Bojan Bogdanovic playing an exhibition to honor one of the late Nets greats is the first sign he’ll be ready for training camp with Brooklyn.
Four months after undergoing foot and wrist surgery in late April, Bogdanovic, 35, is expected to return to the field next month in Croatia as part of a celebration of Drazen Petrovic, according to reports from Europe.
It will be his first game since being injured in the playoffs with the Knicks, and that suggests he’ll be ready when the Nets start training camp on Oct. 1.
When Bogdanovic had surgery, it was announced that he would be re-evaluated in three months.
It would be in July, and even if we have not yet had news of his progress, this bodes well.
Bogdanovic has committed to playing on September 5 in Zagreb, the capital of Croatia, in an exhibition match to honor what would have been Petrovic’s 60th birthday later this year, on October 22.
Like Petrovic, Bogdanovic played for Croatia and the Nets.
The former All-NBA Third Team selection from New Jersey died at age 28 in a tragic car accident in 1993 in Germany, when Bogdanovic was just four years old.
Bogdanovic began his NBA career in Brooklyn, playing for the Nets from 2014 to 2017 before being traded.
He was brought back as part of the Mikal Bridges trade this offseason.
Despite questions about whether he would seek a buyout, Bogdanovic has remained silent since the trade.
Bogdanovic, a stellar shooter, averaged 15.6 points over his 10-year NBA career on .460/.394/.859 shooting averages, including 15.2 points on .454/.398/.785 shooting averages in 2023-24.
But it was a tale of two seasons, hitting 20.2 points on .468/.415/.779 with rebuilding Detroit before joining the Knicks at the deadline.
The forward saw his production and efficiency drop to just 10.4 points at .430/.370/.800 in 29 games, hampered by the wrist injury before injuring his foot in the playoffs.
