76ers' Brown: Rookie Saric is 'no kid'
Dario Saric is only 22 years old, so most basketball fans would consider the Croatian forward very green compared to the players he'll be going up against at the NBA level.
Philadelphia 76ers head coach Brett Brown would tend to disagree with that assessment, though.
"He sort of contradicts his birth certificate in that his basketball experiences are rich," Brown said Thursday at his annual media luncheon, according to CSN Philly's Jessica Camerato. "He’s not a kid. He’s no kid. He’s 22, but he’s no kid.
"He’s played in the EuroLeague. He’s played in the Turkish National League, one of the top three leagues … he played a prominent role throughout Rio de Janeiro."
Related: Brett Brown likens Croatia's Saric to young Ginobili
Saric indeed played his fair share of basketball before making it over to America.
He began his professional career at the young age of 15, suiting up for Zrinjevac in Croatia. His early resume speaks for itself, as Saric was the FIBA Europe Under-16 Championship MVP, Euroleague Junior Tournament MVP, FIBA Europe Under-18 Championship MVP. a Croatian League Finals MVP, Adriatic League MVP, and Turkish President's Cup MVP, to name a few of his accomplishments.
Representing Croatia at the Summer Olympics in Brazil, Saric averaged 11.8 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 3.2 assists while shooting 43.1 percent from the field. Croatia was ultimately bounced by Serbia - which later advanced to the gold-medal game against the USA - in the quarterfinals, 86-83.
Saric signed with the 76ers prior to the Olympics, two years after being selected 12th overall by the Orlando Magic. As far as his role this year, Brown will take time assessing his revamped roster, to decide where and how Saric will fall into place.
"I said it this summer and I’ll say it again, we’re learning. To come in here and say we know exactly how this is going to work, I’m not doing that because that’s not true," Brown added. "You think maybe he’ll go to a three and he’ll do something as a four and sometimes you want to play small ball, he can play a five. You’re just continuing to learn about these guys as they all finally have real time experiences on the court together."