Miroslav Raduljica. That name probably doesn’t resonate with most sports fans. A few Wolves fans may remember his time on the team late in the 2015 season, but he didn’t do anything particularly memorable. The Serbian-born 7 footer got his career started overseas and made his way to the NBA in 2013. His rookie season was with our border buddies, the Milwaukee Bucks. He played sparingly, averaging just 9.7 minutes per game in just 48 games and put up 3.8 points and 2.3 rebounds per game. His stats speak for themselves. He was traded to the Clippers in 2014. Just 3 days after the trade, Raduljica was waived by the team. That same year, Raduljica signed a one year, $1.5 million dollar contract to play for the Shandong Golden Stars in China. Three months after he signed his new deal with the Lions, his contract was bought out for $1.2 million. In 14 games, he averaged 18 points and 9 rebounds per game.
On January 8, 2015, Miroslav Raduljica signed a 10-day contract with the Minnesota Timberwolves. On January 19, 2015, he signed a second 10-day contract with the Wolves. After 20 days, the Wolves waived Raduljica after he appeared in only 5 games. During his time with the Wolves, Raduljica averaged 1.6 points and 1.0 rebounds per game.
So why are we spending time on a guy who could make the roster on that abysmal 2014-2015 Wolves team? Well, lately things have been looking up for Raduljica. He has been playing very well for the Serbian team in the 2016 Rio Olympics. In fact, Raduljica is the 5th leading scorer in Rio, with 21.5 points per game. Miroslav is in some impressive company on the leading scorers list. He’s trailing Pau Gasol, Kevin Durant, Yi Jianlian, and Patty Mills. Watching Miroslav and the Serbian national team take on Australia, I couldn’t believe this was the same guy who averaged 1.6 points per game with the Wolves. He dropped 25 on an Australian team that had Andrew Bogut, Matthew Dellavedova, Patty Mills, Aron Baynes, Cameron Bairstow, and Joe Ingles on its roster. Unfortunately, those 25 points wasn’t enough to lead them to a win in their 95-80 loss to Australia.
Depending on how he keeps playing in the Rio Olympics, he might be the bearded big man that got away.
Final Take:
Do I think Miroslav Raduljica can come back to the NBA?
Yes, but I think he’s a backup center at best.
Do I think Miroslav Raduljica can average 10 points a game and 5 rebounds in the NBA?
Possibly, but only on the right team. He needs the playing time and a coaching staff who can work with him.
Do I see him coming back to the NBA?
I’m not a psychologist, but based on his behavior, I think there is a real chance he could land himself a spot on an NBA roster this winter when the 10 day contracts become available. He has been turning heads on social media and, my guess is, in NBA front offices too. I heard an announcer joke that Vlade Divac should sign him because they are both Serbian big-men who have range and can get it done in the post. The Kings may not be the ideal team for Raduljica, though. Sacramento has a log-jam at their big man positions with Cousins, Papagiannis, Cauley-Stein, Labissiere, Tolliver, Koufos, and Moreland.
Ideal NBA team for Miroslav Raduljica?
Cleveland. Behind Kevin Love and Tristan Thompson, the Cavs are thin in the big men department. Cleveland’s big men get old and injury prone in a hurry. Raduljica could find playing time here and fill the spot left open when Mozgov moved on to LA. And everyone gets better playing next to LeBron. On the other hand, maybe the 10-day contract legend will show his face back in Minnesota.
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