Center Balsa Koprivica has signed with KK Partizan, the Serbian club announced today in a press release. According to the team, the deal is for three years.
Koprivica, who spent two seasons at Florida State, averaged 9.1 PPG, 5.6 RPG, and 1.4 BPG in 24 games (19.5 MPG) in 2020/21. He declared for the draft following his sophomore year and was selected with the No. 57 overall pick. Although the Hornets technically drafted him, they did so on behalf of the Pistons, who officially acquired his draft rights after the new league year began.
Koprivica was one of four players the Pistons added in last month’s draft. While Cade Cunningham and Isaiah Livers received standard contracts and Luka Garza got a two-way deal, there wasn’t room on the roster for Koprivica, who will be stashed overseas for at least a season. His new contract with Partizan covers three years, but I expect it will include NBA outs.
Koprivica, 21, was born in Belgrade and lived in Serbia until 2012, so his deal with Partizan represents a homecoming.
As our tracker shows, Koprivica is the fourth player from the 2021 draft class to be stashed overseas, joining Rokas Jokubaitis (Knicks), Juhann Begarin (Celtics), and Filip Petrusev (Sixers).
By my count, 3 nations produced 2 NBA draft 2021 players, tied for second behind USA: Spain (both firsts), Canada, Serbia (both stashed). Lots tied with one.
Good move to let him play there. He’s got good size. Draft and stash works well for teams. Pistons will be looking for center for a few years.