risky age where the decline might take place already

[Serbian_Layup]

The way you put it, SF position kinda drops out from the status quo level. But off course it's not a problem since Kalinic, Jovic can play 3 as well (and maybe Lucic still has some, but I doubt we'll be as good as 2-3 years ago). Or even Pukusevski. Nevertheless you kinda want that expressed "starter". You have Micic at 1, Bogi ar 2, Jokic 5. While 3 and 4 remains more fluid, even though plenty of names with true starter's upside.

Names wise it's definitely the deepest Serbian NT ever. Jokic> Stojakovic, Divac and Bogi> Bodiroga and Micic>Jaric. Plus, Jovic should come much improved.

With that said, this team has some threats:

- Not an ideal defensive team, even perimeter (Avramovic probably best guard at D and he is not world class lock down defender). That's where Serbia suffered against Germany and will suffer against USA or Canada.


- Bogi will be 32, risky age where the decline might take place already

What we have at SF and PF position is exactly what we need around players like Jokic, Bogi and Micic. Dobric, Marinkovic, Kalinic, Lucic are perfect type of players around them. Tough defenders, hard workers, spot up shooters, off ball scorers...ideal situation because the goal is not to have 5 elite players in the starting lineup but 5 players who mesh together the best. With exception that Jovic kid will be awesome and much more than good role player. His fit with Jokic on offense is lethal.

I don't think this is the deepest Serbian team ever. I can't go too far in the past, but my earliest memory starts from 1995. That team was brutal. As well as all those winning rosters from 1995 to 2002. They were just brutal. Having Djordjevic, Danilovic, Bodiroga, Divac, Rebraca, Savic, Paspalj, Tomasevic, Obradovic...then joined by Stojakovic, Jaric and loads of good role players. Very tough to beat that. There is a reason why thise teams won 3 European championships, 2 World Cups, Silver at Olympics and one Bronze at Eurobasket in 1997...all that between 1995-2002. Individual comparisons are something else. Yea, Jokic is better than Divac, but you can't compare him to Stojakovic, not the same position. Peja was a lethal scorer and one of the best shooter ever. Now, imagine him playing today with all this spacing and shooting. He would be unstoppable shooting machine. Then, Bogi better than Bidiroga? I mean, we are talking about Bodiroga here, the man who almost singlehandedly won us World Cup in what seemed a lost game vs Argentina. He is like at the top of Serbian basketball Pantheon (along with Djordjevic, Danilovic, Divac...and plenty players from some older generations and legends like Kicanovic, Slavnic, Dalipagic, Korac...). Then, Jaric was just awesome for us. A big strong point guard who played exceptional defense and was very smart on offense using his physical advantages in most matchups. Those teams were really deep. The deepest as far as I remember. This one if we play in complete roster will be closest to those teams.

Our defense was weaker vs Germany for obvious reasons. We lost Dobric, who was our most versatile defender from 1 to 3, in the second minute of the game. Our defenisve intensity was not the same and our defensive rotations were messed up.

If Avramovic is good enough to lock down SGA, one of the best ISO scorers in the world, then I don't need anything better than him as the back up point guard. If we beat Canada without Jokic, I'm sure we can handle them. I'm not worried about defense one bit. The key thing will be to have a good chemistry, cohesion just like in the World Cup. We have pretty much everything else. Avramovic, Dobric, Marinkovic, Kalinic (Lucic), S. Jovic, Milutinov, Bogi are all decent to very good defenders. Add Jokic too and his unsual but yet effective defensive skillset. It's more than enough to play good defense, as we did in the playoffs at the World Cup.

Bogi is 32. I didn't see any signs of regression from him. That is still prime time of his career. I doubt anything changes after this season. In fact, with Jokic he will be even more lethal as he is going to have a lot more space to do his thing and will be fresh for tough games. A luxury he didn't have in the past couple of tournaments.

Ideal scenario is that everyone stays healthy. Then, the next important goal throughout the season is that Jovic keeps improving, Avramovic playing the way he has been playing since the World Cup. I don't doubt Jokic will keep his MVP calibre player, Bogi being himself. Micic might play more in NBA or he might not, but he is what he is as a player and that won't change. What Topic is doing is just a huge bonus and a big boost for future. We know what to expect from everybody else. Basically, the trend has been set for awhile and now is the time pick the fruits.

[Straight forward]

What we have at SF and PF position is exactly what we need around players like Jokic, Bogi and Micic. Dobric, Marinkovic, Kalinic, Lucic are perfect type of players around them. Tough defenders, hard workers, spot up shooters, off ball scorers...ideal situation because the goal is not to have 5 elite players in the starting lineup but 5 players who mesh together the best. With exception that Jovic kid will be awesome and much more than good role player. His fit with Jokic on offense is lethal.

