Dario Saric: 'I am glad that the Federation strengthened us with an American player' / News - Basketnews.com

Credit: FIBA Credit FIBA

Dario Saric has been a constant leader of the Croatian national team for years. After a serious injury that caused him to miss the entire last season with the Phoenix Suns, he has recovered and is ready to play at the upcoming EuroBasket.

Dario Saric

Position:PFAge:28Height:208 cmWeight:104 kgBirth place:Šibenik, CroatiaProfileNewsStatistics

"I missed the national team. It is always an honor for me to play for Croatia," Saric began his interview following the practice with the national team.

"I feel great to be back on the court. I've been training for some time, all with the goal of being as ready as possible for all the challenges," said Saric.

Saric will play without any restrictions at the EuroBasket as he's fully healed. Croatia in the upcoming EuroBasket will face Greece, Great Britain, Estonia, Italy, and Ukraine in group C.

"Whoever performs the best in the preparations deserves to play in the EuroBasket, I will personally do my best in practices," said the 28-year-old.

In addition to Saric, Croatia has two more NBA players: Bojan Bogdanovic from the Utah Jazz and Ivica Zubac from the Los Angeles Clippers.

Saric mentioned that he had an argument with the Suns head coach, but expects to return to Phoenix.

"For now, the plan is to return to Phoenix. I had an argument with the coach, but you never know those things in the NBA workout," said the forward.

"I'm not worried too much, I'm trying to come back from injury and my focus is on the national team," added Saric.

Croatia has one new name on the national team for the upcoming EuroBasket - Jaleen Smith. Saric was happy with the addition.

"I am glad that the Federation decided to strengthen us with an American player. He [Jaleen Smith] has only been with the team for a few days and we should be realistic with our expectations. We are still getting used to each other," Saric explained.

Everyone in Croatia is aware of the results of the previous decades. Disappointments continue from year to year, and the last one was against Finland, which shocked the Croatians, after which they lost the opportunity to qualify for the next year's World Cup.

"The previous results are such that we cannot expect anything big at the EuroBasket. We have 12 guys who are ready to fight," said the Croatian national team veteran.

"We go from game to game and that's the only way we can think. It's difficult to talk about expectations at the tournament at this moment," Saric concluded.

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