Topic: H-D: Coaches preview new recruit

[biggreenarms]

HUNTINGTON -- Dan D'Antoni worked with NBA teams for the past nine years and said he doesn't know how many Serbian players there are, but the new Marshall University men's basketball coach knows about the one joining the Thundering Herd.

Point guard Aleksa Nikolic, an incoming freshman point guard from Pancevo, Serbia, signed this week with Marshall.

"Their reputation in Europe is they're one of the two, three, four strongest countries in producing players," D'Antoni said. "They usually have big kids, they usually play hard and they're smart.

"That's a pretty good combination."

Numerous Serbians have been drafted and played in the NBA with Vlade Divac the best known. The 7-foot-1 Divac played 16 seasons (1990-2005) for the Los Angeles Lakers, Charlotte Hornets and Sacramento Kings.

This season's NBA rosters included 7-footer Miroslav Raduljica of the Milwaukee Bucks and 6-3 Nemanja Nedovic with the Golden State Warriors.

A seven-minute highlight video of Nikolic posted on YouTube.com and Vimeo.com shows his passing, shooting and defensive skills. The level of competition shown on the mixtape is difficult to gauge.

Marshall followers posting on message boards say he reminds them of the late Pete Maravich and D'Antoni's brother, former Marshall point guard Mike D'Antoni.

"He's quicker than Mike," said Dan D'Antoni, who also played the point guard position at Marshall. "Mike is probably stronger."

Nikolic had a three-inch growth spurt in about one year. After entering high school as a 6-footer he is 6-5 with a 6-10 wingspan, said Marshall assistant coach Scott Rigot, who was working last year in Israel when he came across the recruit. "He doesn't have to get out of bed to turn the lights off," Rigot said.

Rigot said the story reminds him of David Robinson, a retired 10-time NBA All-Star, who grew seven inches to 7-1 before his sophomore season at the U.S. Naval Academy

D'Antoni said Nikolic, who averaged 20.3 points, 6.4 rebounds and 8.0 assists for his Serbian club team, also scored 920 on a college entrance exam despite English not being his primary language.

His English is good, but it's got to be basketball language now," Rigot said. There's always a learning curve for foreign players, Rigot said.

Nikolic also must adjust to the physicality of the college game.

"That's were the conditioning program is important," D'Antoni said.

D'Antoni said he can't predict when the freshman will arrive because of legal barriers, but he is coming.

http://www.herald-dispatch.com/sports/marshall/x1495951554/Coaches-preview-Serbian-recruit

[backontrack]

It's great to see that the language barrier and/or lack of skills with written English language won't be impediments...