By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
American-born guard TJ Shorts of Telekom Baskets Bonn is receiving a North Macedonian passport and will join the country’s national team in the upcoming matches for the 2025 EuroBasket pre-Qualifiers.
As the North Macedonian Basketball Federation announced, 25-year-old Shorts made the national team roster ahead of the home games against Norway (10/11) and Denmark (13/11) The North Macedonia team is tied with Norway at 2-0 in Group D (North Macedonia, Norway, Denmark, Slovakia) and looks to claim the first place that leads directly to the Qualifiers. All other Group participants move to the pre-Qualifiers third round.
Together with Pinar Karsiyaka guard Errick McCollum, Shorts is currently the leading scorer in the FIBA’s Basketball Champions League by averaging 26.7 points, along with 7.7 assists. He joined the Bonn side after finishing 2021-22 as the top scorer in the German League with the Crailsheim Merlins.
In the past, North Macedonia used such naturalized players as former two-time (2010, 2012) All-EuroLeague guard plus 2012 Top Scorer scorer Bo McCalebb, and Jacob Wiley.
Photo: FIBA