U18 Mega SoccerBet Belgrade has twice reached the Euroleague Basketball Adidas Next Generation Tournament Championship Game. It lost both times. Nikola Djurisic hopes that the third time’s the charm for the Serbian talent superpower at this season’s ANGT Finals in Valencia.
Djurisic hopes third time's the charm for Mega
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Mega is back at the finals of the U18 continental showcase for the fifth straight time after taking first place at the ANGT Belgrade in March. Djurisic played a major role in that and he’s ready to help Mega finally get the job done.
“The third time's a charm, I really believe in that,” said Djurisic. “But we must go step by step. It is very specific competition, there is not much time for rest or to correct mistakes. We have to be 100 percent concentrated from the start and really give our best. Every team there will have the same goal as us, and we have to prove on the court that we are better than them.”
"This is the biggest scene for U18 players in Europe."
Djurisic averaged 19.3 points, 6.8 rebounds, 5.3 assists and 2.8 steals as Mega went 4-0 in Belgrade, including coming back from 19 points down to defeat city rival and host city U18 Crvena Zvezda mts Belgrade 80-82 in the first place game. His performance in his second ANGT Belgrade earned Djurisic a spot on the all-tournament team.
“Last season I played a much smaller role, but I used that time to gain as much experience as possible, playing with older guys and learning from the coach and teammates. This is the biggest scene for U18 players in Europe. I talk with other players about everything because experience is very valuable at this kind of competition,” said Djurisic, who turned 17 years old in late February.
Djurisic’s talent is not only visible at the U18 level as the 2.03-meter guard has played this season with Serbian League side OKK Belgrade.
“I was given a big chance to practice and play with the seniors. It wasn't easy at first. I got a lot of minutes. I am grateful that I played with so many big and experienced players on my team and in the league, which helped me to be better from game to game,” said Djurisic, who is averaging 16.3 points, 3.2 rebounds and 3.0 assists in 29 minutes a game for OKK as he adapts to the differences between youth and senior basketball.
“You watch it on TV and in the gyms, you see how much different it is but until you feel it on your body and in the game, you are not aware of it,” explained Djurisic, who even made his ABA League debut on April 11, playing against FMP Belgrade. “That was a fantastic experience, entering the game for the first time. I could not sleep all night after that.”
Djurisic will not only be playing for himself and his current Mega U18 teammates at the ANGT Finals in Valencia but also for many of his teammates from both the Mega and OKK teams.
“We will be highly motivated. [Current Mega professional players Nikola] Miskovic, [Mihailo] Jovicic and [Luka] Cerovina were in that championship game in 2017; [Marko] Kljajevic and [Aleksandar] Langovic were there in 2019, as were some guys I play with at OKK, like [Marko] Brekic, [Luka] Paunovic, [Mihailo] Musikic, [Petar] Kovacevic and [Vladan] Music,” Djurisic said. “I talked with them. Every advice is golden. That moment when you play for the title, I believe it is a fantastic feeling.”
In addition to his teammates and coaches, Djurisic also can look to his family for advice on excelling in sports. His mother Vesna Citakovic was a great for Serbia and Montenegro in volleyball; she helped the country win a silver medal at the 2007 European Championship and bronze at the 2006 World Championship as well as league and/or cup titles in Serbia and Montenegro, Turkey and Italy besides also playing in Israel, Germany, Romania, Poland, Indonesia and Serbia before retiring in 2016. His father Dusko Djurisic played football in Serbia, Switzerland, Belgium, where Nikola was born in 2004, Israel, Germany and Cyprus before he hung up his boots in 2010.
"I am grateful that I played with so many big and experienced players."
“Their advice is always invaluable. They teach me to be dedicated, responsible but most importantly, to love what I am doing,” said Djurisic, who has lived in Italy, Turkey and Germany.
“I had luck because my parents lived in various countries and cultures. For some of them, I was too young to remember much, but it felt good in every one of them,” said Djurisic, who moved to Serbia at age 8 in 2012. “It was hard at the beginning because it's a different style of living and work. I spoke and wrote in English. At first, when I came to Serbia, I thought in English in my head and then translated it to Serbian. But very soon I felt that I was at home.”
After dabbling in football, tennis, karate and judo, Djurisic finally was introduced to basketball when his uncle took him to basketball practice at 6 years old.
“I loved it from the first moment,” he said.
Now, Djurisic is hoping that love can turn into an ANGT title – and make it a third time lucky for Mega.