BOGDAN Bogdanovic admitted he was nervous heading to the game against Lithuania, having had a history of heartbreaks against Lithuania over the course of his career.
It took a text message from a fallen teammate to calm his nerves down in a performance to remember in the quarterfinals of the 2023 Fiba Basketball World Cup.
Bogdanovic had 18 of his 21 points in Serbia’s 87-68 win over Lithuania after the entire team received a text message from Borisa Simanic.
The Serbian big man was ruled out of the competition after a procedure to remove one of his kidneys following complications to an initial surgery.
Simanic may not be present in the game, but Bogdanovic said he is still providing positive vibes to the team.
“Our teammate is still with us,” said Bogdanovic. “He gave us amazing energy. We were nervous yesterday moving into another hotel from Grand Hyatt to Conrad. We were nervous. I was nervous. I was somehow at my young age. Losing against Lithuania, I’m so nervous.”
READ: Bogdan Bogdanovic, Serbia through to World Cup semis as Lithuania guns turn cold
Bogdanovic suffered a defeat against Lithuania in the 2011 Fiba Under-19 World Championship when Serbia lost, 85-67. He also lost in the semifinals of the 2015 Eurobasket against Lithuania, 67-64.
Now 31, Bogdanovic said he was glad to get an inspiration from Simanic.
“I see a message from Borisa in the morning after the meeting. He was [saying], ‘Guys, I’m good. Don’t worry. Let’s win tonight.’ And for him just to think about us after everything that happened to him. He united us I would say. That’s an amazing guy.”
“This is for him as well,” said Bogdanovic.
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