Hezonja Returns to the NBA, Osman to PAOK: The Balkans Are Shaping European Basketball

Hezonja Leaves Real and Returns to the NBA

When a Balkan player turns down a contract through 2029 to head to the NBA, it isn't a whim - it's a statement that he still believes in himself on the biggest stage. Mario Hezonja has informed Real Madrid he is leaving for the NBA, activating the exit clause valid until 20 July. The buyout is around the standard 850,000 dollars. The Croatian arrives after an excellent EuroLeague season in which he was pivotal in Real's run to the final - averaging 13.3 points, 4.1 rebounds and 2.4 assists in 23 minutes, and at the Final Four he was unstoppable. In the semi-final against Valencia he dropped 25 points on 8-of-14 shooting with an index of 33, and in the final against Olympiacos added 19 points, 5 assists and 4 steals. Picked fifth overall in 2015, he has already played 330 NBA games. Now, at 31, he gets a second chance - this time as a mature player, not as a promise.

Ohrid-Born Cedi Osman Signs for PAOK

Born in Ohrid, and one of the biggest transfers of the summer in European basketball - a reminder that our people play on the biggest stages. Cedi Osman landed in Thessaloniki, where he will officially complete his move to PAOK. The Turkish international, born in Ohrid, leaves Panathinaikos early - even though he extended his deal to 2027 back in 2025 - and signs a three-year contract worth 9 million euros. It's a clear boost for PAOK's ambitious project under new coach Andrea Trinchieri, who has already brought in names like Nikos Kalathes, Trevor Hudgins and Marcus Foster. Last season Osman was a key link at Panathinaikos, averaging 12.9 points across 39 EuroLeague games. From Ohrid to Europe's biggest arenas - the road is not short, but Osman walked it.

Towns Sends a Message to Wembanyama After the NBA Title

New York is on top again after 53 years, and one man doesn't want all the glory to go to the league's future star. Karl-Anthony Towns openly said that Victor Wembanyama is a generational talent and the NBA's next star - but that he is a generational talent too, only his generation "hasn't passed yet." The Knicks beat the Spurs in the final in a five-game series, and Towns was the engine: as the primary defender of the French phenomenon, he held Wembanyama to just 42.3 percent from the field. In the first two games in San Antonio he scored 18 and 21 points with around ten rebounds each and stole the home advantage. Even as his numbers dropped over the series - 13 points and 10.6 rebounds - his imprint on New York's first title in more than half a century is undeniable. Sometimes legends aren't written with the biggest numbers, but with the most important ones.

Macedonia's Young Hopes Finished Ninth at the Euros

Five wins, two losses and ninth place - for Macedonia's young basketball this is a season to build on. The men's under-20 side closed out the European Championship (Division B) in Bratislava with a convincing 91:81 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina, a third straight in the placement playoffs. Against BiH the most efficient was Sergej Mladenovski with 17 points, Marko Lukanoski added 15, Bojan Dimitriev 12. The team of coach Nikola Velev beat Slovakia and Azerbaijan in the group, lost to Ireland and Sweden, then went on to overcome Georgia, the Netherlands and BiH. The gold went to Ukraine with seven wins. Ninth place is no medal, but it's a foundation - and it is exactly on such generations that the future of our basketball rests.

Vasilevski Back in MZT's Blue-and-White Flock

Macedonia's champions keep building a roster of homegrown names - and not by accident. Nikola Vasilevski is once again a player of MZT Skopje, a club he knows well from before. He is a 23-year-old guard, 190 centimetres tall, with appearances for Macedonia's senior national team too. Last season he defended the colours of Kožuv, and before that played for TFT and Bosnia's Promo; five years ago he was also part of MZT Skopje Uni Banka. From the champions' camp the message is clear: with Vasilevski's return the team keeps building with quality Macedonian players who know the club's system and know what it means to wear the blue-and-white shirt. At a time when everyone is chasing foreigners, MZT reminds itself that homegrown talent delivers results too.