The Montenegrin national basketball team appears to have found a successor to Kendrick Perry - Besiktas player Kyle Olman, "Vijesti" has learned.
The American has entered the naturalization procedure, and he is not a classic point guard, but a player who plays in the one and two positions and will be a reinforcement at EuroBasket.
Olmen has been a member of Besiktas since 2023, and before that he played for Lavrija, VEF Riga, Paris and Darussafa. With Riga he was the champion of Latvia in 2021, when he also received the MVP award in the playoffs.
This season, he is averaging 10,5 points, 2,8 rebounds and 2,8 assists for Besiktas in the Eurocup. His averages in the Turkish championship are 9,8 points and 4,2 assists.
The audience in Montenegro had the opportunity to see him in Podgorica this season, when he scored 11 points in Besiktas' victory over Buducnost Voli in the Eurocup.
Buducnost basketball player McKinley Wright was also in the running for the Montenegrin national team, but he played for the US national team in 2022.
This concludes the search for a successor to Perry, who played his last match for our national team in November last year in Botevgrad against Bulgaria in the European Championship qualifiers.
Peri finished that match with 31 points and said goodbye to the Montenegrin national team in style in what was probably the most important triumph in the qualifiers.
Peri has been an indispensable member of our team since 2022, and with his great attitude and performances, he has earned the respect of fans for all time.
It was expected that Charlie Moore would be available to coach Boško Radović in place of Perry in the final round of EuroBasket qualifiers, but Breogana injured his knee in December, so John Radebau played in his place. It was his return to the Montenegrin national team after almost three years.
So far, the following foreign players have worn the Montenegro jersey: Omar Cook, Taylor Rocheste, Tyrese Rice, Derrick Needham, Javonte Green, Justin Cobbs, Radebaut and Perry.
Moore was projected to finish in qualifying, but he didn't even make his debut.
Montenegro recently secured a place at the European Championship for the fifth time in history, and the third time in a row. In competition with Germany, Sweden and Bulgaria, our team won second place in qualifying group D.
The draw for Eurobasket is on March 27. The European Championship will be held from August 27 to September 14 in Latvia, Poland, Finland and Cyprus.
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