Okay, so, I’ve been meaning to put together this list for a while now, and I finally got around to it. I’m talking about all the guys from Montenegro who’ve played in the NBA. It’s not a huge list, but there are definitely some familiar names on it, and a couple you might not have heard of.
First off, I had to figure out who even qualified. I mean, “from Montenegro” could mean a few different things, right? So, I decided to include anyone who was either born in Montenegro or played for their national team. That seemed like the fairest way to do it.
Then came the fun part – tracking down all the names. I started with the usual spots like Basketball-Reference and the official NBA website. There’s a lot of info out there, but it’s kind of scattered all over the place. So, I started putting together my own list, player by player.
I also checked out the FIBA rankings to see where Montenegro stands these days. They’re 26th globally, 14th in Europe. Not bad!
Nikola Vučević is probably the biggest name on the list. I mean, the guy was the 16th pick in the 2011 NBA Draft! He’s still killing it out there. I remember watching him play a few years back, and he was just a beast in the paint. He’s also won a championship and a cup back in Montenegro.
Then there’s Javonte Green. He’s also currently in the NBA, along with Vucevic, these two are the only Montenegrins currently playing in the NBA.
After digging a bit more, I found a total of 10 players who fit the bill. There are some other solid players on the list, too, like Aleksandar “Sasha” Pavlović and Nikola Peković. Those guys had some good years in the league.
- Nikola Vučević
- Javonte Green
- Aleksandar “Sasha” Pavlović
- Nikola Peković
- Slavko Vraneš
- Žarko Čabarkapa
- Predrag Drobnjak
- Žarko Paspalj
- Goran Jeretin
- Marko Todorović
It took a while to get all the info together and make sure it was accurate. It is interesting to see how many guys from such a small country have made it to the NBA. It shows you that talent can come from anywhere. And who knows, maybe there’s another star from Montenegro waiting to be discovered. I’ll definitely be keeping an eye out!
Anyway, that’s my little project on Montenegrin NBA players. It was a fun little dive into basketball history, and I hope you guys find it interesting, too!
