The Oklahoma City Thunder have a player on the roster that isn’t being talked about by the national media as a key piece of the puzzle. Not yet, that is, but soon enough Vasilije Micic could be known widely as one of the most underrated signings of the entire offseason.
At 29 years old, he’s played a ton of basketball in his day. While it’s been international experience he has gained, Micic still has a skillset and level of poise that should translate quite well. He’s an elite passer and facilitator with the ability to knock down deep threes at a high clip. Although the NBA game is very different — with much more spacing and pace — the expectation is that Micic still can be an effective lead guard off the bench. The one concern is defense, but pairing him with the right backcourt player during his minutes should help mask that.
Regardless of how talented and experienced Micic is, the reality is that he will still take time to adjust to the NBA game. On Thursday night, he played his very first minutes in a Thunder uniform in a preseason game against the Detroit Pistons. While he looked out of his comfort zone early, the 29-year-old gradually improved as the game went on. In the latter parts of the contest, he was generating steals, no-look passes and knocking down triples.
When it was all said and done, Micic finished with seven points and three assists in 17 minutes. Given how much improvement he showed within a single game, it’s safe to assume he’ll take much larger steps in the right direction as the season goes on.
Micic will need a significant amount of time on the court to truly adjust to the NBA style of play and figure out where he fits on this team, so patience is key. While he will likely make solid contributions early in the season, what he looks like late in his rookie campaign will be much different.
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