The fourth and final qualifying stage of the Adidas Next Generation tournament, the world’s largest club competition in the under-18 age category, took place this weekend in Belgrade. Home team Mega MIS won the title and earned an automatic berth. place for the ANGT finals, which will be held in Kaunas, Lithuania, during the month of May.
Here are the prospects who made an impact in the tournament and should be considered as potential picks in the 2024 and 2025 NBA drafts:
Topic Nikola
Guard 6’6″ | 17.7 years old | Serbia | Zvezda Red Star
Topic had an impressive tournament, leading all players in both points and assists while being extremely efficient in both areas. He scored 26.8 points per game on an incredible 75.9% true shooting and averaged 7.2 assists against just 3.5 turnovers per game.
Topic’s combination of 6-foot-6 size, strong frame and speed with the ball in his hands made him nearly unstoppable in transition and allowed him to create advantages almost at will in the half-court with his first quick step. His ability to beat his main defender allowed him to draw help from defenders in practice, which he exploited consistently with drive and kick passes to open up his teammates.
While it’s not the highest level of competition, Topic’s standout performance in Belgrade, which included a 49-point, 12-assist outburst against Next Generation Team, puts him in the conversation ahead of the 2024 draft , among an international class that doesn’t appear to have a ton of depth at the guard position.
David Mirkovic
6’9” Forward | 16.8 years | Montenegro | Belgrade Next Generation Team
Mirkovic immediately stood out in Belgrade with his 6-foot-9 height mix, strong frame and impressive coordination and body control for his size. The tools, combined with tremendous touch at multiple levels from the floor, made him a threat both in the paint and on the perimeter.
Mirkovic can play like a traditional big on offense, being able to create his own shot with his back to the basket against opposing bigs, using his strong frame, footwork and touch. On the perimeter, he poses a threat in pick-and-pop situations while also showing some shooting moments off the dribble. Although he is not extremely fast, he is capable of putting the ball on the ground and attacking the fences, having the ability to convert tough finishes against contact.
While Mirkovic’s projection as a facilitator and defender remains a question mark, it’s rare to see someone with a level of refinement comparable to Mirkovic’s size and age. Considering Mirkovic’s versatile scoring ability for his size and the fact that he played a year early, it’s easy to imagine him becoming an NBA-caliber prospect by the time the 2025 NBA Draft rolls around .
Overall Tournament Ratings
The final ANGT stage was also the one with the least amount of NBA talent in my opinion. There were, however, a plethora of relevant players from a non-NBA college and professional perspective who could realistically play at the NBA level. prospects at any given point in their career.
- Valencia had the most interesting backcourt of the tournament. Sergio De Larrea is a 6-foot-6 combo guard who can score from the perimeter and make plays for his teammates. His teammate Lucas Mari is more of a traditional half-court initiator with good size and positional strength and some versatile shooting moments. Both have struggled to score effectively in the tournament, but they remain interesting prospects to follow.
- The subject was not the only relevant perspective at Red Star. Andrei Vukovic was impressive as a 6-foot-10 traditional big who can set hard screens, finish pick-and-roll plays around the rim and create his own shot with his back to the basket. However, the most interesting long-term perspective was Lazar Gacic, a lanky 7-foot-1 forward who was extremely efficient as a scorer, shooting 71 percent from the field and 46.2 percent from 3-point range. Defensive fit is a concern but the combination of tools and perimeter skills is intriguing.
- Nolan Traore, Noa Essengue And Mohamed Diakite of Pôle France all played a year earlier and will not be eligible until the 2025 NBA Draft. While they are not surefire NBA prospects at this point, they have shown intriguing sides to their games and he It will be interesting to see them develop over the next few years. Poland’s France also gave minutes to 14-year-old Hugo Yimga Moukouri, who impressed with his physical tools and some flashes of defense on the ball and finishing play at the rim.
- ANGT Belgrade champions Mega MIS have brought in two prospects to watch for the future. Filip Jovic made an impact as a 6-foot-9 prolific scorer who put constant pressure on opposing defenders with his combination of size and ball-handling ability, while 6-foot-11 Bogoljub Markovic was able to contribute with his flashes of ball handling and impressive tools as a defender.
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