FIBA Basketball

    Croatia announce preliminary roster for Turin OQT

    ZAGREB (2016 FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournaments) - Croatia will have a different look when they run onto the court at the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament (OQT) in Turin with Ante Tomic deciding not to

    ZAGREB (2016 FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournaments) - Croatia will have a different look when they run onto the court at the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament (OQT) in Turin with Ante Tomic deciding not to play this summer. The veteran center has featured for his homeland since the 2010 FIBA Basketball World Cup but will not be in the squad that faces Italy and Tunisia in Group B.

    Croatia will have to win the OQT to clinch a spot in the Rio de Janeiro Games. Tomic, a 29-year-old pivot with Barcelona in Spain's Liga Endesa, could be replaced by another player from that domestic league with Croatia in the process of naturalizing Valencia Basket center Justin Hamilton. The 2.13m pivot, a 26-year-old from the United States, has averaged 14.6 points and 5.1 rebounds this season and has been named on the 26-man preliminary roster.

    Hamilton's mother is Croatian but the country's basketball federation has been informed that he would need to feature as a naturalized player this summer if selected.

    That would therefore put him into competition with two other Americans, Oliver Lafayette and Dontaye Draper, for the naturalized spot that teams are allowed to have.

    Croatia have had plenty of ups and downs the past couple of summers. Senegal upset them in the Group Phase of the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup but the Croatia side that was led by coach Jasmin Repesa at the time advanced to Round of 16, where France beat them in a thriller.

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    Hopes were high last summer when Velimir Perasovic was coach that Croatia would shine with home-court advantage in the Group Phase. They finished second, however, to Greece and then lost to the Czech Republic in the Round of 16.

    Now the coach is Aleksandar Petrovic and the play-caller has plenty of veterans in the preliminary squad, including Roko Leni Ukic, Krunoslav Simon, Bojan Bogdanovic and Luka Zoric. Dario Saric is one of the leading players in the squad. He has played for the senior team since EuroBasket 2013 in Slovenia.

    Another prominent name on the 26-man list is Mario Hezonja. The 21-year-old small forward is coming off his rookie season in the NBA with the Orlando Magic. He has been with the team since 2014.

    There are also prominent members of the Croatia team that nearly upset the United States in the Final of the 2015 FIBA U19 World Championship in Crete, Greece, like center Ivica Zubac, power forward Marko Arapovic and Luka Bozic.

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    Croatia preliminary squad for 2016 FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Turin, Italy (4-9 July): Roko Ukic, Rok Stipcevic, Oliver Lafayette, Dontaye Draper, Fran Pilepic, Ante Delas, Krunoslav Simon, Bojan Bogdanovic, Mario Hezonja, Filip Kruslin, Luka Babic, Luka Bozic, Damjan Rudez, Zeljko Sakic, Dario Saric, Dragan Bender, Marko Arapovic, Duje Dukan, Leon Radosevic, Miro Bilan, Luka Zoric, Justin Hamilton, Darko Planinic, Ivica Zubac, Ante Zizic and Josip Sobin.

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