BY ABBY TORALBA
SERBIA star guard Bogdan Bogdanovic of the Atlanta Hawks took everything in stride in the recent 19th FIBA World Cup.
The Serbians settled for the silver medal after a sorry 77-83 loss to Germany in the final last Sunday night.
“Unfortunately, sometimes luck is not on your side, you miss some shots, you miss some of the opportunities but that’s the game of basketball, that’s how it works,” Bogdanovic, who was named to the All-Star Five, said.
“I’m just happy and proud of these guys, you know, since day one nobody believed in this group and we we’ve just (been) working hard since day one and we achieved something, I think,” he added.
Despite missing NBA star Nikola Jokic and some key players such as Boban Marjanovic, Milos Teodosic, Aleksej Pokusevski, and Nikola Kalinic, Serbia reached the Big Dance after beating tough teams like Canada and Lithuania.
“I’m really happy about the guys. As I said, when we started the preparations, I don’t know, they were 10th or something below the top 10. I’m just happy that we responded that way,” Bogdanovic, who averaged 19.1 points per game, 4.6 assists, 3.3 rebounds, and 2.1 steals in the global basketball extravaganza, said.
“We saw how Canada played against the US and how they played the tournament. I think we beat a lot of good teams. Lithuania, as well, was good. I’m just happy with the guys.
One of the best groups I worked with,” he said.
Bogdanovic sank a total of 73 three-pointers in the tourney, making him the only player with more than 70 tries from beyond the arc over the last 30 years.
He also had the longest run for three-pointers made over the last 30 years, sinking at least one triple each in his 25-game appearance.
Bogdanovic acknowledged the rise of international basketball and how games got tougher through the years.
“It was more entertaining for fans at least. But it was a good tournament, honestly. I think the rise of international basketball, the way all the national teams are playing this FIBA tournament compared to when I started playing, is rising and it’s getting tougher and tougher,” he said.
