By Antonis Stroggylakis / info@eurohoops.net
Former EuroLeague champion Nikola Pekovic is hospitalized after being infected with coronavirus according to Serbian website Telegraf.
Telegraf reported that Pekovic, currently the team manager of the Montenegrin national team, has inflammation of both of his lungs and is breathing with the help of a respirator. He was admitted to a hospital in Podgorica, Montenegro 15 days ago with COVID-19 symptoms and his condition deteriorated over that period.
Pekovic’s family later said that his condition isn’t as serious as presented in the Telegraf story. “He’s in stable condition” and “breathing independently” without a respirator, they told Serbian Blic while adding that the former player has been in the Podgorica hospital “since yesterday.”
They also mentioned that Pekovic was hospitalized because his doctors advised him that his situation should better be monitored in a health institution.
The 34-year-old Pekovic was crowned EuroLeague champion with Panathinaikos in 2009, a year during which he was also named to the All-EuroLeague First Team. The Montenegrin big man had emerged in EuroLeague with Partizan Belgrade.
In 2010, Pekovic joined the Minnesota Timberwolves with which he played six seasons before being waived in 2017. His career ended prematurely due to persistent foot problems and injury issues.
The initial story was updated for clarity and to include all the latest developments