Nikola Jokic still undecided on playing in the Olympics?

“Nikola Jokic’s participation alone certainly means something in every sense,” Pesic said to Politike podcast after being asked whether Jokic will join Serbia for the upcoming Olympic Games. “From both the aspect of his individual quality and from the aspect of personality that Jokic is. Because when I say that Jokic is a better guy than he is a player, they all faint. Like, ‘you’re courting Jokic.’ Of course I’m courting him, because I want to point that out.” -via EuroHoops.net / June 9, 2024

What do you think has driven the influx of international talent in the NBA? Is it improved scouting, a better fit with the NBA’s style of play, or something else? Vasilije Micic: I think the mentality in terms of hunger and desire to, first of all, whoever ends up in the NBA has to have something special. That’s my first impression when I was there and especially to maintain even harder. So once you are already there, you gotta have something that creates differences, and I’m honestly not looking out for Doncic or Jokic, but I can understand the mentality of those two guys because I know both of them. I believe my difference in Europe compared to Americans or other Europeans was actually also mentality. How you handle pressure, how you handle challenges, how you handle defeats, and also how you handle fame. Like fame is something that is maybe even the hardest part of all the negative sides of being professional and successful, and that’s something that I can say as a first impression of those guys in NBA who are now the leaders. They can handle this so easily. -via HoopsHype / June 5, 2024

In the long run, I realized that consistency on the court for me is something that creates a difference, which means I like to play in the moment. So I cannot really tell you at the beginning of the game if I’m going to score 30. Some players are really scoring-oriented, but me, I like to mix. And now, in the NBA, since I realized that nobody wants to pass, I feel that there’s room for me to adjust myself to the game because I think it’s still necessary to pass the ball. I mean, this is something that, as you can see, maybe now with Nikola Jokic or Luka Doncic. Those two guys are something that is so unique, but the best feature of their game for me is the ability to pass. In the end, you cannot win by yourself. So, for me, that’s how I approached Europe. Now, I am trying to find a way to play that way in the NBA. -via HoopsHype / June 5, 2024