SRB - Bright future for Teodosic

SIAULIAI (EuroBasket 2011) – Looking at the wealth of young talent on Serbia’s national team at EuroBasket 2011, it’s hard to believe that the mighty Serbia appeared in shambles just four summers ago.

But an influx of supremely talented players such as Milos Teodosic and Milenko Tepic and the experience of the legendary coach Dusan Ivkovic brought Serbia the silver medal at EuroBasket 2009 and fourth place at the 2010 FIBA World Championship.

That group also has its sights set on Serbia’s first Olympics showing since 2004.

“For all players it is a dream to play in one Olympic Games. Serbia missed the last Olympics in China, so we will give everything we have to do be in London,” said Teodosic, who is leading his team at EuroBasket in 2011.

Teodosic was also at EuroBasket 2007 in Spain, where the Serbs under coach Zoran Slavic were embarrassingly bounced from the first round with losses against Russia, Greece and Israel.

That came two years after Serbia & Montenegro failed to make the quarter-finals in the pressure-packed EuroBasket 2005 at home, losing to France in the cross-elimination round.

After the Spain debacle, Serbian leadership had had enough and in the buildup to EuroBasket 2009 called upon the services of veteran leader and former Yugoslavia national team coach Ivkovic.

Ivkovic’s arrival in 2009 meant a huge change in the Serbian basketball landscape. The hard-nosed veteran recognized Serbia’s hopes for the future lied in their youth generations.

And Serbia were seeing a wealth over über-talented young players dominating the youth ranks in Europe.

Before joining Serbia’s senior side in Spain, Teodosic and Tepic had captured gold at the U20 European Championship in 2007. That was the middle of three straight U20 crowns for Serbia/Serbia & Montenegro.

In addition to Teodosic and Tepic, the three-year U20 run produced current Serbian internationals such as Milan Macvan, Ivan Paunic, Marko Keselj and Boban Marjanovic.

Two other members of those classes not in Lithuania due to injury are Novica Velickovic and Miroslav Raduljica. And there are plenty of other talents for Ivkovic – or his eventual successor – to choose from.

However, the undisputed leader of the current and future Serbian teams is the 24-year-old Valjevo native Teodosic.

Besides all the youth European medals, Teodosic last summer eliminated reigning world champions Spain in the quarter-finals of the 2010 FIBA World Championship with an incredible three-pointer from well behind the arc with 3.1 seconds left.

“Milos Teodosic is the shrewdest and most clever point guard here,” said German national team coach Dirk Bauermann of the the CSKA Moscow playmaker.

“He has the future lying in front of him,” said Ivkovic.

And Teodosic’s teammate Paunic called him “the best playmaker in Europe”.
Teodosic hopes that next summer he can change that moniker to best playmaker at the Olympics.

FIBA