Games will be conducted in Podgorica, Serbia and Montenegro from September 16th to 18th
Read more about the Eurobasket tournament at the informative official website Eurobasket2005.com
Croatia
The Star:
Nikola Vujcic, 6-11, Center, Maccabi Tel Aviv, 27 years old
Jonathan Givony
On paper, Vujcic might be the difference between Croatia competing for a medal at this tournament or going home with their tails between their legs. Very few teams can boast having such a skilled near 7 foot center on their roster with such a nice resume over the past few years to boot. The problem is that that hasnt come to play much so far in the preparation games for Croatia, which doesnt bode too well for their chances.
Vujcic plays for Maccabi Tel Aviv, a dominant force in European basketball over the past few years, where he has won the Euroleague title over the past few years playing with a wonderful supporting cast that compliments him to a T, helping him be amongst three Maccabi players named to the All-Euroleague first team this past season. At age 27, he is in his prime and will be expected to play a major role for the Croatians in Belgrade if they are going to be able to overcome their relative lack of experience and reputation for coming up just short when things get close.
Vujcic is a mobile Center who offensively plays more like a Power Forward. He is extremely skilled in most facets here, whether its his ability to put the ball on the floor with surprisingly good ball-handling skills, shoot the ball with decent accuracy all the way out to the three point line, or best of all use his high basketball IQ to pass the ball with purpose taking full advantage of his height. His ability on the pick and roll made this one of the signature plays between him and Sarunas Jasikevicius or Anthony Parker over the last two years with Maccabi. Vujcic also can score with his back to the basket, a skill that could pay great dividends for Croatia should they decide to take advantage of it.
His shortcomings fall in the defensive and rebounding categories mainly. His motor is not off the charts, nor is his level of conditioning, and his play can often be described as extremely soft by people who are used to seeing their big men fight and claw in the paint. His face-up skills often lead him to fade to the perimeter at times, and he does not seem to be the type to demand the ball and change the game by himself as the go-to guy for his team. How well Vujcic can mesh with his teammates leading into this tournament and just how much he will decide to take on his shoulders will play a big role in how far his team can go here in Belgrade. Considering that this is a contract year for Vujcic and Croatia would like nothing more than to stick it to their arch rivals Serbia and Montenegro on their home floor, we might see a Vujcic here who has some more fire in his belly than weve grown accustomed to here in the past. Reports out of Israel this summer quoting his Entersport (led by Marc Fleisher) agent in the States have indicated that Vujcic is more interested in playing in the NBA than hes previously indicated. NBA scouts will surely be watching him closely here at the Eurobasket.
Vujcic plays for Maccabi Tel Aviv, a dominant force in European basketball over the past few years, where he has won the Euroleague title over the past few years playing with a wonderful supporting cast that compliments him to a T, helping him be amongst three Maccabi players named to the All-Euroleague first team this past season. At age 27, he is in his prime and will be expected to play a major role for the Croatians in Belgrade if they are going to be able to overcome their relative lack of experience and reputation for coming up just short when things get close.
Vujcic is a mobile Center who offensively plays more like a Power Forward. He is extremely skilled in most facets here, whether its his ability to put the ball on the floor with surprisingly good ball-handling skills, shoot the ball with decent accuracy all the way out to the three point line, or best of all use his high basketball IQ to pass the ball with purpose taking full advantage of his height. His ability on the pick and roll made this one of the signature plays between him and Sarunas Jasikevicius or Anthony Parker over the last two years with Maccabi. Vujcic also can score with his back to the basket, a skill that could pay great dividends for Croatia should they decide to take advantage of it.
His shortcomings fall in the defensive and rebounding categories mainly. His motor is not off the charts, nor is his level of conditioning, and his play can often be described as extremely soft by people who are used to seeing their big men fight and claw in the paint. His face-up skills often lead him to fade to the perimeter at times, and he does not seem to be the type to demand the ball and change the game by himself as the go-to guy for his team. How well Vujcic can mesh with his teammates leading into this tournament and just how much he will decide to take on his shoulders will play a big role in how far his team can go here in Belgrade. Considering that this is a contract year for Vujcic and Croatia would like nothing more than to stick it to their arch rivals Serbia and Montenegro on their home floor, we might see a Vujcic here who has some more fire in his belly than weve grown accustomed to here in the past. Reports out of Israel this summer quoting his Entersport (led by Marc Fleisher) agent in the States have indicated that Vujcic is more interested in playing in the NBA than hes previously indicated. NBA scouts will surely be watching him closely here at the Eurobasket.
The Upside:
Roko-Leni Ukic, 6-5 PG/SG, Tau Vitoria, 21 years old
Dimitris Ritsonis
Ukic is a tall and lanky point guard, who has improved much during the past couple of seasons. Already known by many NBA fans from his decision not sign with the Toronto Raptors, but, instead, look for job in Euroleague Powerhouse Tau Ceramica, Ukic has looked a few seasons away from being dominant still in the preparation games so far, or at least consistent enough on both ends of the floor to warrant being a major factor at the highest levels of basketball so far.