That's not an ideal situation, that's good enough situation. Ideal situation is to have some-one like Batum at 3 or 4 position. Absolutely ridiculous defender, and system player (who can play without the ball) offensively. In other words, legit starter (maybe even star), but yet a role player. Maybe the key role player, but the role player. That's what I meant. You can have those chemistry pieces, role players from the world class tier and Serbia doesn't have those at the moment and that's why I said it kinda falls out from the picuture. Jovic can become such and he will, but he will be more about offense (which is still great off course). Serbia raised the bar so high that it could be asking their complimentary pieces to be as good as Batum, Kyle Hines, Printezis, Khriapa. Maybe even Schrempf and Kirilenko fall into this category (and Batum being just a slight tier below these 2), they could be super role players and something more if needed at the same time. That's what I'm talking about. Globally the best players of that kind (modern era): Rober Horry, Lamar Odom, A. C. Green, Rodman, D. Green if we speak about forwards positions.

[Serbian_Layup]

That's not an ideal situation, that's good enough situation. Ideal situation is to have some-one like Batum at 3 or 4 position. Absolutely ridiculous defender, and system player (who can play without the ball) offensively. In other words, legit starter (maybe even star), but yet a role player. Maybe the key role player, but the role player. That's what I meant. You can have those chemistry pieces, role players from the world class tier and Serbia doesn't have those at the moment and that's why I said it kinda falls out from the picuture. Jovic can become such and he will, but he will be more about offense (which is still great off course). Serbia raised the bar so high that it could be asking their complimentary pieces to be as good as Batum, Kyle Hines, Printezis, Khriapa. Maybe even Schrempf and Kirilenko fall into this category (and Batum being just a slight tier below these 2), they could be super role players and something more if needed at the same time. That's what I'm talking about. Globally the best players of that kind (modern era): Rober Horry, Lamar Odom, A. C. Green, Rodman, D. Green if we speak about forwards positions.

Sure, I would be thrilled to have Batum, Kirilenko type of star role players, but guess what, Serbia has a population of 7 million people (a lot more Serbs if you include diaspora) and it's impossible to have the best player in the world, a few elite FIBA players and world class role players like Kirilenko (who actually might be a little more than star role player becasue he impacted the game in every aspect) at the same time. Numbers talk here. Even USA are struggling at the moment to find a perfect roster, which is why they went like crazy after Embiid, worried about another meltdown, this time with huge consequences at the biggest stage - Olympics. That is why I said players like Kalinic, Lucic etc. are perfect fit next to Jokic, Bogdan...You can't have ideal situation in full meaning of that word. However, you don't even have to. What Serbia has right now might be enough to go for something big.

[Obina]

Miami sent Jovic to g league.

Its a bit surprise for me. He was very good when he got a chance. Maybe some trade is a good option for him.

[Serbian_Layup]

It's a surprise that Jovic is not playing right now, but the Heat have one of the best developmental programs in NBA, so there must be some things he has to work on before he gets regular minutes, defense and stamina primarily. Time works for him, still so young, he is going to be a starter caliber NBA player at the very least. It would be nice to get more time and experience before Olympic tournament though.

Bogdanovic has become the best three point shooter in the history of World Cups. He has played 3 tournaments so far and has a record of 73/163 - 45%. He has been a lethal shooter and scorer for NT. Hopefully, he will have enough gas for one more World Cup.

https://twitter.com/FIBAWC/status/1724362474785235310

[Serbian_Layup]

Smailagic is becoming a Swiss army knife kind of player. Obradovic is using him at all frontcourt positions - SF, PF, C. Remarkable improvement defensively, I remember last 2 seasons he had difficult time to stay on the court because of foul trouble. But this season things are coming in place for him, he is adjusting nicely to all defensive requirements. His defense on gurads on the perimeter is a lot better, much improved in positioning. The only problem is rebounding when he plays at 5 and is physically outmacthed by stronger centers. Everything else is pretty good defensively. Offensively, he has potential to be 12-15 ppg scorer. Shooting is great, ability to attack closeuts with explosive finish, and lately he has taken advantage in missmatches against smaller players, especially since Obradovic started to play him at SF. Versatiltiy on both ends is there, only 23 y.o, he is the kind of player who needs more time to mature, so it is great for him to be coached by Obradovic. It's helping that he is playing with a lot of heart too. In my book, he is rising as a serious option for NT.

https://twitter.com/EuroLeague/status/1732860065218973974?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1732860065218973974%7Ctwgr%5E58de5069687af0f6dbc53e8fb46688dcca1624b5%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.b92.net%2Fsport%2Feuroleague%2Fpick-n-roll.php%3Fyyyy%3D2023mm%3D12dd%3D08nav_id%3D2446747

Jaramaz is struggling offensively, but showed last night vs Milan why he can be a valuable player when it comes to ball pressure and defense on smaller guards.

