January 19, 2022 - The Croatian Basketball Federation and the Croatia men's national team coach, Veljko Mršić, have reached an agreement to terminate cooperation.

Veljko Mršić took over the national team by the decision of the HKS Board of Directors in May 2019, led the first games in the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas, and together with his professional staff, and great effort of players, successfully passed through the qualifications for the European championship.

At the Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Split, Croatia did not secure a spot in Japan. In November 2021, a new cycle of qualifications for the World Cup began. The national team started with two defeats and now faces a difficult path in the fight to qualify. The European Championship is scheduled for September 2022.

A session of the HKS Management Board confirming the amicable termination of cooperation was held on January 18, 2022.

"The Croatian Basketball Federation thanks Mr. Mršić for his time and enormous effort, for his contribution to the efforts aimed at strengthening Croatian basketball, and certainly for his cooperation. This way, I would like to wish him a lot of success in his future business engagements," said the president of HKS, Stojko Vranković, when discussing the contract termination. 

Coach Veljko Mršić thanked HKS and his associates for their cooperation:

"After almost three years of good cooperation, I thank the Croatian Basketball Federation for the trust that resulted in the successful placement of the national team at the European Championships, which was defined as the primary goal. A special and sincere thanks go to the players who selflessly gave their best at all times. I would also like to thank all the people who were involved in the work of the national team, the employees of the Federation, and the professional staff for their support. I wish the professional staff support and the entire national team a lot of success in the continuation of the qualifications with a great desire to see Croatia at the World Cup."

The Croatian Basketball Federation will soon comment on further actions regarding the Croatian men's team.

November 16, 2021 - Croatia's preparations for the FIBA Basketball World Cup qualifiers will begin this weekend in Zagreb with a broader list of 24 players. Croatia's first qualifying match is on November 25 against Slovenia. 

The Croatia basketball team coach, Veljko Mršić, has announced a wider list of 24 candidates for two upcoming World Cup qualifiers. Most of the players are from the Croatian league and will gather in Zagreb this Saturday to Monday. The list also includes Filip Krušlin and Marin Marić, currently without a club, reports HKS.

The first qualifying round for the 2023 World Cup is just around the corner. Already on Thursday, November 25, at 20:45, the first and most demanding match against Slovenia will be played, and on Sunday, November 28, the first cycle will end in Helsinki against Finland. 

"Yes, this is a wider list that we will shorten after Wednesday and the 11th round of the HT Premier League. Most of the players are from our league, and by then, the situation with injuries and possible coronavirus infections will crystallize. The national team will gather from Saturday night to Monday when we should be in full force. Also, a little earlier, on November 18, I invited a group of players that I want to check further, for example, Filip Krušlin and Marin Marić, who do not have clubs at the moment. There are also some other players who are not on the list of 24 but I want to see them in training because I am counting on them in the future," said coach Mršić.

Player List: Roko Badžim – Szolnok, Darko Bajo – KK Split, Josip Batinić – KK Cedevita Junior, Danko Branković – KK Cibona, Filip Bundović – KK Cedevita Junor, Mateo Čolak – KK Široki, Dario Drežnjak – KK Zadar, Mateo Drežnjak – KK Cibona, Tomislav Gabrić – Elan Chalon, Lovro Gnjidić – KK Cibona, Mario Hezonja – UNICS Kazan, Antonio Jordano – KK Zadar, Mate Kalajžić – KK Gorica, Filip Krušlin, Pavle Marčinković – KK Zadar, Marin Marić, Dominik Mavra – KK Zadar, Toni Perković – KK Split, Roko Prkačin – KK Cibona, Krešimir Radovčić – KK Cibona, Roko Rogić – Szolnok, Matej Rudan – Mega Vizura, Antonio Vranković – KK Cibona i Karlo Žganec – KK Split.

The FIBA World Cup qualifiers are played in six qualifying cycles of two matches, divided into rounds 1 and 2, as was the case for the last World Cup qualifiers. The next cycles are February 2022, June 2022, August 2022, November 2022, and February 2023.

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June 19, 2021 - Slovenia claimed their second victory in the Croatia basketball friendly preparation series held this week in Rijeka and Ljubljana.

In the second friendly preparatory match, Slovenia defeated Croatia at Arena Stožice in Ljubljana. Croatia looked more determined and coherent than in the first game in Rijeka. 

Croatia was led by the excellent Mario Hezonja, who scored 37 points with 10 defensive rebounds, 3 assists, and 3 steals. Captain Roko Leni Ukić scored 23 points and assisted five times, and Miro Bilan reached double-digits with 10 points.

The very beginning of the game was not particularly promising. Slovenia took a 23-8 lead in the first quarter on the wings of Luka Dončić and Klemen Prepelič. Mario Hezonja broke up the bad spell with a three-pointer, and at the very end of the first quarter, Miro Bilan scored with a dunk for 26:15. Slovenia still had a serious lead.