Playing for a club which includes no other major talents but him until this summer, Ukic has learnt to do everything on the floor well enough, aided greatly by his superior physical skills. He is a very good, naturally born PG, smart enough to organize the game for his teammates while still finding enough room to get off his shot. His penetration skills are much above average, while his outside shooting has deep, although inconsistent range. His passing is excellent and he really shows flashes of becoming a great PG in the making at times. He can find the open shooters and cutters on his team (with Gordan Giricek being his best weapon lately) and in general his passes are most of the time accurate and his game often makes his teammates shoot confidently.
What he seriously lacks and should become more than obvious in this Eurobasket, his first major career competition, is consistency and mental strength. He simply doesn't seem experienced enough in knowing how to run a team and make good decisions with many different options available offensively at this point, especially a team that needs to play every possession as if it was its last.. Hell make an unbelievable play one moment and then, the next minute make a terrible mistake that easily could have been avoided.
Defensively, Ukic has shown great potential. Although he lacks bulk and experience on this end of the floor, his smarts and mobility help him become a nice defensive contributor and he can do a very good job staying in front of his man. But, once again, one can easily notice that, whenever he gets caught off guard, an opponent can outsmart him easily. In general, a player like him seems destined to succeed in the long-term, but isn't mature enough to lead a contending team right now.
Ukic will stay in the court long enough in this Eurobasket and will probably share time with the older and more mature Zoran Planinic of the New Jersey Nets, who will probably start at the point. Because of the unfortunate injury to sharpshooting guard Marino Bazdaric, Ukic will see even more minutes at either the 1 or the 2 for Croatia. Hes definitely one of the more interesting prospects to look out for here. Tau Vitoria will certainly be keeping a watchful eye.
Playing for a club which includes no other major talents but him until this summer, Ukic has learnt to do everything on the floor well enough, aided greatly by his superior physical skills. He is a very good, naturally born PG, smart enough to organize the game for his teammates while still finding enough room to get off his shot. His penetration skills are much above average, while his outside shooting has deep, although inconsistent range. His passing is excellent and he really shows flashes of becoming a great PG in the making at times. He can find the open shooters and cutters on his team (with Gordan Giricek being his best weapon lately) and in general his passes are most of the time accurate and his game often makes his teammates shoot confidently.
What he seriously lacks and should become more than obvious in this Eurobasket, his first major career competition, is consistency and mental strength. He simply doesn't seem experienced enough in knowing how to run a team and make good decisions with many different options available offensively at this point, especially a team that needs to play every possession as if it was its last.. Hell make an unbelievable play one moment and then, the next minute make a terrible mistake that easily could have been avoided.
Defensively, Ukic has shown great potential. Although he lacks bulk and experience on this end of the floor, his smarts and mobility help him become a nice defensive contributor and he can do a very good job staying in front of his man. But, once again, one can easily notice that, whenever he gets caught off guard, an opponent can outsmart him easily. In general, a player like him seems destined to succeed in the long-term, but isn't mature enough to lead a contending team right now.
Ukic will stay in the court long enough in this Eurobasket and will probably share time with the older and more mature Zoran Planinic of the New Jersey Nets, who will probably start at the point. Because of the unfortunate injury to sharpshooting guard Marino Bazdaric, Ukic will see even more minutes at either the 1 or the 2 for Croatia. Hes definitely one of the more interesting prospects to look out for here. Tau Vitoria will certainly be keeping a watchful eye.
The Upside:
Marko Tomas, 6-8 SF, Real Madrid, 20 years old
Luis Fernandez
Just on his way from a small team, KK Zagreb, to a European powerhouse, Real Madrid, Tomas will have in this championships a first taste of what is to play in a strong and loaded team. Its crucial for him to start getting used to higher level of competition. Last season in Zagreb, he was the absolute offensive reference for his team, virtually a do-it-all player on the offensive end, even playing point guard when his brother Ivan fell injured. He was the primary ball-handler, creating many of his shots off the dribble, even if his handles still arent that good. Regardless, Tomas likes to put the ball on the floor trying to beat his matchup, but neither his quickness nor his explosiveness is outstanding. So in the end, he frequently cant beat his man, but takes advantage of his unbalanced position to deliver a high-released jumper which is rather hard to stop.
With Croatia, and next season with Real Madrid, he wont enjoy as much ball control, but whenever he does, he will have even more problems to beat his matchup, also not being able to shoot over them as easily. So it will be a matter of adjustment, of learning to play off the ball, in catch and shoot situations, or using cuts to more easily beat his rival. On preparation games he has looked a bit lost in his new role. At least, he has been playing decent defense, and that was another concern regarding his game. Nevertheless, Croatia doesnt enjoy too much depth at the SF position, so Tomas is expected so see some playing time during the tournament. Shooting guard Marino Bazdarics injury could open up even more time for him on the wing next to Gordan Giricek.
With Croatia, and next season with Real Madrid, he wont enjoy as much ball control, but whenever he does, he will have even more problems to beat his matchup, also not being able to shoot over them as easily. So it will be a matter of adjustment, of learning to play off the ball, in catch and shoot situations, or using cuts to more easily beat his rival. On preparation games he has looked a bit lost in his new role. At least, he has been playing decent defense, and that was another concern regarding his game. Nevertheless, Croatia doesnt enjoy too much depth at the SF position, so Tomas is expected so see some playing time during the tournament. Shooting guard Marino Bazdarics injury could open up even more time for him on the wing next to Gordan Giricek.