Avramovic can't catch a break. Another injury, this time looks to be serious. Going to be out at least for couple of months.

[Serbian_Layup]

If Corey Brewer can score 50, then Bogi surely can do at least 40...LOL

Bogi with 40 piece, better than ever. Actually, Jokic said after the game that this is the first time Bogi feels completely healthy in a long time.

https://twitter.com/NBA/status/1734419442753262043

Bogi and Jokić combined for 65...something similar might happen in NT

[Serbian_Layup]

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They say picture is worth a thousand words. If this one could speak, it would probably say "one great chapter is over, the next is about to begin".

Where past meets its future.

[Straight forward]

GBF07vUW4AAyjpx?format=jpg&name=large.jpg

They say picture is worth a thousand words. If this one could speak, it would probably say "one great chapter is over, the next is about to begin".

Where past meets its future.

Guy's story is pretty nasty. Some people literally put him at No.1 draft pick now. In summer international BB world barely knew him He's a great prospect, but I still rather see him in the range of 10-25 picks rather than he's being projected now as top 5 material. FOA, he doesn't have great shooting and is bad defender. Second of all, Adriatic League is not a strong league. And when I read "Adriatic League is super physical" I take it as the poster confused it with EL or NBL (Australia). In other words, Topic hasn't yet even showed things in EL or men's FIBA, or even Eurocup. I would think he would easily be best young player in EL by far, taking Rising Star award without any effort, but only there we could see more. Kind feel that he hyped a bit too much ATM. We have to understand that in NBA he will go against more explosive, faster and lengthier players and I'm not sure his extreme slashing ability will stand out that super much as it does in Adrianic League and that's his best trait. He will be a great player, but watching his highs I don't see top 5 material, definitely not top 1. To my understanding he would have to be more explosive athletically, to be a high leaper for his size (like Edwards or close). His game is not exactly based on crafted perimeter game and intangibles. He's more about the burst, slashing and explosiveness, much like such players as Parker, Rose. But Parker was 28pick and Rose was 10 times more athletic. I guess, what I'm saying I have to see him on NBA/EL court first. To me he surely doesn't look as No.1 pick, but recently there had been some trashy No.1 picks so Topic wouldn't even be among bad choices either. Nevertheless, sensational riser. Buzelis or Risacher's names were out-there for a long time. Topic came out from no-where straight to the top.

https://www.sbnation.com/nba/2023/12/11/23990775/nba-mock-draft-2024-board-pistons-spurs-first-pick-nikola-topic-rankings

[Straight forward]

OK, I have to say I changed my mind. I posted this just not having the full picture of this draft class and just hoping to see eyes popping No.1 pick option which Topic not exactly delivers. But there's the thing. I have Buzelis, Topic and Alex Sarr as my top 3 picks of 2024. In my opinion these 3 are best players in 2024 draft. I went throught this draft class.

Other guys that I liked the most, but I ranked a little lower were Stephon Castle as a guard with great D, great passing and good scoring. He plays with heart and hustles, great motor. Isaiah Collier goes next, who reminds Edwards (just a little worse IMO). Cody Williams is sneaky versatile forward, but not as versatile and smooth as Buzelis. Ron Holland lacks a bit of height and versatility, and great athleticism to be deadly at 6'8, but gonna be pretty good. Rishacher is a great defender and great shooter, but he's not as versatile and I find him overrated because of that. IMO, Ja'Kobe Walter is highly overrated. He's a pure scorer without much passing and he's not even super smooth as some Edwards and doesn't have supreme explosiveness. One dimensional player yet all scouts are super high on him. He's the example were NBA scouts are dummies.

Here's the deal. None of other guards in this class has BB IQ, passing culture, decision making and overall awariness as a guard of Topic. No-one. As an elite Euro PG and special one, he's head and shoulders above anyone else and most American guards can only dream about his p'n'r abilities and so on. Match this with his explosive first step, coordination, hesitations and so on and you get top 3 player basically. Hands down. Cause as a guard with that IQ and all, he can impact the game tremendously.

