By Eurohoops team / info@eurohoops.net
Aco Petrovic will be the head coach of the Brazilian national team in the 2024 Olympic Qualifiers, the country’s Basketball Federation announced. Tiago Splitter, a EuroLeague great as a player and currently assistant coach at the Houston Rockets, will join his staff.
Petrovic, a multimedalist with his native Croatia as a player and coach, is back at the helm of Brazil since his stint from 2017 to 2021. During that run, he registered 26 wins in 33 games, including a stunner vs. Greece in the 2019 World Cup.
He succeeds Gustavo De Conti, who coached Brazil in the 2023 World Cup. The team was eliminated in the Second Round, falling fourth in a Group that also included Canada, Latvia and Spain.
“I’m very happy to return to coach the Brazilian team,” said Petrovic, per the Federation. “Now it’s time to focus on the Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Latvia and look for a spot in the Olympic Games of Paris.”
Petrovic, the older brother of the late Drazen Petrovic, had last coached Croatia as an interim.
Brazil will have to compete against Cameroon and Montenegro in the Group Phase of the Qualifiers. If they advance to the semifinals, they will face one among hosts Latvia, Philipinnes or Georgia for a spot in the Final. The winner of the tournament will get the ticket to the Olympics.