Nikola Vucevic has proven to be an important member of the Orlando Magic franchise, thanks to his consistent performances on the field that have allowed him to almost double-double throughout his professional career. The Swiss-born, 7-foot-tall Montenegrin center was originally selected by the Philadelphia 76ers in the 2011 NBA Draft after a three-year career at the University of Southern California.
Who is Nikola Vucevic?
On October 24, 1990, in Morges, Switzerland, Nikola Vucevic was born to his parents; Borislav and Ljiljana Vucevic raised him in Belgium before later settling in Montenegro. From an early age, Vucevic was considered basketball’s next great thing, due to his towering height and the sheer amount of talent he displayed.
In 2007, the young Montenegrin was named the best young player in Montenegro. Hoping that their son would one day play with the best basketball players in the NBA, Vucevic’s parents had sent him to high school in the United States. He was enrolled at Stoneridge Prep in Simi Valley, California where he played his senior year of high school basketball. Vucevic averaged 18 points and 12 rebounds per game that year to earn a scholarship to attend the University of Southern California.
Other NBA Star Facts
University career
In his freshman year, Nikola Vucevic struggled to impress as he averaged just 2.6 points and 2.7 rebounds in 23 games. As a sophomore, however, Vucevic found his game by starting all 30 games for his school, averaging 10.7 points and 9.4 rebounds per game, while leading the Pac-10 in rebounds and blocks.
The following year, Vucevic garnered a first-team All-Pac-10 selection after averaging 17.1 points and 10.3 rebounds per game in college. At the end of the season, Vucevic announced that he was forgoing his third year of college to enter the 2011 NBA draft, where he was selected by the Philadelphia 76ers with the 16th overall pick.
NBA Career
Nikola Vucevic spent the first months of his professional career in Montenegro due to the NBA lockout in 2011. He then returned to the team when the lockout was lifted and played the remainder of the 2011 season- 12 in which he averaged 5.5 points and 4.8 rebounds per game.
At the start of his second professional season, Vucevic found himself subject to a four-team trade that landed him with the Orlando Magic. That year, he averaged 13.1 points and 11.9 rebounds per game in 77 games. Orlando has since signed a long-term contract with his center that will see him stay with the team until at least the 2018-19 season.
Family – Parents
Nikola Vucevic comes from a very athletic and basketball-playing family while his father and mother played football at a professional level. Vucevic’s father Borislav played professional basketball for 24 years in different teams across Europe and also for the Yugoslavia national team. Borislav was notably part of the KK Bosna team from Sarajevo in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which won the European Champions Cup in 1979. Besides, his mother, Ljiljana, also played for the Yugoslav national team, then for a another club based in Sarajevo, Zeljeznicar.
women
Nikola Vucevic is married to his childhood sweetheart, Nikoleta Pavlovic. The pair are said to have first met in Montenegro in their early teens before Vucevic moved to the United States. His older brother, Aleksandar “Sasa” Pavlovic, who played in the NBA for teams like Utah Jazz, Cleveland Cavaliers, Dallas Mavericks and Boston Celtics, acted as a mentor for Vucevic, which strengthened the bond between the couple. .
Nikoleta Pavlovic was born on November 9, 1989 in Bar, SR Montenegro. She herself is an outstanding volleyball player who attended Queens College and graduated in graphic design. The couple will surely pass on powerful athletic genes to their children when they decide to start a family.
Body measurements
Nikola Vucevic is one of the tallest players in his team with a height of 2.13m (7ft 0in). It additionally weighs 260 kg (118 kg) and has a wingspan of 2.23 m (7 ft 4 in).
Contract and salary
In October 2014, Nikola Vucevic signed a four-year, $53 million contract extension with Orlando. This brought his average annual salary to around $13.2 million. The former Philadelphia 76er was making around $1.9 million a year on his original four-year, $7.9 million contract, signed in 2011.