Bogdan Bogdanovic nearing full recovery, excited for Clippers potential entering camp

For those who follow European sports, nearly all injuries that involve muscle strains are labeled as, “ruptures.” Bogdan Bogdanovic, however, says his wasn’t a complete rupture and is thankful to be back on the court already.

“I think it wasn’t as big of an issue,” Bogdanovic said after the Clippers’ second practice this week. “It scared me at the beginning like everybody else. With a partially ruptured tendon, you never know how partially ruptured it is. It could take anywhere from 4-6 weeks of recovery. I’m in week five so I’m good. I’m feeling where I’m supposed to be. I feel good. I’ve been playing with the guys in limited amounts of minutes because I’ve been trying to run with them, do all the drills, and be able to play as well.”

This is an injury that Bogdan Bogdanovic acknowledges he’s had to deal with before, but doesn’t know if he can characterize himself as 100 percent healthy at this stage.

“It’s hard to say,” Bogdanovic added. “You never know where is your 100 percent. I’m trying to chase and be better always, but health-wise do I feel confident? Yes, I feel confident.

“I had this injury before. I know how it’s going to be. It’s a common injury for athletes. They run. Nothing you can do about it, it just happens. It wasn’t like some explosive move or something, it was some overloading or something.”

Bogdanovic is one of the few players who participates in as many international tournaments as he can when the NBA is not in-season. Led by their captain, many expected Serbia to contend for the gold medal alongside Germany and France.

Without Bogdanovic, Serbia suffered their first defeat against Alperen Sengun and Turkey in the Group stage and then were eliminated in the Round of 16 by Lauri Markkanen and Finland.

Entering the EuroBasket competition, Serbia’s Men’s National Basketball Team was the No. 2 ranked team in the world behind the United States of America. Following the tournament, Serbia was surpassed by Germany, which won gold in both the 2025 FIBA EuroBasket and the 2023 FIBA World Cup.

“It was really hard for me leave the team, as a captain that’s a really tough decision to make, but I have a really good connection with my national team over there and they understand that there is a season afterwards and they know how it goes. There will not be enough time so they let me go from the tournament.”

“After the injury, I had a few days and I got back here so we can plan a rehab. We knew it was going to be six weeks and I don’t want to miss any games from the [regular] season. I’m right where I’m supposed to be right now. Unfortunately, I missed the tournament. I wish I came fully ready how I was with the energy and goals that I had. I still think if I stayed there and I was healthy, we’d have a good chance to win the tournament. But it is what it is. It’s over, we got to move forward. I’m here now and I’m fully focused here now.”

Bogdanovic was acquired from the Clippers at the trade deadline last season in a deal that sent Terance Mann to the Atlanta Hawks. The deal gave the Clippers another scoring and playmaking option alongside James Harden, Kawhi Leonard, and Ivica Zubac.

But Bogdanovic joined the team late in the season, when the Clippers were already in the process of figuring out how to best reincorporate Kawhi Leonard and a fluid backup center situation. Despite the lack of a training camp and low pressure opportunities to familiarize himself with his new teammates, Bogdanovic quickly developed chemistry with guys like James Harden and Ivica Zubac.

Now, Bogdan Bogdanovic is hopeful that a training camp and good health will make the adjustments for everyone involved seamless.

“Trades are the toughest parts for sure,” Bogdanovic admitted. “And that was the toughest parts of my career. You work with some people for many years, and I was fortunate to stay in Atlanta for four-and-a-half, almost five years. We built a relationship with some people over there and it’s just hard, but that’s the name of the game. You’ve got to move forward.

“I was luckily traded here and the people here are so experienced and they really helped me in making the transition as smooth as it can. I already thought about it last year, that I’d hoped I would stay and I would get to have a training camp, full sessions with these guys, and just build the chemistry from zero.”

In 30 appearances with the Clippers last season, Bogdanovic averaged 11.4 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 3.2 assists per game while shooting 47.4 percent from the field and 42.7 percent from three.