Croatia took off in the second quarter, scoring 37 points in 10 minutes. Despite the good synergy between Luka Dončić and Mike Tobey, Croatia with Hezonja and Ukić showed that it could do much better than the predictions before the game.  

The second half started with an advantage for Croatia, and in the third quarter, Croatia achieved the biggest advantage at 56:64 after a dunk by Luka Babić. The game was then even at 65:65 and 70:70, but Slovenia concluded the third quarter with 77:70 and ultimately sealed the victory in front of 8,000 home fans (97:88). Slovenia's most efficient players were Prepelič (31 points), Tobey (26 points), and 10 points with an incredible 17 assists from Dončić.

Coach Veljko Mršić: “The match was offensive on both sides. We played better than a couple of days ago in Rijeka, but we failed to keep that rhythm with a shortened rotation. We played a good game against a great team, and we managed what no one in the NBA did - keep Luka Dončić at 10 points (laughs), but we didn't manage to reduce his assists. He was impressive and emotional in front of the home crowd. Jokes aside, we took a step forward from what we did a few days ago. Now we are completing the team - the day after tomorrow, Ante Toni Žižić is arriving, and we are expecting a clash between the Clippers and Utah to see if Ivica Zubac or Bojan Bogdanović will come. We expect to be at an even higher level in 10 days and to achieve what we want - qualifying for the Olympic Games."

Captain Roko Leni Ukić: “We played a better game than two days ago. We can be somewhat satisfied, and above all, offensive, although there is certainly still plenty of room for improvement. We had a chance to play against one of the best players in the world. Even though he was not in perfect shape, it was obvious how much he means to his team, how much he plays everything around him, and that is the best test for what awaits us. I think we can get a lot of positive things out of today, but we have to be aware that we have to play better defense if we want to win."

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December 1, 2020 - After an excellent November qualifying campaign for EuroBasket 2022, in which they have already secured their spot in the competition with two games to go, the Croatia basketball team returned to Zagreb.

The Croatia basketball team has already qualified for the European Basketball Championship, which will be played in 2022. After a long time, Croatia deservedly advanced to another big competition, without keeping us on the edge of our seats. 

Coach Veljko Mršić could not use NBA and Euroleague players due to the rigorous rules in force, but was able to use basketball players from the Croatian league and those who play in Europe. Mršić put together a very good team that demolished Turkey (+17) and Sweden (+15). The stars included Ukić, Bilan, Šakić, Prkačin, Drežnjak, Marčinković and other promising talents. 

"We are happy and satisfied with what we have done, we have four wins and no defeats - unlike the previous World Championship qualifiers where we did not advance. Finally, we did it without stress. Two games are left. We will see what will happen with the pandemic in February, but we will certainly try some young players," said Mršić in an interview for Dnevnik Nova TV.

Croatia played the qualifiers without the great NBA stars, Bojan Bogdanović, Ivica Zubac, and Darijo Šarić.

"We will continue these qualifications without NBA players and those from the Euroleague. When the big competitions and qualifiers for the Olympics come then we will surely step up with our best players but we don’t want to lose the chemistry in the team. We will only take those who will submit to the team," says Mršić.

Croatia plays the qualifying tournament for the Olympic Games in Split in June. If there is luck in the Spaladium Arena, Bogdanović, Šarić, Zubac, Šamanić, Bender, Žižić and other well-known names in Croatian basketball will play. However, some players won't be available in June if they are in the conference finals and NBA League Finals.

Croatian fans are secretly hoping that Utah Jazz will not go that far this season because that would make Bogdanović available for Croatia. The national team is twice as strong with him.

"We will certainly try to take our best players from the NBA league who will be available. We depend a lot on the NBA league because we don’t know how far our players will go. Likely, those who will play the conference finals and the NBA league finals will not be with us, but we will certainly take whoever is available," concluded Mršić.

Bogdanović is the best Croatian basketball player of the 21st century. Although he is a big star in the NBA league, he has never refused to play for Croatia in his career, unlike some others. His help would make it easier for Croatia to qualify for the 2021 Olympic Games.

Source: HKS

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November 21, 2020 - The Croatia basketball team travels to Istanbul on Sunday, November 23, for a new cycle of qualifications for the European Championship.

According to stringent rules, the qualifications will be played in a 'bubble, so as not to risk the health of players, coaches, referees, and the rest of the delegations. Croatia national team members will only move from the hotel to the hall and back, in a special bus and without interacting with anyone outside their own delegation, except, of course, during the official game.

