The road to Eurobasket continues to be dramatic. One Utah Jazz star was called by the coach for his conditioning.
With the NBA offseason entering its final two months, fans all over the world are hungry for great basketball. Luckily, they don’t have to wait long as the Eurobasket Tournament gives them a quick hint.
Many teams are beginning to play warm-up games before the prestigious tournament. Luka Doncic has already impressed fans with her performance in Slovenia.
The same can be said about Nikola Djokic, who dominated Serbia’s first warm-up game. Some of the NBA’s biggest names showcase their skills in these games.
However, not all NBA players were impressed by the national team. In fact, one star was publicly called by his coach because of his physical condition.
Entering the 2025 Eurobasket tournament, the national teams in Bosnia and Herzegovina are struggling to find momentum. Two losses to Serbia and Montenegro in the warm-up game are not a good sign.
Head coach Adis Becilagic is alive and alive with his team, singled out Jusuf Nurkic under the name of being in poor form before the tournament.
“(jusuf)nurkic is formless and barely possible to do it.” (via BasketNews)
Despite the losses against Montenegro, Nurkic put some strong numbers. He scored 15 points and did his best to catch up with Nikola Vsevic with paint.
However, if his head coach is not satisfied with his conditioning, Nurkic will have to do everything with his power to get better shape before the tournament begins.
Jusuf Nurkic has struggled to meet his expectations with the Bosnian national team, but the same cannot be said about his Utah Jazz teammate Lauri Markkanen.
Markanen was great in the Finnish warm-up game, scoring 48 points against Belgium. This contrast in this fortune only shows where both of these players are in their careers.
Nurkic is an NBA traveler and plays for several different teams. And although he has been a huge success, his time as a regular fixture for the league may be coming to an end as he has struggled to overcome his brutal injuries since 2019.
As for Lauri Markanen, many feel they are knocking on the Superstarm door and feel they need to travel from Utah to reach their goal.
Living in the NBA is extremely difficult, especially for international players. Hopefully, Nurkic can turn things around, but Lauri continues to put his good form into Eurobasket 2025.