Biggest stars that won't play in EuroBasket 2022 / News - Basketnews.com

The 2022 edition of EuroBasket will be filled with great stars but there's also a certain amount of important players who won't be available for several reasons: injuries, personal decisions, and coaches' decisions.

Credit: FIBA Credit FIBA

EuroBasket 2022 is about to begin, and with the presence of global stars such as Giannis Antetokounmpo, Luka Doncic, and Nikola Jokic, media attention is at an all-time high.

BasketNews already analyzed the list of stars that will be present at EuroBasket, and the quality level is very high. However, the top continental tournament could have been even more competitive since several top players, because of injuries, commitments with NBA franchises, and technical choices of coaches, will not be present at EuroBasket.

There were no surprises in some cases, like Ricky Rubio, as the Spanish point guard is still recovering from a serious knee injury. Other physical problems, however, developed while preparing for EuroBasket, as in the case of Tornike Shengelia.

Still, others such as Milos Teodosic and Ante Zizic, while physically intact, were surprisingly left off the rosters of their national teams by technical choice.

With EuroBasket starting in less than a week, we have decided to also update you on all those players who, for various reasons, will not be present and thus make the top continental tournament a little less rich.

Milos Teodosic (Serbia)

Teodosic has been for many years a key player for the Serbian national team, but he won't be a part of the group that will play at EuroBasket 2022. Coach Svetislav Pesic decided to keep him out of the squad, which made the news all over Europe.

The Serbian NT head coach explained the decision this way: 'I told Milos that I could not promise him the same status and role that he used to have with the national team. It's a decision I made after seeing the training sessions. I explained to him that I will rely on players that I believe can give more to me at this moment".

It's still unclear if this was the only reason behind Pesic's decision or if other factors were also involved. Still, one thing is for sure: Teodosic won't represent his country at EuroBasket 2022.

Toko Shengelia (Georgia)

The star of the Georgian NT is one of the latest additions to the list of players who won't be available for EuroBasket. The Virtus Bologna forward suffered a shoulder injury during the FIBA WC qualifiers game against the Netherlands and will undergo surgery to fix the problem.

He's expected to miss at least two months of action. A huge blow for Georgia that lost its star and captain.

Sergio Llull (Spain)

Another top veteran that we won't be able to see at EuroBasket is Sergio Llull. Unlike Milos Teodosic, however, Llull will be forced to miss the top continental competition due to injury.

The Real Madrid star suffered a muscle injury against Iceland, valid for World Cup qualifying.

Although the injury is not particularly serious, it will still prevent him from participating in EuroBasket. Llull's problem will further shorten the Spanish national team's rotation in the guard department.

Omer Yurtseven (Turkey)

The Miami Heat big man won't be a part of the Turkish squad for EuroBasket. Yurtseven decided not to join the team, which created several controversies.

Turkish NT head coach Ergin Ataman said he was extremely disappointed by Yurtseven's decision to skip the Turkish NT training camp.

"I am very sad and shocked that Omer Faruk Yurtseven did not attend the camp. Omer needs to apologize to the Turkish people, not me or the TBF. The national team is everyone's team, all players must come here willingly," the head coach said.

The player reacted to these accusations, explaining that the media tried to manipulate his situation.

"I think you will understand much better when you put yourself in the subject instead of reading what I am going to say as a response to the news, I won't have hard feelings with Turkish NT despite media manipulations," said Yurtseven.

Moritz Wagner (Germany)

Germany suffered a big blow when they lost big man Moritz Wagner due to an injury that would force him to miss EuroBasket.

The NBA player stated that the injury he suffered definitely left an emotional mark on him.

"I was waiting for this opportunity for years. Playing at EuroBasket in Germany with my brother would have been a huge honor for me. I dreamed about it for years. Unfortunately, I won't be able to play in the International games this summer," said Wagner.

The timetable for his recovery from the ankle injury is still unclear.

Ricky Rubio (Spain)

The Spanish point guard suffered a left knee injury right before the end of 2021 while playing for the Cleveland Cavaliers. The injury forced him to miss the rest of the season, and consequently, his presence at EuroBasket was immediately ruled out.

With both him and Sergio Llull out and veteran Sergio Rodriguez already retired from the national team, coach Sergio Scariolo has to rely heavily on naturalized player Lorenzo Brown.

