Serbian basketball federation president Nebojsa Covic is counting on having a full team for this year’s EuroBasket tournament, including Nuggets star Nikola Jokic and Clippers guard Bogdan Bogdanovic, according to a BasketNews report. The Serbians have never won the gold medal in the event, but they would be among the favorites if all their stars are available.
The event will take place from August 27 to September 14, which Covic believes will give everyone plenty of time to recover from the rigors of an NBA season.
“I expect us to have a complete squad. I think that those constant questions about Jokic playing can create an unhealthy environment. We are all working on having a complete squad ready,” he said. “NBA stars like Nikola Jokic and Bogdan Bogdanovic now have three months of rest after the seasons they had and that were very demanding.”
Jokic was one of the stars of last year’s Summer Olympics in Paris as Serbia captured a bronze medal and narrowly missed defeating the United States in the semifinals. He has been representing his country in international competitions since 2013.
There’s more international news to pass along:
- Kings center Jonas Valanciunas speculated about finishing his career in the EuroLeague as he attended the league’s Final Four in Abu Dhabi, BasketNews relays in a separate story. It won’t happen for a while, as Valanciunas has two years remaining on his current contract. “I want to play in the EuroLeague, I want it for this atmosphere,” he said in an interview with SPORT24. “I want to play basketball, I want to enjoy this atmosphere.” Valanciunas played four seasons in Lithuania before coming to the NBA in 2012.
- Suns guard Vasilije Micic wants 5 million euros ($5.685MM) to play in Europe next season, according to Alessandro Maggi of Sportando. Phoenix holds an $8.1MM team option on Micic for 2025/26, but that’s likely to be declined because he barely played after being acquired from Charlotte in February. Micic has received interest from Hapoel Tel Aviv and Crvena Zvezda, but Maggi states that not many European teams can meet his salary demand.
- After capturing the EuroLeague title over the weekend, Fenerbahce is preparing for the possible loss of Nigel Hayes-Davis and Tarik Biberovic to the NBA, per Aris Barkas of Eurohoops. Hayes-Davis, 30, had brief stints with three NBA teams during the 2017/18 season, while Biberovic, 24, is a draft-and-stash prospect who was selected by Memphis in the second round in 2023. “There is serious interest in Tarık and Nigel from the NBA,” Fenerbahce general manager Derya Yannier said. “I don’t know what will happen over there. These are factors that could actually weaken our hand and prolong the process during the summer. Even before they leave, it’s difficult to have a clear view in terms of budget and roster planning.”