The Lietkabelis big man has been one of the star players in the competition this season
Marko Pecarski: 'It is great to have such a big role in a EuroCup team'
Interviews
11 Mins read
It’s fair to say that Marko Pecarski has been a pleasant surprise in the 2024-25 BKT EuroCup season.
Playing for 7Bet-Lietkabelis Panevezys, which started the season 0-4 before bouncing back with wins against the previously undefeated Cosea JL Bourg-en-Bresse and Veolia Towers Hamburg, the 24-year-old Serbian big man is showing what he can do on his return to the competition by posting 12.5 points on 73.8% two-pointers, 7.2 rebounds and a PIR of 16.7. He previously represented Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade in the EuroCup between 2017 and 2019.
Pecarski has reunited with Lietkabelis boss Nenad Canak, one of the first head coaches of his career, and the son of Miroslav Pecarski, a Turkish Airlines EuroLeague champion in 1996 with Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens, has big hopes for what remains of this EuroCup season.
During an interview with Euroleague.net’s Javier Gancedo, Pecarski explains how his passion for basketball has grown the higher he has gone in his career and how he is finding his return to the EuroCup, among other topics.
Hello, Marko. First things first, congratulations on beating Hamburg. It was your second consecutive win after a 0-4 start. What allowed you to play better and to start winning in the EuroCup?
"Thank you. Yes, we didn't start the EuroCup season with good results, it didn't start very well. We have a lot of young players that hadn’t played at this level and we needed some time to get together, to get to know each other. We played against some tough opponents, very experienced, and we needed some time to learn and adapt to the competition and everything. But the most important thing is that we are growing as a team. We are feeling it, and there are some results. It is still early, but just to see our progress gives us a lot of positive energy to keep going forward."
You haven't featured in the EuroCup in five years, but you are playing really well right now, in a new team and a new country. What allowed you to adjust so well from the very beginning of the season?
"Well, I played at Partizan five years ago, but I was very young. I didn't have an opportunity to really play. I think I adapted pretty well because last season I played in the Turkish League, which is a very competitive league with great teams and great players, and I played as a foreigner for the first time in my career. I think that was the season where I grew and after that season, I felt like I was prepared for whatever is coming. Wherever I go, I'm ready to compete, and I will have that self-confidence. Of course, every beginning, wherever you go, is not easy when you are changing your environment. But this club is a great organization, with great people, and that is something that helped me adapt pretty quickly. I'm just looking forward to continuing."
Your game against Bourg was almost perfect. You had a PIR of 34, no missed shots, just one turnover, just one foul. Was that the kind of performance that you always dreamed about?
"During the game, I wasn't aware of that because when you play, you are just thinking about the game. You are in the moment and in the end, it was a very close game. It was very tense until the end and when we won, I realized and I saw that my stats were perfect. Like you said, it was like a perfect scenario: you get a big win against an undefeated team, I played a great game and helped my team win! There is no better feeling as a player. This is why you play and this is what motivates you, what keeps you going."
Your father Miroslav Pecarski was also a professional player and a EuroLeague champion with Panathinaikos. How much of a mentor has he been to you?
"It is a big thing to have somebody in your family, especially your father, that has been through everything that you have to go through, that has experience in all kinds of situations in which you are like, that knows what I'm facing in my career. And since I was young, I always looked for his advice. And since I started playing basketball, it has been a very, very good thing for me. I think when you have that opportunity, it is a big advantage as you are growing to become a pro."
"Nenad [Canak] coached me with I was a kid, and I always had a very good relationship with him."
You, your father and Lietkabelis head coach Nenad Canak played for Partizan in the past. Is playing for Coach Canak one of the reasons you joined your current team?
"Yes, it was one of the biggest reasons why I came here. Like I said a few questions before, this is a great organization that has competed well in the EuroCup for years, and is also very competitive in the Lithuanian League. Nenad [Canak] coached me with I was a kid, and I always had a very good relationship with him. And when he called me this summer, it was the perfect scenario for me, to play a high-level competition for a club that I trust. I would say that my relationship with him was a big reason for me to come here."
Your father also played at center, even if your playing styles are different. Did you play against each other? Does he still give you advice?
"Well, we didn't play a lot, and like you said, he was a big guy like me but basketball back then was much different than today. I play like at power forward. He was a 4-5, but back then a big guy was a big guy; they were not outside threats back then, at that time. Still, he was a big guy playing at the highest level, at the level I am trying to achieve."
"The EuroCup is very strong and very competitive this year."
Five years without playing in the EuroCup is a long time. Now you're 24 – the last time you played in the competition, you were 19. How different is the EuroCup now, and how fun is it to have a bigger role?
"Like I said, back then I was pretty young and didn't get that much playing time, so I didn't get a real feeling of experiencing this level of competition. Also, I was very young and inexperienced, so I couldn't get a clear picture, but I think the EuroCup is very strong and very competitive this year. I think it is the biggest quality of the competition in the EuroCup for years. As for me, it is a great thing to have such a big role in a EuroCup team and play every week against some big players and some big clubs. I like to compete and that is the most important thing, and the higher level you play, the bigger passion for it you have. I feel that the competition is great, I am playing and having a big role, so I feel really good after that. I can't wait for every game!"
You seem to enjoy traveling a lot, posting many pictures of all of your trips on social media. Well, you travel a lot in the EuroCup. Even if they are business trips, do you find time to see cities when you are on the road?
"Well, like you said, these are usually short trips but when I go somewhere, I try to see what I can. I like to see new countries, new cities in which I am playing, to experience new stuff. Last week, we were in Spain, in Valencia, and a big tragedy happened there. We were there for two days without playing any game. What happened there was very sad. But to answer your question, the most important thing in every trip is preparing for the game, that is what I try to focus on as much as I can. But if I get a chance, I always like to see new places."
That was going to be my next question: the trip to Valencia. The game was postponed for obvious reasons. How difficult were those hours in Valencia, knowing that a lot of people were going through such hard times?
"What happened was very sad. When we arrived in Spain, we were in downtown Valencia and it was not bad in there – it rained downtown and that was it. But when we heard and then we checked and when we saw the news, we were shocked, and it was just logical to immediately postpone the game because of how many people died. Like I said, it was a very sad thing and all of our players are with those who were affected. We hope to come back soon and play the game in a different environment."
Your next game is in Romania against U-BT Cluj-Napoca, backed by 10,000 people in the stands. How much are you looking forward to it?
"I have never played in Romania or against Cluj. I watched games on TV about the atmosphere there. Andrija Stipanovic, who played there for years, is my teammate now, so I heard from him how much passion they have for the game and how much people love that club, and how big of a thing their games are. So I can have a picture in my head, but I am looking forward to playing there, competing and experiencing a new EuroCup game."