Bogdan Bogdanovic (Serbia)

One of the most important players for the Serbian national team won't be available at EuroBasket. Atlanta Hawks swingman Bogdan Bogdanovic is still recovering from a knee injury and won't be able to help his national team.

This is the second straight absence for Bogdanovic, who was forced to miss the pre-Olympic tournament in 2021 because he was still playing in the Eastern Conference finals with the Atlanta Hawks.

Ante Zizic (Croatia)

One of the most surprising decisions of the summer was made by Croatia, who decided not to include Ante Zizic in the list for EuroBasket.

The former Cleveland Cavaliers big man, who joined Anadolu Efes during the offseason, was left due to a technical decision that left many people surprised since we're talking about one of the best big men in Europe.

Croatia needs to react after the disappointment caused by its elimination from the FIBA WC qualifiers. Let's see if the decision to keep Ante Zizic off the list will pay dividends for them.

Nikola Vucevic (Montenegro)

Despite initial optimism, Nikola Vucevic will not be part of Montenegro's group for EuroBasket. The Chicago Bulls big man had initially been included in the preliminary call-up list for the World Cup qualifying games, but the player was left out in the end.

The reasons behind his decision not to take part in the national team commitments were not disclosed. Still, the feeling is that after the Covid period, the player wanted to spend more time close to his family during the offseason.

Frank Ntilikina (France)

France's rotations in the backcourt will be shorter than expected. Dallas Mavericks point guard Frank Ntilikina will be unavailable for EuroBasket due to an injury.

The French federation didn't reveal the details of the injury, but the general expectation is that Ntilikina won't be available at least until mid-September.

Aleksej Pokusevski & Nikola Jovic (Serbia)

After they were initially inserted into the preliminary list of players for Serbia, there was quite the excitement about the possibility of seeing both Pokusevki and Jovic at EuroBasket.

But that excitement didn't last long since the two players were denied permission to play in the continental competition from their respective NBA teams (Oklahoma City Thunder and Miami Heat).

All players under contract with an NBA team have to receive explicit permission from their teams to play in FIBA events, and those permissions were denied in this case.

Pokusevki and Jovic are young players, and especially in the case of Jovic, who's a rookie, it was unlikely that they were getting the green light to play at EuroBasket 2022.

Jeremy Sochan (Poland)

Another NBA rookie that would have been interesting to follow at EuroBasket but unfortunately did not receive the okay from his franchise (the San Antonio Spurs) to participate in the competition.

We will still need to wait before we can see Jeremy Sochan at work in FIBA basketball.

Nando De Colo (France)

Nando De Colo is another of the top veterans in Europe that we won't be able to see in action at EuroBasket.

The new player of ASVEL decided not to be part of 'Les Blues' this time after another very long season and a couple of injuries that limited him. An absence that France will definitely feel, especially in combination with the loss of another veteran like Nicolas Batum.

Paolo Banchero (Italy)

The No. 1 pick in the 2022 NBA Draft has an Italian passport and might represent a game changer for the future of Italian basketball. But for the moment, we won't be able to see him playing at EuroBasket.

As the No.1 pick and with his focus on the draft process, it was unlikely to have him on the Italian roster this summer. As we saw for other players, NBA teams are not exactly big fans of the FIBA tournaments, and the Orlando Magic didn't want to send their top pick to Europe for the entire summer.

If Italy qualifies for the 2023 World Cup, there's a chance that Banchero could make his debut with the national team.

Victor Wembanyama (France)

Wembanyama is considered by many the No.1 pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, the hype around the French prospect is huge. Unfortunately, we won't be able to see him playing at EuroBasket.

Wembanyama is still recovering from an injury he suffered in the final part of the season with ASVEL.

Over the summer, he decided to leave the team owned by Tony Parker and joined Metropolitans 92, coached by Vincent Collet, the head coach of the French national team.

With all these changes during the offseason, it was probably the right move for the French kid to stay out of EuroBasket and focus on his recovery.

Maxi Kleber (Germany)

The Dallas Mavericks forward is among the notable absences for Germany at EuroBasket. The player decided not to join his national team this summer to rest his body after a couple of seasons in which the injuries limited him on the court.

