By Nikos Varlas/ varlas@eurohoops.net
After emerging as one of the best centers in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague, Nikola Milutinov left Olympiacos for CSKA Moscow.
It was a process, that as he admits to Eurohoops practically started last summer and was completed thanks to the persistence of CSKA president Andrey Vatutin and CSKA coach Dimitris Itoudis, which Milutinov considers “great leaders and great people.”
And while he is embarking on a new adventure, the Serb big man doesn’t forget from where he started in his home country and how he became the player that he is now during his seasons with Olympiacos.
Milutinov talks about his experiences in Piraeus, his teammates, his roommate Vasilis Spanoulis, his close friend Papanikolaou, Vezenkov and Printezis, and the games against Panathinaikos.
The 25-years old big man picks a fellow center, Nikola Jokic, as the best Serb player ever while speaking about the Serbian national team and he also clarifies his situation with the San Antonio Spurs, who have drafted him with the 26th pick in 2015 but never gave him the chance to play in the NBA.
“They were never serious about taking me, and I cannot go there by myself,” he explains.
Plus Milutinov talks about the two games he would love to replay, including the ABA Liga semifinal between Partizan and Cedevita and the Nolan Smith shot.
Here’s what Nikola Milutinov had to say in a long talk with Eurohoops.