By Eurohoops team / info@eurohoops.net
Serbia faced a major scare before the 2024 Paris Olympics with the injury of talented Miami Heat forward Nikola Jović. Initial prognosis suggested he might miss the Olympic tournament, but he recovered in time to join the team and add a bronze medal to his collection.
After another successful summer with the Serbian national team, Jović is back in the United States, preparing for the upcoming season. In a conference call, the 21-year-old Serbian, who has had the fourth year of his contract with Miami picked up, discussed his current injury status.
“I would say I’m almost fully healthy. Of course, there’s a little ligament that still needs to be 100 percent. They told me it would take a little bit more time, but it shouldn’t be an issue. Basically, I’m 100 percent,” said Nikola Jović, as reported by the Miami Herald.
He arrived at Serbia’s training camp wearing a protective boot and eventually played a minor role with Svetislav Pešić’s team in Lille and Paris.
“It was not just a normal sprained ankle; it was a small fracture. I had MRIs and everything. At that point, they weren’t sure if I would make it to the Olympics. But my biggest goal was just to be there, be with the team, and help them as much as I could,” Jović said.
Despite his injury, coach Pešić wanted him on the team for the Olympics.
“We flew to Paris, and I knew I wasn’t in great shape because I hadn’t played in a while. My foot maybe wasn’t ready for a big role, and we knew all that, and the coach understood everything. But he still wanted me to go; he still believed I could help as much as I could, and that’s what I did.”
Jović also talked about his offseason work in Miami since the end of the Olympics and his hopes for the upcoming 2024/25 season.
“We’re making sure that my foot is good after every practice because the injury I had is no joke, and we really don’t want any new problems with it. So during training camp, I wouldn’t say I’m going to sit out or anything, but of course, you want to make sure that everything is good. If something starts hurting by any chance, I’ll probably need to step away. But I don’t think that will be the case, and I’m really looking forward to being 100 percent and giving everything I have,” Nikola Jović concluded.