“This is a unique opportunity for us, following a well-executed World Cup. The tournament itself is very tough and unique, where only the winner of the six teams goes to Paris. It won’t be easy; Latvia as the host might be the favorite, but every team sees its chance.
Brazil and Georgia are very strong, Cameroon and the Philippines are good, so there are no easy opponents in such tournaments, and every game is crucial. We came to the preparations with the desire to give our best to reach Paris, and I believe we are capable of turning the dream into reality.
The team is quite different from the World Cup, we are missing several experienced players due to injuries, but this should be seen as an opportunity for some younger players who will be playing in significant matches for the first time, and they will surely bring a certain motivation and energy.
The preparations are short, but we will strive to get ready as best as we can, to gel as a team, and to go to Riga, where we have to give our all. The Olympic Games are every athlete’s dream. Qualifying for Paris would be an incredible achievement, as it would be the first time Montenegro’s basketball team has made it to the Olympics,” said Nikola Vucevic.
The whole team is made up by the following players:
Kendrick Perry (Unicaja), Igor Drobnjak (Studentski Centar), Petar Popovic (Buducnost), Fedor Zugic (Gottingen), Jovan Kljajic (Gran Canaria), Luka Bogavac (Studentski Centar), Zoran Vuceljic (Studentski Centar), Jonah Radebaugh (Murcia), Dino Radoncic (Bayern), Andrija Slavković (Buducnost), Emir Hadzibegovic (Studentski Centar), Aleksa Ilic (Buducnost), Vasilije Bacovic (Studentski Centar), Marko Simonovic (Bahcesehir), Zoran Nikolic (Vojvodina), Filip Andjusic (Podgorica), Nikola Vucevic (Chicago Bulls).