Before the team heads to Turkey, Croatia national team coach Veljko Mršić, despite all the challenges that are unquestionably posed to the national team, but also sports in general, is determined and currently focused on only one goal: going to the European Championship.

"I expect to provide good games and, given the good outcome of the previous windows, our goal is to secure a place in the European Championship now," the coach began.

"But it’s hard to plan. There are many unknowns, another round of coronavirus testing awaits us before departure, there are very few days of preparation, and we will only see the strength of the rival teams on the spot. In this cycle, we will play against Turkey and Sweden. It is a pity that we are in this current epidemiological situation because we were supposed to play Turkey at home, in front of our audience. As for the list of players, we waited to announce it until the first test results. Fortunately, only a small number of players were positive, so more or less everyone we wanted is on the list. "

In the upcoming qualification cycle, coach Veljko Mršić will count on the following players:

BILAN, Miro - Dinamo Sassari

DREŽNJAK, Mateo - Cibona

GABRIĆ, Tomislav - Enea Astoria

JORDANO, Antonio - Vrijednosnice Osijek

KRUŠLIN, Filip - Dinamo Sassari

MARČINKOVIĆ, Pavle - Split

MARIĆ, Marin - BC Lietkabelis

MAVRA, Dominik - Zadar

PERKOVIĆ, Toni - Split

PRKAČIN, Roko - Cibona

RADIĆ, Ivica - Anwil Wloclawek

RAMLJAK, Ivan - ŚLĄSK

ROGIĆ, Roko - Mitteldeutscher BC

ŠAKIĆ, Željko - Avtodor

STIPČEVIĆ, Rok - Krka Novo Mesto

UKIĆ, Roko Leni - Cedevita Olimpija

VRANKOVIĆ, Antonio - Split

* There are 17 players on the list, and 14 travel to Istanbul.

EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP QUALIFICATION MATCHES

11/27/2020 at 17:00 (19:00 in Istanbul): Croatia - Turkey
11/29/2020 at 18:00 (20:00 in Istanbul): Sweden - Croatia

Source: HKS

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Veljko Mršić was presented as the 13th Croatia men’s basketball team coach on Friday and expressed that his primary task will be to compete at the European Championship in 2021.

Former sports director and former coach of KK Cedevita, 48-year-old Veljko Mršić, is the new coach of the Croatia national basketball team, the Croatian champion announced on their official website, reports HRT on May 2, 2019. 

The decision was made at the Management Board session of the Croatian Basketball Federation, where, at the suggestion of the Expert Council, the previous coach Dražen Anzulović was relieved. The press conference at which the new national team coach will be presented will be held on Friday at noon.

In KK Cedevita, Veljko Mršić led the juniors with whom he became Croatian champions. When Jasmin Repeša was announced as a coach, Mršić became his assistant and as a part of his team won the first Croatian senior club title for the club. As the first coach, succeeding Repeša, Mršić won 3 Croatian championship titles, 2 Krešimir Ćosić Cups, and the culmination was entering the TOP 16 in Euroliga. In November 2018, Mršić returned to the position of sports director at KK Cedevita, now leaving to lead the Croatia national basketball team.

Mršić is now moving to reconstruct the national team, with whom he will play in the European Championship in 2021 without NBA players. 

Recall, former national team coach Dražen Anzulović failed to place at this year's World Cup in China.

KK Cedevita’s statement transmitted in full below:

“The Croatia national basketball team will receive a new coach. It will be the former sports director of KK Cedevita, 48-year-old Veljko Mršić, who, due to new commitments, is leaving the club's current position. Veljko Mršić led the KK Cedevita juniors with whom he won the title of Croatian champion. With the arrival of Jasmin Repeša as a coach, Mršić became his assistant and as a part of his team won the first Croatian senior club title for the club. As the first coach, succeeding Repeša, he won 3 Croatian championship titles, 2 Krešimir Ćosić Cups, and the culmination was entering the TOP 16 in Euroliga. In November 2018, he returned to the position of the KK Cedevita sports director, now leaving for the national basketball team of Croatia. Veljko did not let the club stand in the way of new challenges, and on this occasion, he cared about the progress of the Croatian Basketball Federation and our team, as well as the rise of basketball in Croatia. KK Cedevita wishes Veljko Mršić lots of luck in his career and thanks him for everything he has done for the club. We emphasize that we will be at his disposal with all his future needs working in and around the Croatia basketball team.”

Hvala i sretno Veljko Mršić! #samojako ⚫?https://t.co/z3Ynv1ewx7 pic.twitter.com/N3cb5ALFuJ

— KK Cedevita (@KKCedevita) May 2, 2019

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Crvena Zvezda won the first game, so Cedevita needs a win tonight to secure game three in Belgrade

Crvena Zvezda and Cedevita have already met three times this season, but this is without any doubt the most important match so far for both sides