Captain of the U17 national basketball team of BiH Džanan Musa said that his talent was shaped by the former basketball player and the current member of the administration of the Basketball Federation of BiH Sejo Bukva.
When asked why he chose to play for Cedevita Zagreb instead of Olympiacos from Greece, Musa said that everything changed in the last minute.
“That was already over on the paper and I went to Athens for medical examinations, I had it all done, passed all the tests, the contract came and 15 minute prior to my signing the offer from Cedevita came, asking how much it takes for me to go to Zagreb and abandon the idea of Olympiacos. That was a clear indicator that they really had a thing for me and want me to be their member and that impresses me, especially because it would keep me close to home, the language barrier does not exist, so I opted for Zagreb in the end. There is enough time for greater ventures, because I intend to go to NBA right after Cedevita. I think I chose a smarter and better path for myself because already next season great things are expected of me and I will give my best to build myself somehow until I reach 18, so I can be a competition in the NBA and build myself as a player and the game holder along with some other players in the A team,” Musa said.
Musa hopes to go to NBA in some two years from now.
“I hope I will go to NBA in two years. Until then, I am staying in Cedevita regardless of the offers that might arrive, I am very happy and satisfied in Cedevita and I want to fill all their expectations and be at the disposal for the club. If you could only see how they treat one 17-year-old… It is one organization, Cedevita has six halls and they simply build game through young players, which they have shown this year when we had three or five players under 20 years of age. Playing the Euro league with young players is very courageous and in the coming period I want us to build this path with several other young players so that everyone in Europe can see that a greater level can be achieved with young players,” Džanan said.
When asked whether he was offered a senior post in the national team, Musa said:
“That’s right. I must point out that this year I am already joining the senior team after the U17 championship. After the World Championships, I am going to Bihać for a 20-day vacation and then I am going to the senior national team for qualifications for the next Eurobasket. I spoke with Teletović the other day about the national team. The older teammates like me because I bring some joy in the locker room and when we lose I make a joke and we all laugh. I just love to be accepted by the older players, that is something very special when you are the youngest and everybody is happy when you enter the locker room,” Musa said.
Musa spoke about how it was for the coach Josip Pandža to deal with him and his teammates from the national team:
“In the beginning he dealt with us very hard because we came as individuals. Njegoš Sikiraš was a star in his team, I was the star in my team, Sani Čampara was a star in his team, but we were not aware of the fact that both Josip Pandža and Enes Numanović are also stars, so there are no stars with them. We came and tried to build something ours, but we failed. He lowered us to the ground very fast and showed us where we really are and that is why we won the European Championships in the end,” Musa said.
The U17 national basketball team of BiH is to play at the World Championships in Spain between June 23 and July 3. After the golden medal from the European Championships in 2015, nothing less is expected from this upcoming competition.
(Source: nap.ba/photo: avaz.ba)
