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FAMOUS BASKET BALL PLAYER

YB WEB DESK. Dated: 2/20/2020 11:38:28 AM

Nemanja Bjelica

Nemanja Bjelica is a Serbian professional basketball player for the Sacramento Kings of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He also represents the senior Serbian national basketball team internationally. Bjelica was an All-Euroleague First Team selection as well as the Euroleague MVP in 2015. Professional career Bjelica began playing basketball at Aca Janjić basketball school, before joining the youth selections of KK Partizan. He began his professional career in the 2007–08 season with the Arkadia Traiskirchen Lions of the Austrian League, averaging 8.5 points in 26 games. Crvena zvezda (2008–2010) After one season abroad, he returned to the Serbian team Crvena zvezda, and spent two successful seasons there, under head coach Svetislav Pešić. During the 2008–09 season, he made breakthroughs, and earned a place in the first lineup. He was particularly noted for his performance during the EuroCup, for his outside shooting. Later in his career, Bjelica cited coach Pešić as one of the main reasons for his improvement as a player. Coach Pešić trusted Bjelica with the ball, and gave the 6"10 Bjelica a primary ball handler role on several occasions, which helped to develop Bjelica as a play-maker. Bjelica was drafted by the Washington Wizards with the 35th pick of the 2010 NBA draft. His draft rights were then traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves. Saski Baskonia (2010–2013) In August 2010, Bjelica signed a five-year contract with Spanish club Saski Baskonia. In his first season with the club, he didn't get much playing time, averaging only 9 minutes played per game. In his second season with Baskonia, he averaged 4.8 points per game, on 56% shooting from the field, and 47% shooting from 3 point range, three in 13 minutes played per game. His third and last season with the club was the most successful, as he played in 26 games, with the averages of 9.9 points, 4.8 rebounds, 1.3 assists, and 1 steal per game, on 46% shooting from the field. On July 22, 2013, Bjelica signed a threeyear deal with the Turkish team Fenerbahçe Ülker, which was led by one of Europe's great coaches, Željko Obradović. He cited Obradović as the main reason why he didn't go to the NBA instead. In the 2013–14 season, he already became one of the key Fenerbahçe Ülker players,