THE Oklahoma City Thunder I was looking to sign a player who was thousands of miles away and had no timetable for returning from injury.
Luckily, they knew someone who had been there before.
Vasilije Micic is originally from Kraljevo, Serbia, just a few hours from his hometown Nikola Theme‘s — the Thunder’s 12th overall pick in the 2024 NBA draft — to Novi Sad, Serbia. Micic also played briefly for the Thunder during the 2023-24 season before being traded to the Charlotte Hornets in February.
“We spent a lot of time talking to Vass about this player,” Presti said. “He was a very insightful person about this particular player, really.”
However, distance is not the only aspect that brought Micic and Topic closer.
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Micic has proven he can win at the professional level and is a two-time Euroleague champion, but the game hasn’t always been kind to the 6’3″, 185 lbs. point guard. After turning pro at 16, the same age as Topic, Micic suffered a season-ending knee injury in his second season with the Serbian League.
“Vass had a similar injury early on,” Presti said. “But he has a great basketball mind, and being able to talk to him about what a player that age goes through was important from an empathy standpoint.”
Topic is currently in the same position Micic was in more than a decade ago — somewhat new to the professional basketball scene and injured — and after receiving this diagnosis, there has been no set timetable for his return after partially tearing the ACL in his left knee in April.
The Thunder were willing to take a risk because of the young player’s basketball IQ and personality on and off the court, and it was Micic who helped OKC see that.
“Nikola is an extremely mature person,” Presti said. “If you talk to his teammates or watch him in a team setting … as a person, he’s really interesting in the way he looks at teams, basketball, competition and learning. At that age, that’s pretty rare. And when you have someone you know as well as Micic, it’s a very useful tool.”
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Although the relationship with Micic and OKC seemingly ended when he was traded to Charlotte for Gordon HaywardThe veteran helped the organization see that it was possible to navigate life and basketball after an injury early in a player’s career.
“When I talked to Vass, I specifically talked to him about having an injury at that age,” Presti said. “We asked him questions like, ‘What did that look like and how could we put ourselves in that position?’”
While nationality is what initially connected the two players, it was Micic’s advice on age and injuries that helped the Thunder put everything into perspective when it came time to make their decision on draft night.
“Vass is obviously Serbian, so he knows him,” Presti said. “But I think having that experience as a foreign player and being injured at the same time was very valuable for us.”
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This article was originally published on Oklahoman: Vasilije Micic’s Advice Led OKC Thunder to Nikola Topic in NBA Draft
