By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
Partizan Belgrade coach Zeljko Obradovic will have to manage several absences ahead of the next EuroLeague game at Olympiacos Piraeus (10/11) due to Serbian players joining their national team for November’s Window of the 2023 World Cup Qualifiers.
“They will play for the national team,” Obradovic said on Partizan’s Serbian players after the away win over Panathinaikos. “So I will have eight or maybe nine players in the practice. To prepare for the game against Olympiacos. This is how it is. Because now we’ll play for the ABA League. Sunday, Monday they will go to the national team.
Partizan will miss Danilo Andjusic, Balsa Coprivica and Uros Trufonovic who were named to Serbia’s roster for the matches vs. Great Britain (11/11) and Turkey (14/11). Serbia is tied with Belgium at 3-3 and third place in Group B from which three out of six teams will advance to the World Cup.
Zach LeDay, Kevin Punter, James Nunnally, Dante Exum, Yam Madar, Mathias Lessort, Gregor Glass and Djordje Jovanovic will be available to Obradovic. It’s still undetermined whether Ioannis Papapetrou will also be with Partizan for the match vs. Olympiacos or if he will join the Greek national team during the Window.
“This is how it is,” Obradovic said. “We understand that it’s very important for the national team.”
“Ι hope that the two groups [FIBA and EuroLeague] will start to talk to understand each other,” Obradovic added. “And I hope that in the future we won’t have any more problems like that. To play during the season. It’s an old story. The best players need to be on the national teams. It’s very simple.”