His presence would have definitely helped coach Gordon Herbert, but Germany is already dealing with several absences, so they'll try to adapt in the best way possible.

Nicolas Batum (France)

Batum is another of the veteran players that will miss EuroBasket. Like other of his colleagues, Batum decided to rest his body a bit this summer after a couple of seasons that have been extremely demanding.

The forward, who's also a minority owner of ASVEL, wants to play in the 2024 Olympic Games that will be hosted in Paris, so taking some time off now can help him reach his future goal.

Boban Marjanovic (Serbia)

Houston Rockets big man Boban Marjanovic represents another big absence from the Serbian national team. The center wasn't even included in the preliminary roster, which probably means there have been previous discussions between the two sides in which Marjanovic expressed his will to stay out of International basketball this summer.

Marjanovic's future in the NBA is still uncertain in some ways. During the summer, he was traded to the Houston Rockets. Still, since Houston is in rebuilding mode, they might decide to use Marjanovic as a trade asset and move him again before the beginning of the regular season.

Donatas Motiejunas (Lithuania)

The Lithuanian big man decided to sit out this summer while contemplating his professional future (in the end, he re-signed with Monaco Basket for next season, too). However, he also gave his word to the Lithuanian coaching staff that he was ready to reconsider his decision in case major injuries in the big men department would have happened.

Another veteran that we won't be able to see at EuroBasket, but Lithuania remains an extremely competitive team even with his absence.

Marco Belinelli (Italy)

In March, Belinelli had stated that his main focus was on Virtus Bologna and that he didn't hear from anyone inside the Italian federation. His playing days with the Italian national team might be over already.

Although the Italian federation tried to get in touch with him again right after hiring coach Pozzecco as the new head coach, the captain of Virtus Bologna decided to stay put on his decision.

Isaac Bonga (Germany)

After a few years in the NBA, Bonga has decided to return to European basketball, joining Bayern Munich on a two-year deal.

However, he won't join the German national team and won't be a part of the squad for EuroBasket. As of right now, Germany is definitely among the teams suffering the most from injuries and absences.

Isaiah Hartenstein (Germany)

Another name, another absence for Germany. Isaiah Hartenstein signed a two-year deal with the New York Knicks during the offseason, worth around $16 million, but he won't be a part of the German NT at EuroBasket.

No injuries, in this case, just a focus on picking his NBA future.

Compiled list of missing players in EuroBasket 2022

We've named the brightest stars who definitely won't compete in the upcoming EuroBasket. However, these players are not the only ones, so let's check every country's losses.

Georgia

Tornike Shengelia

Spain

Ricky Rubio Sergio Llull Alex Abrines Santi Aldama Victor Claver Dani Diez Sergi Martinez Pierre Oriola Alberto Abalde Guillem Vives

Turkey

Omer Yurtseven

Germany

Moritz Wagner Maxi Kleber Isaiah Hartenstein Isaac Bonga Danilo Barthel Tibor Pleiss Paul Zipser Daniel Theis (questionable)

France

Frank Ntilikina Nando De Colo Nicolas Batum Victor Wembanyama Moustapha Fall Livio Jean-Charles Louis Labeyrie

Lithuania

Donatas Motiejunas Edgaras Ulanovas Arturas Gudaitis Eimantas Bendzius Tadas Sedekerskis

Estonia

Henri Vesaar

Great Britain

O.G. Anunoby

Italy

Marco Belinelli Paolo Banchero Alessandro Gentile Daniel Hackett Jeff Brooks

Montenegro

Nikola Vucevic Marko Todorovic Milko Bjelica

Croatia

Ante Zizic Dragan Bender

Poland

Jeremy Sochan Marcel Ponitka

Serbia

Bogdan Bogdanovic Vasilije Micic (questionable) Milos Teodosic Boban Marjanovic Aleksej Pokusevski Nikola Jovic Aleksa Avramovic

Czech Republic

Tomas Satoransky (questionable)

Greece

Giorgos Papagiannis (questionable) Kostas Sloukas (questionable) Kostas Antetokounmpo (questionable) Ioannis Papapetrou (questionable) Kostas Mitoglou

Belgium

Sam van Rossom

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Elmedin Kikanovic Nemanja Gordic Nihad Djedovic

Israel

T.J. Leaf

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