Two more nations have set their 12-man rosters for the upcoming Olympic games in Paris, with Serbia and Greece both officially announcing their squads (Twitter links).
The Serbian roster is headlined by three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic and includes a few more NBA players beyond the Nuggets center. Hawks guard Bogdan Bogdanovic, Hornets guard Vasilije Micic, and Heat forward Nikola Jovic will also represent Serbia in Paris.
Jovic’s inclusion is particularly notable, since there was some uncertainty earlier this month about whether he’d be healthy enough to play. He injured his ankle during an offseason workout in Miami in June, but has apparently received medical clearance for the Olympics.
Nikola Milutinov, Ognjen Dobric, Vanja Marinkovic, Marko Guduric, Filip Petrusev, Aleksa Avramovic, Dejan Davidovac, and Uros Plavsic round out Serbia’s roster. Former NBA first-round pick Aleksej Pokusevski, who finished last season with the Hornets, isn’t among the final 12.
Meanwhile, Greece has also confirmed its Olympic roster, which will be led by another former NBA MVP, Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo. Giannis is the only Antetokounmpo suiting up for Greece in France at this year’s event, since his brothers Thanasis Antetokounmpo and Kostas Antetokounmpo are both dealing with injuries.
While Giannis is the only active NBA player on the Greek roster, a few others have previously played in the league, including Nick Calathes, Georgios Papagiannis, and Kostas Papanikolaou. Former Stephen F. Austin standout Thomas Walkup also signed an NBA contract back in 2016, though he never appeared in a regular season game.
Dinos Mitoglou, Giannoulis Larentzakis, Vassilis Charalampopoulos, Nikos Chougkaz, Dimitris Moraitis, Panagiotis Kalaitzakis, and Vassilis Toliopoulos make up the rest of Greece’s roster.
Serbia’s first pool-play game of the Olympics will take place on Sunday vs. Team USA, while Greece’s Olympic schedule will tip off a day earlier, with a Saturday showdown vs. Canada.
The 2004 Olympic tournament is right up there with any NCAA tourney or any NBA playoffs as the best basketball tournament I’ve personally ever seen. I fully expect this 2024 tournament to surpass that Athens one. And speaking of Athens, if there’s a team that can pull an 04 Argentina type surprise gold medal run it’s this Greek squad. Their backcourt is efficient, underrated & extremely tough, similar to Argentina’s 2004 frontcourt (Nocioni/Scola/Oberto). And obv Giannis is more than capable of putting his country on his back just like Manu did 20yrs ago. I can’t wait to see Canada/Greece this weekend. Canada is obviously deeper & has better individual talent but it’s impossible to not be impressed with the way Greece plays, esp their top7 or so guys.
Also gotta stress how much I like Petrusev’s game from Serbia. Those guys aren’t beating Team USA unless Bogdan has a career game but being in the same group as USA should help them avoid their toughest matchup until the semifinal round… link to m.youtube.com
I thought Antetokounmpo was pushing it but Charalampopoulus! Love it! Can’t wait to hear to hear the announcers handle those names. Start practicing now!