Svetislav Pešić spoke about Nikola Jokić and his possible appearance at the Olympic Games in Paris.
Source: Youtube/FIBA Media
Will the world‘s best basketball player Nikola Jokić play for the Serbian national team at the Olympic Games? Coach Svetislav Pešić spoke as openly as he could about it, after Serbia’s victory against Finland at the start of the Eurobasket 2025 qualifiers.
“I talk very often with Jokić, Tarlać and I maintain that contact with everyone who was not there today. Last year was a very difficult situation for Nikola, you know it or not, he played more than 100 games, he also had a physical injury problem, he was not ready, he fought with himself until the last moment to play, he wants it, but you have to know one thing, when you decide to play for the national team of Serbia, only a gold medal is expected from them. And those players, in order to take responsibility for top results, must be mentally and physically ready. If they are not physically and mentally ready, then they will not go into it. It is not a question of whether anyone wants to, but you forget, you are young, how many of our top players, not to mention the legends of Yugoslav and Serbian basketball, also did not play for the national team. We would like Nikola to be ready and to play, I hope he will be ready, but it is early.”
The basketball tournament at the Olympic Games begins on July 27, and Pešić appealed to everyone to be patient.
“Olympic games? Don’t worry too much when I don’t. These are the qualifications for the next European Championship. At no time are there any qualifications for the players for the Olympic Games. I see some familiar faces here following the national team since I came back to be a coach, in November 2021, when we played Latvia, there were 1,500 spectators here, so look what those guys have done in these two and a half years. Obviously something happened. Not only in terms of sports results, but the desire for the players to give their maximum, when it comes to the attitude towards the national team, which is quite difficult. I keep saying that, not because I want an excuse, nor because someone is protecting me, I always protect the players. See how long the season is and how long it will last. The first match at the Olympic Games is on July 27, the boys should rest, and we should also train a little. We’ll see what happens, no qualifications for me. We talk, I visit them, we talk, we exchange experiences, I try to help them, to use this year to be a little better players, to fix some things and let that be it”.
After the victory against Finland, Serbia will host Georgia in the 2nd round of the qualifiers on Monday, and given the defeat of their next rival, Denmark, they have a chance to take a big step towards qualifying for next year’s European Championship already this February. Two of the four national teams will qualify, with Finland automatically qualified as the host of the 2025 European Championship.
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