It seemed like he was saying goodbye, but in fact it was just a goodbye: American playmaker Kendrick Perry once again donned the jersey of the Montenegrin national team, to which he said goodbye in a very emotional way on November 25th of last year.
With a powerful performance (31 points) in a away game against Bulgaria, Peri almost earned our team a place in the EuroBasket, in which he did not appear.
A year later, the great Unicaja basketball player is back - he led the younger guys, a new generation, in the difficult qualifications for the World Basketball Championship.
It started off with a bang - a defeat to Portugal in Podgorica, then a win in Romania. The Reds have a long road ahead of them, but the 32-year-old Peri is looking forward to new challenges; and is embracing his new role.
"Ever since I first got the chance to play for Montenegro, I felt proud of it. I knew something about Montenegro as a country, I learned more and more through my time here - and a strong bond, a sense of pride and belonging was created. I don't take playing for the national team for granted - it's not something where I just come, play and leave, on the contrary: I try to give my best, because many athletes don't have the chance to represent a country on the biggest stage", Peri tells Meridiansports.
He played many good games for the national team – one of the most memorable was the game against "his" America at the 2024 Basketball World Cup, which Montenegro finished in a phenomenal 11th place.
"It's not just the games, I remember many other details. The experiences I had with the guys, from the World Basketball Championship and the EuroBasket, to just hanging out in hotels, getting to know each other, getting to know the families - those are the things that stay and are bigger than basketball. I still have great relationships with all the guys I played with before. I recently met Bojan Dubljević in Zaragoza - it's like we never parted ways," says Kendrick Perry.
Last year, he said goodbye to the national team jersey - and that was when he was at his peak...
"I said goodbye at a time when I was both physically and emotionally overwhelmed - I felt exhausted. That's why I made the decision to withdraw, because I felt my head and body weren't ready. It wouldn't be fair to others either."
Luckily, he came back.
"I feel mentally and physically refreshed now - that's why I decided to come back and try to help the new generation of our players."
"New" Montenegro presented itself at the start of the World Cup qualifiers - he says he remembers some of the guys from before...
"When I was at Buducnost and even earlier at Cedevita, many of these guys were young, just coming up, even playing for junior teams. It's nice to see where their hard work has led them - to the national team, which is a great reward for the effort they put in. I had a similar experience with Simonovic and Drobnjak, whom I met even before we met in the national team."
His role is now more complex than before - the guy from Florida is the leader of the team.
"That role is something I'm proud of - and I'm excited to be given the opportunity to help the team in any way I can. My job is to lead my teammate to the best of my ability."
He started "under the radar": in Hungary and Macedonia, before breaking onto the big stage - France, the ABA League (Cedevita, Buducnost), briefly Panathinaikos, and from 2022, Unicaja, Spain.
With the team from Malaga, he won the FIBA Champions League twice, the Spanish Cup twice, and was the MVP of both competitions.
"We are a confident group, and we always have been - we try not to look too far ahead - our goal is to get into the ACB playoffs, preferably with home-field advantage. It is crucial to keep a good record, but now the focus is on everyone who was on international duty returning healthy and focused, and to take it day by day - when the playoffs come, the time for the real fight, I am sure we will be at our best."
Perry concludes with style:
"Basketball is a game I am very passionate about - I understand that I am closer to the end than the beginning of my career and I appreciate every opportunity I get to play the game I love, the game I grew up with. I have never seen it as a job, but only as a love and passion."
Bonus video:
