Serbia coach Lukic gives chances to possible first-timers in first training camp
BELGRADE (Serbia) - Zoran Lukic will be looking to see what Serbia’s untapped 2002-born generation has to offer as the head coach nominated 26 players for his first training camp for FIBA U19 World Cup.
BELGRADE (Serbia) - Serbian head coach Zoran Lukic will actively be looking to see what the country's untapped 2002-born generation has to offer as he nominated 26 players for his first training camp to start the preparations for the FIBA U19 Basketball World Cup 2021.
Lukic called on 10 players who have played for Serbia in the past - either at the FIBA U16 European Championship or the FIBA U18 European Championship. But he also invited 13 players born in 2002 who have never donned the Srbija jersey, including the United States-based trio of Stefan Todorovic and twins Milos and Veljko Ilic as well as Aleksa Kovacevic, who is playing for Crailsheim in Germany and debuted in the German top flight last season at just 16 years of age.
| Serbia's preliminary roster for the FIBA U19 Basketball World Cup 2021 | ||||
| Stefan Agoc | Luka Aksentijevic | Marko Andric | Matija Belic | Nikola Blagojevic |
| Mihailo Boskovic | Danilo Damjanovic | Nikola Djurisic | Vuk Dobrasinovic | Milos Ilic |
| Veljko Ilic | Lazar Joksimovic | Nikola Jovic | Aleksa Kovacevic | Luka Kovacevic |
| Petar Kovacevic | Nikola Manojlovic | Vojin Medarevic | Mahailo Musikic | Luka Paunovic |
| Mihailo Petrovic | Nikola Radovanovic | Filip Skobalj | Lazar Stefanovic | Stefan Todorovic |
| Petar Zivojinovic | ||||
The 49-year-old Lukic is a Belgrade native but he hasn't coached in his homeland since 2004, when he was still an assistant at Belgrade club Atlas. He moved to Russia and made his name with Nizhny Novgorod, guiding the team to the Basketball Champions League Final 8 this season among other highlights.
Serbian federation leaders will be hoping a fresh set of eyes on the country's talents can bring back the success the nation has experienced at the U19 World Cup, which it won in 2007 and finished second in 2011 and 2013. But Serbia didn't reach the Quarter-Finals in 2015, missed the tournament entirely in 2017 and finished seventh in 2019.
Serbia's 2002 and 2003 generations did not have success at the U16 continental level. The 2002 group finished fifth in 2018 after losing to France in the Quarter-Finals, and the 2003 generation ended in seventh after losing in dramatic fashion to eventual champions Spain in overtime in the Quarter-Finals.
Seven players from the 2018 U16 team - Stefan Agoc, Marko Andric, Nikola Manojlovic, Mihailo Musikic, Luka Paunovic, Filip Skobalj and Lazar Stefanovic - have been invited to the camp while Andric, Manojlovic and Skobalj all played a year younger at the FIBA U18 European Championship 2019. There are four players from the 2019 U16 team - Matija Belic, Nikola Djurisic, Mihailo Petrovic and Nikola Radovanovic. Djurisic is actually from the 2004-born generation which also includes the country's next expected young star Nikola Jovic, who is also invited to the camp.
Todorovic and the Ilic brothers were among the 10 players who met with Coach Lukic at the famed Pionir hall and Belgrade and departed for the resort city of Divcibare in the highlands in western Serbia, where the Serbs will prepare until June 11.
Due to club obligations, 13 additional players will join the Serbian camp on May 27. Belic is expected to arrive in Divcibare in May 30, while the duo of Djurisic and Jovic from Mega aren't going to get to the camp until June 8.
After the camp in Divcibare, the team will have more training in Belgrade with an exhibition against Turkey planned before traveling to Latvia on July 1 with the tournament running from July 3-11 in Daugavpils and Riga.
The Serbians are drawn into Group B along with hosts Latvia, Iran and Puerto Rico.
FIBA