By Josh Cohen Sept. 3, 2016
All it took was 15 minutes for Nikola Vucevic to overwhelm Albania in EuroBasket qualifying action.
In that time on the floor, Vucevic showed off his offensive arsenal. He shot 8-of-13 and finished with 19 points, four rebounds and four assists in Montenegro's 113-73 victory on Saturday in Tirana.
The win sets up the first of two highly-anticipated and significant matchups with Georgia, which like Montenegro is 2-0 and feature its own NBA big man, Zaza Pachulia. The two teams will meet up in Tbilisi, Georgia on Sept. 7 and then again on Sept. 17 in Bar, Montenegro.
Dishing out four assists in limited minutes is another instance of how Vucevic has become more of a playmaker. In an exhibition last week against Slovenia, he racked up 10 dimes. He also had five assists or more in seven games last season with the Magic.
Vucevic is very good at finding open teammates along the perimeter when opponents double team him in the low post. With the Magic hoping to increase the number of threes they take and make, this attribute from Vucevic will be key to the team's offense in 2016-17.
With Serge Ibaka and Bismack Biyombo joining Vucevic in Orlando this season, the Magic expect to have a formidable frontcourt.
Playing in the FIBA EuroBasket Qualifiers is a boost for Vucevic, who last played for his country in 2013. This opportunity gives him a chance to pass on all the knowledge he has gained from his NBA experience to his Montenegrin teammates. It also will help him be fresh and in rhythm by the time the Magic start training camp later this month.
Montenegro is hoping to qualify for EuroBasket for the first time since the 2013 event. In that competition, which followed his second year in the NBA and first with the Magic, Vucevic averaged seven points and four rebounds in limited minutes.
But now, with a new head coach, Bogdan Tanjevic, and promising talent around Vucevic, Montenegro believes it can not only qualify for next summer's event but also make some noise if it gets there.
One teammate of Vucevic that may be familiar to Magic fans is Danilo Nikolic, who played on one of Orlando's summer league teams this past July. He grabbed five rebounds in Saturday's win.
