By Nikola Miloradovic / info@eurohoops.net
The question of which national team Andrej Stojaković, the son of Peja Stojaković, will play for is always a hot topic. There’s long been speculation about whether he’ll choose Serbia or Greece, even though he’s still in college, now playing for Illinois.
His father, the legendary Serbian player, former NBA champion, and one of the best shooters in league history, touched on the subject in an appearance on the NBA Mozzart podcast.
“To start talking about what-ifs and speculate about things that aren’t concrete—I can’t do that. His mother is Greek, and he also has Greek citizenship. It’s an interesting story and dilemma, and when the right time and real interest come, I believe he’ll know how to sort it out for himself,” Peja Stojaković said.
After playing for Stanford and Berkeley, Andrej will suit up for Illinois next season alongside four players from the Balkans: Croatian twins Tomislav and Zvonimir Ivišić, Serbian Mihailo Petrović, and Montenegrin David Mirković.
“He made the decision himself to transfer to a stronger team and a better conference. I think he’s more mature now and ready, basketball-wise. That kind of challenge is exactly what young players need. He’ll be far from home, but he has a few teammates from the former Yugoslavia, plus a coach with a European approach.”
Naturally, the former Sacramento Kings and Dallas Mavericks player is proud of his son and the fact that he chose to follow in his footsteps.
“I’m happy that Andrej plays basketball, just like I did. I’m very proud of him as a son and of the way he approaches both basketball and life. The opportunity to study, to get an education while chasing your basketball dreams is ideal to me. I believe he has the potential to become a professional one day, but I can’t predict where or how he’ll play. He chose to build his own path, and I really like that,” Peja Stojaković concluded.