Mirza Teletović carved out quite a career in Europe as a top scorer and international star, waiting until he was 27 to jump to the NBA and fall out of the Nets’ rotation, reports nydailynews.com
Despite his position near the end of Brooklyn’s bench, the Bosnian said Wednesday he has no intention of returning overseas.
“No,” he said flatly about going back to Europe, where Teletović was last season’s leading scorer of the Euroleague. “Never going to happen.
“I’m going to prove some stuff.”
Teletović referenced the story of his idol, Dra#en Petrović, who didn’t get a real opportunity to play until midway through his second season in the NBA, having been reduced to “garbage time” until he was traded from the Trailblazers to the Nets.
“The first year I know a lot of European players who came over, even many years before, even the first guys that came over from Yugoslavia — we have a legend who has his jersey retired and he didn’t play at all,” Teletović said.
At 6-9, Teletović has mostly been used at power forward by PJ Carlesimo. He briefly had a consistent role in the rotation after Carlesimo stated “Mirza is the biggest piece we have to address.”
That lasted about seven games before Kris Humphries took that frontcourt spot in the rotation.
“You have to deal with it. It is what it is,” Teletović said. “You have to learn from it and be ready every time you get in and try to do your best.”
Teletović is in the first season of a three-year, $10 million deal, representing one of only five players on the roster signed through 2015.
“I could play both (power forward and small forward),” he said when asked about his potential at a different position. “I never got a chance to play the three, though. But I think I could play both. Of course the match ups are different to guard and everything but I think I’d be capable of playing the 3 too.”
