By Cesare Milanti / info@eurohoops.net
After yesterday’s official draw, Serbia found out its fate in the Olympic Games in Paris 2024.
They will play in Group C alongside Team USA, South Sudan, and the winner of the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Puerto Rico, from where one between Italy, Lithuania, Puerto Rico, Bahrain, Mexico, or Ivory Coast will come out on top.
As reported by Meridian Sport, Svetislav Pesic commented on the Olympic appointment directly from Geneva. “This Olympic tournament will be one of the best in history. Out of 12 teams, 10 are ready and have a chance to fight for a medal. This has never happened in the history of the Olympic Games”, he said. “It is still too early to talk about it”, he also commented on Nikola Jokic’s participation.
Touching on the Serbian national team’s moment, he has hopes. “Most of the players who were at the World Cup come from a similar generation. Two-thirds of the Manila team were born in 1994 or 1995. That is our advantage. We hope that two from that generation, Nikola Jokic and Vasilije Micic, will play in this tournament. But we can’t know that yet“, he said.
The two-time NBA MVP, who has been averaging 26.0 points, 13.0 rebounds, and 9.0 assists this season with Denver, didn’t play in the 2023 FIBA World Cup. His last big tournament with Serbia came at FIBA EuroBasket 2022, where he put up 21.7 points, 10.0 rebounds, and 4.3 assists per game.
Vasilije Micic, who joined the Charlotte Hornets midway through this season and since then he has been averaging 12.3 points and 5.5 assists per game over 26.4 minutes of playing time, also didn’t participate at the World Cup. At EuroBasket 2022, he had 14.8 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 7.5 assists per game.
PHOTO CREDIT: FIBA EuroBasket 2022
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