Though Croatia is the last team in their group for the 2019 World Championship qualifiers, one of their biggest reinforcements will come to rescue for the remaining games in the next few months.
The Croatia national basketball team is in an unenviable situation for the 2019 World Basketball Championships in China. After defeats to the Netherlands, Italy, and Romania, Croatia is the last in their group with only one win in four games, reports Gol.hr on May 17, 2018.
But hope is still on the horizon, and especially if Croatian superstar Bojan Bogdanović comes to the rescue. The famous ‘Babo’ has just finished an excellent season with the Indiana Pacers; putting in a record 14.3 baskets per game, and in the NBA playoffs his team delighted their fans and even surprised the favored Cleveland Cavaliers led by LeBron James.
The World Championship qualifiers continue on June 28th, and Bogdanović announced his appearance on the Fiba website.
"I like to play in major tournaments and want to help Croatia go to China. I want to compete on the world stage once again,” said 29-year-old basketball player and the best shooter of the 2016 Olympics with 25.3 baskets on average.
“We will probably see the return of some of the injured players, which will be a great boost for the team. We have to do everything in our power to play these two matches as if they were finals,” Bogdanović added. On June 28th, Croatia meets with Italy, and on July 1st, with Romania.
"It's always my honor to play for the team, and I'll always play when I'm healthy. We are now on a mission, we have to do our best to go to the next round, and we do not want to miss the upcoming major competitions,” he said.
"We are last in the group, and no one is giving us a great chance, but it's still possible, and we will not give up. We are not the types of people who surrender, fighting and faith in ourselves is the only solution,” Bogdanović concluded.