Sarr is a heck of defender for his size, can be true rim protector. Defensively he's a stud. Offensively with that size he can attack the close out impressively and he has a three. For that size that's deadly weapons. He's physical and yet mobile and skilled. He's a good passer too. In comparison with Buzelis, he has better defensive profile, at least at the moment and likely overall, but doesn't have Buzelis agility, smoothness, handles and versatile craft. Buzelis is the guy with the highest upside in this draft. No-one contains such size and such fluidity and skill packet that Buzelis has. When you choose Sarr, you choose a bit higher floor, but Buzelis still contains that raw and great upside which is unmatched. Even Topic is not a competition here because of the size. Buzelis has nearly guard skills and extreme fluidity (coasting with the motion of Durant through the court basically) for 6'10, 6'11. On other hand, Buzelis is not so expressed ball handler and player with the ball in his hands as Topic and he will never be as physical and defensively present (rim protection) as Sarr who still provide a lot, just not as much as Buzelis versatility offensively. So you pick the poison and what you mostly need. Buzelis still has the best upside and most special case in this draft class because of his combination and I agree with this guy:

https://twitter.com/NBADraftWass/status/1734981885535678669

I wanted Buzelis not to be No.1 pick in the draft, because of unneccesary attention and all, but he most likely end up like one, cause there's no guys with better upside overall when it comes to contemporary basketball and trends.

I see it like this:

1. Buzelis
2-3 Topic, Sarr
2-3 Sarr, Topic
4. Stephon Castle
5. Isaiah Collier
6. Cody Williams
7. Rishacher.
8. Ron Holland.

[Serbian_Layup]

Regarding Topic, if he ends up being a top Euroleague player, I would sign for that right now. This draft class is weaker, there is not a single player for whom you can say is the real deal. You are right about Topic's weaknesses, but his strengths and production as an 18 y.o. are just overwhelming. He has like 4 years of development to iron out his weaknesses or improve them. He is way ahead of schedule. Other prospects also have yet to prove themselves at higher level. ABA league is not top tier league, but it is professional league with intense physical contact. Almost no one in this draft class is playing at higher level. After all, 2 Euroleague teams play there and judging how Topic performed against them, there is a big optimism that he can translate his game well at least on Euroleague level. Funny thing about Topic, when he dominated in junior league, everyone was like he is just stronger and faster than everyone else, we'll see him in PRO league. Now that he dominates ABA league, everyone is like it's a bad league, Eurolegue would be too much for him. I'm pretty sure Zvezda fans would like to see him instead of Napier or Yago right now.

Agree about Buzelis' upside considering his size and skill set. He is very talented.

[Serbian_Layup]

As it seems right now, we are gong to face USA, Australia and France in mid July in prep games before Olympics. It's going to be so fun. Should be fantastic summer with, perhaps, some historic basketball games. Not to mention that OQT's are also going to be great and fun to watch (even more fun since we are not going through that torture ).

As for our roster, nothing new to add. If Jokic is in, model entire game after his skill set. Micic, Bogdanovic and Guduric as on ball creators (with Jokic) and the rest of roster should be filled with 3&D players, off ball cutters, spot up shooters, strong transition players. In that sense, Kalinic, Lucic, Marinkovic, Dobric, Avramovic, Jovic are all great fit next to those players. They are necessary in order to reach proper balance in our game and to get the max out of Jokic's skill set. Also, get Stefan Jovic as safety blanket in case Micic doesn't meet expectations. I would integrate Topic in the next Eurobasket, because now I just want the most optimal team in terms of mental-physical-experience readiness.

[Serbian_Layup]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qXz8CSKl47o&t=114s

Playmaking skills on full display here, a point forward in the making. Another all around game. Jovic with his skill set is going to be huge for NT this summer. When I see how well Kalinic has been playing lately on both sides of the floor showing great versatility, playing both of them at forward spots is going to be so good. Size, passing, transition, IQ, versatility, potentially one of the best starting combos at forward position in Olympic tournament. And how much space they will be getting behind Bogdan and Jokic (and Micic), really hard to stop a team with that many weapons. Huge props to Pesic who immediately recognized Jovic's talent last year and threw him in the starting lineup since the second prep game and kept him there all the way through the final game in the World Cup, playing him big minutes despite the lack of experience. That was such a good move for future actions and it will pay dividends already in Olympics.

Micic's facilitation game in NBA is for real. We'll see if he can adjust to NBA shooting range and athleticism, but I like very much how he runs the point when given minutes. That is exactly how he should play for NT. Less dribbling, more passing.