Dusko Vujosevic, former Partizan coach, has commented on the state of Serbian basketball and shared his opinions on the current Serbian national team.
Vujosevic emphasized that national team head coach Svetislav Pesic is a close friend of his, but he is a tough individual and came into an unfavorable environment.
“We are in a crisis regarding direction and attitude towards the national team. Last year, during the qualifications for the Olympic Games, only three players attended the first practice. This speaks of a lack of seriousness. Pesic is a demanding person, even though we are friends, but he nitpicks about certain things,” Dusko Vujosevic began.
“Players don’t come here for parties and drinking; they come to prepare. Every second of that minimum number of days must be utilized, not complained about. Nobody needs to be flattered by their presence. Players also influence the atmosphere. Pesic found himself in a situation of our players being spoiled due to enormous amounts of money. Consequently, they’ve turned into businessmen with different mindsets,” stated the accomplished coach.
He then proceeded with comments regarding certain players from the national team. As expected, he focused more on former Partizan players.
“Vanja Marinkovic struggles to achieve consistency when it comes to shooting. He possesses an excellent shot, but he lacks constancy. He needs to elevate the selection criteria for his shots and remain even calmer. Milutinov excels in offense but isn’t entirely physically prepared, in my impression. He can engage in one-on-one rational situations with pivots; his progress in kick-out passes is particularly notable. Those are shots with the highest success rate, statistically proven. I fear excessive playing time might lead to injuries. I’m thrilled about Nikola Jovic’s performances, as if I personally coached him,” Vujosevic emphasized.
The Eagles remain unbeaten in the current phase of the FIBA World Cup. Advancing to the next stage as the top team from Group B, the Serbian basketball players will play their next match on Friday, squaring off against Italy at 10 AM.