The saying "basketball is a global game" has never been more true.
The last decade has seen countless prospects from all around the world develop into formidable weapons - and in some cases, stars - for almost every team in the NBA. The diversity of today's game, headlined by seven consecutive international MVPs, serves as a stark contrast to the 20th century, when NBA stardom was seldom shared outside of America.
Amongst the avalanche of international prospects, it seems one has been forgotten - despite being touted as "one of the most intriguing prospects of his generation" merely a year ago.
For those unfamiliar with his game, Nikola Djurisic is a 6'8 play-finishing forward with a crafty touch around the rim and untapped playmaking upside. His time with the Serbian-based Mega Superbet squad was headlined by dissecting defenses with his equally savvy partner-in-crime, Nikola Topic.
Djurisic stood out from other prospects during his time overseas not only as a savant running the break or attacking closeouts, but also with his dribble-drive game, creating excellent looks out of pick-and-roll sets - a coveted skill amongst wings in today's NBA.
With such creative playmaking ability, wow-factor finishing, and NBA-ready athleticism, one can't help but wonder - what is holding the kid back from taking the next step in Atlanta?
A towering barrier shields Djurisic from developing into a star
Despite his sensational play in other areas of the court and largely untapped potential upside, the NBA has rapidly become a 3-point driven league. If a player lacks a reliable deep-range shot, their likelihood of cracking an NBA rotation (much less, reaching stardom) is slim to none.
Unfortunately for Djurisic, his shot has been inconsistent at best. During his time playing overseas with Mega, Djurisic shot a disappointing 30.5% from deep in 69 games across his four years with the organization. To make matters worse, Djurisic was unable to raise this metric last year with Atlanta's G-league affiliate, shooting a brow-furrowing 18.1% on 3.8 3PA across 24 games played.
There is still hope yet for the youngster, though - his 2023-2024 season at Mega shooting 33.0% from deep and his last season in the G-league shooting a career-high 83.4% on FTA serve as promising signs of a deep-range threat waiting to blossom. Given these promising parameters, Onsi Saleh was keen to buy low this offseason. Djurisic agreed to what was reported to be a 3-year, $6M deal on July 11th (details below).
Season | Salary |
|---|---|
2025-2026 | $1.3M (guaranteed) |
2026-2027 | $2.2M (non-guaranteed) |
2027-2028 | $2.5M (team option) |
There have been myriad examples of players in recent years who scouts and coaches alike will look at and say, "If he can just develop a jumper, he'll be a star!" Nikola Djurisic is certainly no exception, but the player who had scouts raving about his potential not even a year ago is still growing, still developing, still hiding in the talented depths of Atlanta's rotation.
Djurisic has the golden opportunity this season to learn firsthand from play-finishing wings such as Jalen Johnson and Zaccharie Risacher, all while putting in those extra-early and extra-late hours in the gym, continuing to hone his deep-range ability.
Don't be surprised in the near future if the Serbian sensation is getting real burn in Atlanta's rotation en route to title contention - Onsi Saleh might've gotten a good one for the long haul.