Krstic: I Fit Better In The NBA
By:
Nikola Olic
Last Updated: 1/5/09 12:46 PM ET
| 1993 times read
Borrowing from an old saying from his part of the world, when in Oklahoma City, Nenad Krstic is doing as the Oklahomans do. The newest member of the Oklahoma City Thunder followed the advice of the locals and had quickly made Bricktown his favorite dining spot downtown. A few blocks east from the arena, its an easy walk for the Serbian center, and a rare opportunity for many Oklahomans to see and meet their newest NBA player.
Some time soon, Krstic will probably join his other teammates and move to a suburban neighborhood somewhere between the Ford Center and the Thunder practice facility. But for now, he is enjoying the quick lessons in southern hospitality whenever he leaves his downtown hotel. Although the seven-footer is still a few days from actually donning his No.12 Thunder jersey, local fans already know who Krstic is and where he is from. On New Year's Eve, a few even offered to cook him some native Serbian food.
"I know I am coming from Europe but I have to say that I am very proud of the fans and support we have here. Very few teams have the atmosphere we have. The fans come day after day regardless of our standings. The games I had seen so far were very good, the fans know good basketball and appreciate when the team does a good job. They can see we are a young team and that we need all the support we can get. I like that I am joining a team that is new and just starting to establish itself. I have only been in Oklahoma City for a few weeks, but I'm really starting to like it."
He might get to know Oklahoma City better than Moscow. Back in Russia's capital, where Krstic put his NBA career on hold to play for Triumph Moscow until a month ago, it was rare for Krstic to be this close to downtown. Moscow traffic is a nightmare, recalled Krstic, so he spent a lot of time away from the big city, getting to know his Triumph teammates better.
"They were very good to me, the staff and the players. They took care of everything for me as I started my life in Russia. Everything was as we had agreed in the contract. The Russian league in general has good players and good teams, but the league as a whole is not as competitive as the NBA. My team was supposed to be one of the favorites but it didn't work out that way. That escalated my unhappiness with the situation there and I started thinking more and more about coming back to the NBA. I thought I would fit better in the NBA and I wanted to come back as soon as I could."
The process of getting Krstic to fit in properly is of course one of Thunder's main priorities. He was assigned a special Thunder assistant whose sole job is to make sure that anything Krstic needs is taken care of. His work papers are already almost done, and once he signs them some time this week, Krstic will once again be an NBA player.
"Last summer, I left with the idea that I will get back to the NBA one day. I am glad I am back and I am really glad I can be with a new organization from the very start. I missed the quality of the game. I spent four years in the NBA and I got used to the NBA system and to the NBA lifestyle. Just playing against the best players in the world was something I missed."
Northwest Division big men that will be competing against Krstic are well-known around the league, including Denver's Nene, Portland's Joe Przybilla, Utah's Mehmet Okur and Minnesota's Al Jefferson. In his four years with the New Jersey Nets, Krstic had dominated them in 13 out of their 19 individual matchups and is already spending extra hours with assistant coaches getting ready to do the same for the Thunder.
"I am working hard to figure how everything works. The coaching staff have been great. I am working hard on my conditioning and on learning all the plays. Its clear that they really care for their players and their development. They literally assigned a person to help me figure everything out. Even before I signed with the Thunder it was clear what a classy organization this was."
About the Author: NIKOLA OLIC
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Nikola Olic covers the NBA from a global perspective for HOOPSWORLD.COM and HOOPSWORLD The Magazine. He's been covering the NBA for seven seasons and is in his third with the HOOPSWORLD team.
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Comments (4 posted)
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posted By dj, 5 January 2009 7:42:07 AM
Great article about great player
Krle samo napred
posted By Nikola Olic, 5 January 2009 8:46:45 AM
Hvala :)
posted By ZazaCool, 5 January 2009 1:07:35 PM
"Northwest Division big men that will be competing against Krstic are well-known around the league, including Denver's Nene, Portland's Joe Przybilla, Utah's Mehmet Okur and Minnesota's Al Jefferson."
What big men are not "well-known" around the league?? oh yea, Aaron Gray.
"In his four years with the New Jersey Nets, Krstic had dominated them in 13 out of their 19 individual matchups"
LOL how did you come up with this? Krstic "dominated them" ?!!!! Regardless if the Nets won 13 of those 19 matchups, or if Krstic scored more points than the opposing center 13 of those 19 matchups, please define your interpretation of a player "dominating" another player.
posted By Nikola Olic, 5 January 2009 1:14:48 PM
That's a good question, ZazaCool. Thanks for taking the time to give us your comment. I looked over all of Krstic's games against the big men that were mentioned and noted how many times he bettered the opposing center. Perhaps the word 'dominated' could have been replaced by some other. In some games he was clearly the better player, and in some he was better by just a point or two. Cheers.
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